The Central Iowa Emergency Rental Assistance study, which launched in August, aims to determine how long low-income families need to receive rental assistance during a crisis so that they don’t lose housing.
The study is being led by the Mid-Iowa Health Foundation’s UpLift initiative. UpLift project manager Ashley Ezzio said rental assistance is offered in Iowa, but most programs provide different payment amounts for different lengths of time. She said local programs typically won’t cover the full cost of rent or they will provide a one-time payment that can only be accessed once every 12 or 18 months.
Ezzio said there isn’t a lot of local research behind these parameters, and that’s what she hopes to provide with the new study.
“We’re providing one, three or six months of assistance through a randomized control trial," she said. "So what is that length of time that really gives folks the intervention during a crisis to regain stability."
Ezzio said the study is a homelessness prevention effort because emergency rental assistance often keeps a family from losing housing after a crisis. She said the study will also look at people in temporary housing.
“But what about the folks who are really struggling not to fall below that line? Staying in extended stays has not only financial repercussions, but moving children, schools, physical environments,” she said.
Ezzio said people who are living in extended stay hotels or their cars aren’t deemed homeless because they technically have a roof over their head, but they don’t have stable housing or finances. She said the goal is to inform local leaders of what gaps need to be filled to keep people out of the homelessness system, whether they’re at risk of entering it or they’re trying to stay out of it.
Researchers from Grinnell College are looking at 780 low-income families living in Polk, Dallas and Warren counties, who are experiencing a crisis. A control group will receive no assistance from UpLift, although they can utilize local assistance programs. Other participants will give feedback as UpLift provides them with assistance for different lengths of time.
Mid-Iowa Health Foundation CEO Nalo Johnson said the organization wanted to launch the study because emergency rental assistance is one of the most requested referrals, and community nonprofits say there are limited opportunities for residents right now.
Johnson added that the effectiveness of Iowa’s existing programs hasn’t been studied enough.
“We believe there is value to being able to bring forward some research-based recommendations so that we can ensure that these programs are able to be designed in a way that they are actually achieving the outcomes of keeping people stably housed,” Johnson said, adding that the research can inform existing programs and help design new ones.
The UpLift team plans to share their results and recommendations to the public in August 2028.
