Below is a summary of the Temporary Rental and Utility Assistance (TRUA) program. More detailed information and program requirements are outlined in the following sections.
Available Assistance (see below for complete guidelines)
The TRUA Program offers three types of assistance to eligible renter households:
- Rental Assistance – Up to 6 months of rental assistance may be provided one time. This may include rental arrears, the current month’s rent, and up to one month of future rent.
- Utility Assistance – Assistance may be provided for current and past-due bills from Denver Water and/or Xcel Energy (electric, gas). Utility assistance may be provided one time per utility and will only be provided at the same time as rental assistance; households may not apply for standalone utility assistance.
- Relocation Assistance – Only available in instances when eviction cannot be prevented. This may include security deposit, first month’s rent, application fees, and other eligible move-in costs. Deposit and first month’s rent will count as one month each toward the 6-month maximum. Relocation assistance may be provided one time and will only be provided at the same time as rental assistance.
Minimum Eligibility Criteria (see below for complete guidelines)
- Household income must not exceed 80% Area Median Income (AMI)
- Household must be experiencing a financial hardship
- The residence for which assistance is being requested must be the primary residence and located in both the City AND County of Denver
Minimum Documentation Requirements (see below for complete guidelines)
Applicant must provide at least one document for each category below. Agency may request additional documents as needed, including ones not listed here.
- Proof of Income (for each person 18 years of age and older) can include, but is not limited to:
- Pay stubs
- Tax returns (most recent filing)
- Bank statements
- Evidence of Tenancy can include, but is not limited to:
- Signed lease agreement
- Official document showing Tenant’s name and address, such as rental ledger, utility bill, driver’s license, or pay stubs
- Evidence of Rent Due can include, but is not limited to:
- Signed lease agreement
- Tenant ledger
- Demand or eviction notice
- Past payment receipts
- Evidence of Financial Hardship can include, but is not limited to:
- Self-attestation within the online application
- Additional documents may be requested on a case-by-case basis
- Photo Identification
- Valid photo identification issued by any governmental entity (U.S. or foreign)
- All other acceptable forms of identification are listed below
For purposes of these guidelines, terms are defined as follows:
- “Tenant” (interchangeable with “Applicant”) means the individual or household who is a renter, meaning they have obtained rental housing from a Landlord or Property Manager.
- “Landlord” or “Property Manager” means the individual(s), agent(s), operator(s), or entity(ies) contracted by the Property Owner to manage the residential rental property and which may be the Property Owner.
- “Property Owner” or “Homeowner” means the individual(s) or entity(ies) that is the fee simple or leasehold owner of the residential rental property used as the primary residence for Tenant.
- “Applicant” (interchangeable with “Tenant”) means the individual or household who is applying for TRUA rental and/or utility assistance.
- “Agency” means the organization(s) or entity(ies) contracted by the City and County of Denver to provide program-related services, such as application review and administration of funds, on behalf of the City and County of Denver.
Households may only apply for TRUA assistance if they have a current Demand for Rent or Possession from their landlord or have an active eviction case (FED) at the time of application. Households who receive funding from TRUA in 2025 may not re-apply for additional funds in 2025 and will not be eligible to receive TRUA in 2026.
Applications will be accepted beginning on the third Tuesday of each month (see below for schedule), and the application portal will close once capacity has been reached for the month.
After this period, there will be a random selection, and selected applicants will be invited by email to provide additional information in order to complete the application process. Applicants who are not selected will be notified and are welcome to apply again in future months. Interested applicants may submit one application per household per month.
Applicants should monitor their email inboxes closely for application updates and notifications and respond promptly to requests for additional information.
The TRUA application portal will open at midnight (12 a.m. MT) on the following days:
- Tuesday, January 21, 2025
- Tuesday, February 18, 2025
- Tuesday, March 18, 2025
- Tuesday, April 15, 2025
- Tuesday, May 20, 2025
- Tuesday, June 17, 2025
- Tuesday, July 15, 2025
- Tuesday, August 19, 2025
- Tuesday, September 16, 2025
- Tuesday, October 21, 2025
- Tuesday, November 18, 2025
- Tuesday, December 16, 2025
For further clarification or to learn about other resources that may be available to you, please contact the CARE Center Monday - Friday, 8:30 am - 5:30 pm MT:
All assistance is provided based on eligibility and availability of program funds. Funding is not guaranteed. Applicants may not receive all types of assistance requested in the application. Eligibility for TRUA funding is determined by the reviewing agency assigned to the case. Not all eligible households who apply for TRUA will receive assistance.
The TRUA program is not intended to provide perpetual, ongoing assistance beyond the allowable maximums as outlined below. Assistance is intended to benefit Applicants who are facing imminent eviction and/or at risk of homelessness and are not able to meet their monthly housing expenses due to unexpected financial hardship.
If Applicant has moved since applying, all required documentation must be provided for the new residence.
Rental Assistance
TRUA may provide a single occurrence of up to 6 months of rental assistance to an eligible household. This may include unpaid rental arrears, the current month’s rent, and/or one future month’s rent. Security deposit and first month’s rent will count as one month each toward the 6-month maximum. A month is considered current until the 14th day of that month. On the 15th day of that month or afterward, the month is considered in arrears (a.k.a. past-due) and the subsequent month is considered current. The months for which assistance is received do not need to be consecutive.
To best promote housing stability, rental assistance may include payments for former rental units, at which Applicant no longer resides, if:
- The former rental unit was Applicant’s primary residence;
- The former rental unit is located within the City AND County of Denver boundaries; and
- Evidence of Tenancy and Primary Residency (see below for complete guidance) is provided for the former rental unit.
Assistance may also include late fees, attorney’s fees, and posting fees with documentation of reasonableness, applicable lease terms, and verification that the costs were allowable under local and State law at the time the fees were charged. In addition, rent or rental bonds, where a tenant posts a bond with a court as a condition to obtaining a hearing, reopening an eviction action, appealing an order of eviction, reinstating a lease, or otherwise avoiding an eviction order, may also be considered an eligible expense. For more information on renter protections and permitted charges, please access the Denver Tenant Rights and Resources Guide online (www.denvergov.org/EvictionHelp) or refer to the copy provided to Tenant by Landlord upon signing and execution of any written lease agreement.
Rental assistance is not available to homeowners seeking assistance with mortgage costs; The City and County of Denver Department of Housing Stability (HOST) offers financial and legal assistance programs specifically for homeowners (www.denvergov.org/ForeclosureHelp).
Utility Assistance
Agency may provide eligible households with a single occurrence of utility assistance per utility. Utility assistance is paid directly to Denver Water and/or Xcel Energy (electric, gas) and may only be provided at the same time as rental assistance. Utility assistance may only be paid for unpaid bills addressed to the property at which Applicant currently and primarily resides. Utility assistance payments are not permitted to cover past-due balances (arrears) for a former residence nor future utility charges. The assistance is designed to prevent disconnection of utility services by assisting low- and moderate-income residents experiencing a financial crisis.
To receive utility assistance, the following criteria must be met:
- Applicant must provide proof of tenancy for the property located within the City AND County of Denver boundaries at which they reside in the form of an executed lease agreement (signed by both Tenant and Landlord), or alternative evidence of residency in accordance with the Program Guidelines. The residence must be the Applicant’s current primary residence.
- Assistance will not exceed one occurrence per utility.
- Utility assistance may include a one-time utility deposit. Utility deposit payments will count towards Applicant’s single occurrence of utility assistance per utility.
As of 2025, utility assistance is not available to homeowners through TRUA. Energy Outreach Colorado (EOC) (www.energyoutreach.org) assists limited-income Coloradans with energy bills, furnace repairs, solar subscriptions, and energy efficiency upgrades, working with homeowners, renters, nonprofit facilities, and multifamily properties.
Relocation Assistance
Relocation assistance is only available in instances when eviction cannot be prevented. Relocation assistance may include unpaid application fees, security deposit assistance, and/or rental assistance if Agency is unable to help mitigate involuntary displacement from Applicant’s current residence. To provide relocation assistance, the following criteria must be met:
- Tenant must demonstrate or attest to risk of involuntary displacement, which may include but is not limited to eviction, hazardous conditions, landlord refusal to renew lease, etc.
- Tenant cannot have been displaced from a previous residence for more than 90 days at the time of application submission.
- Tenant must provide proof of tenancy at a rental unit or property within the City AND County of Denver for the period of time immediately prior to displacement.
- Tenant must provide proof of Landlord approval for a future rental unit or property within the City AND County of Denver.
Security deposit and/or first month’s rent payments will be made to the individual/vendor to whom the funds are due on behalf of Tenant. Deposit and first month’s rent will count as one month each toward the 6-month maximum. Application fees will not count toward the 6-month maximum.
Relocation assistance can be provided in conjunction with or separately from rental assistance and is counted toward the one occurrence of allowable rental assistance. If Applicant is eligible to receive both rental assistance and relocation assistance, relocation assistance must be provided concurrently with the single occurrence of rental assistance provided.
To be eligible for assistance from TRUA, Applicant must meet the following criteria:
To be eligible for assistance from TRUA, Applicant must meet the following criteria:
- Income Requirements
The total of Applicant’s current annualized household income must not exceed 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI) for Denver County based on the size of the Applicant household (https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il.html).
- Evidence of Financial Hardship
Applicant must attest that at least one member of the household has experienced a reduction in household income, incurred significant costs, or experienced another type of financial hardship. Some examples of financial hardship may include:
- Loss of employment or other income,
- Reduction in income,
- Unexpected expenses such as medical or car repair bills.
- City and County of Denver Resident
Applicant’s primary residence for which they are requesting rental and/or utility assistance must be within both the City AND County of Denver. Agencies will verify Applicant’s primary residence is in the City and County of Denver using Denver Assessor’s Office property records (https://denvergov.org/property).
Households currently supported with a housing voucher are eligible to apply. The program may only pay for the tenant portion of the rent for households with housing vouchers.
U.S. citizenship is not a requirement for eligibility, nor disclosure of immigration status.
Each Applicant household must provide documentation that the current total annualized household income does not exceed 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI). The following income limits, set by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), should be used to determine 80% of the AMI for Denver County based on the size of the household (https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il.html).
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2024-2025 HUD Income Limits
|
|
Area Median Income (AMI)
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HOUSEHOLD SIZE
|
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
6
|
|
80%
|
$71,900
|
$82,150
|
$92,400
|
$102,650
|
$110,900
|
$119,100
|
|
50%
|
$45,650
|
$52,200
|
$58,700
|
$65,200
|
$70,450
|
$75,650
|
|
30%
|
$27,400
|
$31,300
|
$35,200
|
$39,100
|
$42,250
|
$45,400
|
In the case of unrelated roommates, when Tenant pays another tenant who is the person named in the lease (a.k.a. named leaseholder), or when Tenant pays the Landlord directly for a portion of the rent, Tenant and Tenant’s dependents/spouse/partner may be considered a separate household for the purpose of household income calculation.
Income documents must be submitted for all household members 18 years of age and older. Unemployment insurance benefits are included in income calculations. Acceptable documents for income verification include but are not limited to:
- All pay stubs or pay summary received for the 30 days directly prior to the date of application or the date on which Applicant submits all required documentation for application processing; or
- The current year submitted tax filing; or
- Unredacted statements from a bank or other financial institution
Applicant must provide proof of current (and/or former) tenancy – during the month(s) for which rental/utility assistance is being requested – for the property(ies) at which they reside(d), and for which said assistance is being requested. The residence must be (or have been) the Applicant’s primary residence and must be located within the City AND County of Denver boundaries.
Applicant must provide at least one of the following:
- Executed lease agreement (signed by both Tenant and Landlord) or rental ledger that names Tenant as tenant of property; or
- Driver’s license or other government-issued ID showing address of property; or
- Income information (e.g., pay stubs, bank statements) showing Applicant’s name and property address; or
- Current utility bill or other official business mail addressed to Applicant at property address; or
- Eviction documentation such as a court summons; or
- Evidence of prior rent payments made by Tenant to Landlord.
If Tenant is not named in the lease, evidence of prior rent payments made by Tenant to named leaseholder will not suffice to establish tenancy. Agency will request additional documents to verify tenancy as needed.
Tenant must provide information of their recurring rent payment amount. This may include:
- If available, a copy of an executed lease agreement or other written agreement, such as a rental ledger from Landlord, that names Tenant as tenant of property, rent amount, and due date.
- If Tenant is not named in the lease, proof of at least one payment made by Tenant to Landlord or named leaseholder for the month immediately prior to the first month for which assistance is requested. Proof may include:
- Copy of a check; or
- Bank statement or ledger from Venmo, Cash App, PayPal, or other financial institution (may include hotel/motel occupancy ledger report); or
- Money order/cashier’s check receipt; or
- If paid in cash, a receipt or affidavit from Landlord; or
- In roommate situations, a receipt or affidavit from the person who is named in the lease plus proof of deposit of that payment.
- Should Tenant have one or more months of rent in arrears, documentation may include past-due notices, emails from Landlord, rental ledger from Landlord, or other applicable documents as available.
To protect against fraud, additional attention will be paid to the case if Landlord and Tenant are related in order to establish a tenant/landlord relationship and to prove that previous payment has been made prior to the request for rental/utility assistance. This may include copies of checks, bank statement/ledger from Venmo, Cash App, PayPal, or another financial institution, money order/cashier’s check receipt, and/or signed Landlord tax documents showing rental income.
Examples of a financial hardship include but are not limited to:
- Loss of employment or reduction in income,
- Unexpected expenses, such as medical bills or car repair payments,
- Rent increase, which makes current housing and/or utility payments unaffordable.
Applicant will be required to state their financial hardship in the online application. Additional information and/or documentation of the hardship may be requested by Agency as needed on a case-by-case basis.
Agency must confirm Applicant’s identity by requiring Applicant to produce at least one of the following forms of photo identification:
- Valid driver’s license or identification card issued from any U.S. State or Territory; or
- Valid U.S. military or military dependent identification card; or
- Valid U.S. Coast Guard Merchant Mariner card; or
- Valid Native American Tribal Document; or
- Valid document issued by any instrumentality of government (U.S. or foreign), or
- Valid document issued by an educational institution (U.S. or foreign), or
- Other photo ID that includes applicant’s name.
Where Tenant differs from the leaseholder, the identity of the household member named on the lease must also be documented.
All household members 18 years of age and older who are claiming cash income or zero income must also upload identification documentation.
For Landlord to receive Temporary Rental and Utility Assistance (TRUA) program funds, the minimum required documents include:
- Completed IRS Form W-9 (https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw9.pdf)
Landlord may also be required to provide documents including but not limited to:
- Landlord Certification
- Executed lease agreement or other proof of Tenant residency at your property;
- Tenant rent statement or ledger showing all amounts paid and owed; and/or
- Documentation showing proof of ownership, property management agreement, and/or rights to lease, manage, operate, and/or collect rent for the property at which Tenant is receiving assistance (such as a Denver Property Taxation and Assessment System record (https://denvergov.org/property), deed of trust, or mortgage reflecting the owner’s name)
Landlords may submit a TRUA application on behalf of Tenant. Tenants will be required to confirm all information submitted by Landlord, and a signed Certification by Tenant form must be included with the application.
Applicant and/or Landlord must disclose any other local, State, and/or federal rental/utility assistance received for the property/unit at which said assistance is being requested. These benefits will be taken into consideration when determining the amount of assistance that may be approved.
Duplication of benefits will not be permitted in any circumstance. Potential duplicative benefits include cash payment or financial assistance from a local government agency, housing authority, nonprofit organization, religious organization, and/or friends or family. Entity(ies) who received payment(s) through TRUA as a duplicate benefit will be required to repay these funds to the issuing Agency or the City and County of Denver Department of Housing Stability (HOST).
Ineligible expenses include but are not limited to:
- Damage fees;
- Utility vacancy charges
- Move-out fees such as cleaning or trash removal
- Lease break fees
- Late fees, attorney’s fees, and posting fees without verification that the costs were allowable under local and State law at the time the fees were charged;
- Assistance to individuals or households with income exceeding 80% AMI; and/or
- Mortgage costs including payment, fees, taxes, and refinancing expenses.
Rental assistance will be paid directly to Landlord, and utility assistance will be paid directly to Denver Water and/or Xcel Energy.
- Tenant must provide contact information for Landlord on their application with additional payment information to be provided by Landlord.
- In roommate situations when Tenant pays another tenant who is the person named in the lease (a.k.a. named leaseholder), Landlord information must be provided for direct payment to Landlord.
- Agency will verify who shall receive the funds using evidence of rent payments and information provided by Landlord.
- Agency will verify property ownership by reviewing property records before payment is made.
In cases where Landlord refuses payment or is unresponsive, Agency may authorize rental/utility assistance payments made directly to Tenant.
Prior to assistance being provided, Tenant must agree to use any funds received for their intended purpose through digital signature of Tenant’s TRUA application or by submitting a declaration of agreement in writing or by email. Payment may be made to multiple Landlords in situations where:
- Evidence of Tenancy conditions described above are met; and
- To achieve housing stability, Tenant is moving to alternate housing. In these situations, an executed lease or alternate residency agreement must be provided for the second housing situation, signed by both parties. (See Relocation Assistance under the Available Assistance section above.)
Program assistance must be provided according to Fair Housing (https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp) requirements that protect people from discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion or creed, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression, marital or familial status, military status, or physical or mental disability.
Partner Agencies may collect additional information/documentation as needed, at their discretion, for program compliance, quality assurance, and/or to protect the City and County of Denver and partner Agencies from fraudulent activity.