Atlanta City Councilmember Kelsea Bond is calling for a sweeping audit of the city’s Housing Help Center, arguing Atlanta needs a clearer picture of whether its eviction-prevention system is actually keeping residents housed.
Bond introduced a resolution on Monday asking that the City Auditor’s Office conduct a comprehensive review of the Housing Help Center. The city created the center in 2023 as a help desk to connect residents to rental assistance, legal aid, emergency shelters, and other housing resources.
The audit request comes as Atlantans grapple with high rent prices, stagnant wages, and one of the nation’s highest eviction filing rates. According to Eviction Lab data cited in Bond’s legislation, about one quarter of metro Atlanta renter households face an eviction filing every year.
The Housing Help Center, located on the ground floor of downtown’s Two Peachtree office tower, was pitched as a one-stop-shop to assist Atlantans struggling to navigate the city’s expensive housing market. But housing advocates have questioned whether referring people to nonprofits or other government agencies for housing help is sufficient, amid overwhelming demand and limited affordable housing supply.
Now, Bond and housing advocates say the city needs hard numbers on what is and isn’t working. “Knowing who is requesting services from the Housing Help Center, what their needs are, and the outcomes of these referrals will be essential to understanding the housing needs in Atlanta and where the service gaps lie,” Bond said in a press release.
“With displacement and eviction rates so high, it’s essential that we use data to inform future policy around affordable housing and eviction prevention initiatives,” Bond added.
The audit would examine how quickly residents receive assistance, which organizations receive the most referrals, whether referrals actually lead to housing stabilization, and where there isn’t enough provider capacity.
“Atlanta’s eviction rates should be a wake-up call to policymakers,” Housing Justice League organizing director Matthew Nursey said in the press release. “We need policy solutions, and Housing Help Center data can help inform those.”
Bond’s audit proposal comes amid widespread uncertainty around federal funding to alleviate homelessness. The Trump administration unsuccessfully attempted to overhaul the nation’s Continuum of Care grant system last year, alarming local providers already struggling to meet demand.