FreeRent Atlanta Grant Program returns for third year, lending a helping hand to residents in troubling times

Some say nothing in life is free, while others say the best things in life are free. One organization is looking to lean into a third mantra: it costs nothing to be kind.

On Oct. 31 FreeRent, an Atlanta-based nonprofit that provides rental assistance for one month or more to help them on their path to financial stability, is opening its third FreeRent Atlanta Grant program.The program covers full monthly rental payments for selected families who have faced an unexpected hardship for a year, along with wraparound services to help those families “overcome crisis, achieve stability, and build generational wealth.”

Eligibility for the program is outlined by the organization as the following:

• Experienced a recent, unexpected hardship (e.g., medical expenses, family crisis, natural disaster) 
• Active lease within the City of Atlanta limits
• Household income at or below 80 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI)
• At least one adult employed full-time
• Rent-to-income ratio at or below 50 percent
• Commitment to actively participate in FreeRent’s financial education and savings programs

The program will run throughout 2026; part of the financial services offered is crafting a financial stability plan alongside each selected family, with the goal of saving at least three months of living expenses throughout the duration of the program. The nonprofit says that in 2024, 71 percent of FreeRent participants achieved or exceeded these savings goals. 

“Just one thing can happen to get them behind [on rent] or on the brink of housing instability,” said Ashley Stewart, Executive Director of FreeRent. “Through this opportunity, through this hand up for a year, we can help them not only stabilize, but build a path for their long-term financial future,” she added.

Individuals or families can nominate someone they know are facing hardships, or nominate themselves; once eligibility requirements are verified, FreeRent applicants upload a full application and undergo a series of conversations and interviews that describe their financial savings goals, unexpected hardships they are facing, and how this assistance could help them get back on track towards their goals.

A hand up, not a handout

“There’s really power in a community identifying these incredible hardworking families who are doing everything right, but who can really experience a transformation through a hand up that can create their path for the future,” Stewart said.

Dwantavia Edwards, a selectee of the program for the year 2025, testified firsthand to the power of this helping hand. 

“When they picked me to be one of the participants of the program, I couldn’t believe it. Just getting that type of break — everybody’s always waiting for some type of relief, and in this world it’s very few and far in-between,” Edwards said. “It was overwhelming for someone to even think of me in that way to say ‘hey, this girl needs a break, she needs help.’ And it’s not a handout, it was a hand up, because it’s changed my life tremendously.”

Edwards first heard about the program around this time last year, from a friend who sent her the link on Instagram. At first, she thought it may be a scam.

“Nobody’s going to pay your rent. That’s unheard of,” Edwards said. “But I said ‘okay, let me give it a try,’ and I applied to it.”

At the time of applying, she said trying to save any meaningful amount of money would typically require working overtime, which would affect other aspects of her life like raising her kids. 

“I was working six days a week, 13 hours a day. My son — he had just gotten out of the hospital — was like six months old. My daughter was 12, and working six days a week 13 hours a day you don’t have time to do anything,” Edwards said. “I’m making a little bit of money, but the money I’m making is going towards rent, car note and everything else. 

Edwards said that before FreeRent, she hadn’t been able to keep any meaningful amount of savings from a paycheck.

“I might be able to put $25 or $30 here or there, but something comes up,” Edwards said. “Being able to save… and continuously save on a monthly basis — that is transformative for a lot of people, because we are always one emergency away from being homeless. Having those savings to fall back on, where you can sleep easy at night knowing if I get sick today or my child is sick and I have to take a few days off, it won’t set you back for the next two or three months,” she added.

Today, Edwards is in school at Mercer University, pursuing a degree in nursing to eventually go on to anesthesia school. She credits the program for helping her get on this path — a path that was unimaginable just a year ago, she said, with crushing debt, little sleep and long hours.

“I wasn’t enrolled in school, and school was not even a thought in my mind or a possibility of raising two children on my own. Here I am a year later, I have a few emergency savings, I’m able to take a break and say ‘I need to attend to my child,’ or whatever the case may be without being set back,” Edwards said. “A year ago, my son was on oxygen; he was born four months early…  a year later my son is walking, he’s saying words, he doesn’t use oxygen anymore, he doesn’t have any health problems… Just that one year alone has changed my life, beyond what I could have ever imagined.”

In August, the group raised $460,000 from their annual fundraiser, with support from real estate investment trust Roots. Most of the nonprofit’s funding is supported by the community, said Stewart — everyone from individuals to local businesses. 

While the FreeRent Atlanta Grant Program is the largest program, it also provides case-by-case assistance throughout the year through its Financial Stability Partner Program, though not typically year-long assistance.

The organization has a larger goal of having supported 300 families by 2030 and creating collectively $1 million in savings for their participants. Since becoming a nonprofit in 2024, it has expanded across the nation and done some pilot work in Los Angeles and Nashville. Since its founding, it has served over 300 individuals across more than 100 families.

“We’re absolutely looking to expand locally, and from a larger organizational picture we are looking to expand outside of Atlanta and Georgia,” Stewart said. 

For now, though, she and her team are excited to give assistance to folks who need it most, and help families chart their paths towards financial stability.

“Our call to action is really that if you know of a family who could benefit from this program, please share it with them and have them go through the nomination process or nominate yourself,” Stewart said.

As for Edwards, she hopes to pay it forward, thanks to the helping hand she got.

“Each one, teach one — it’s something to that effect,” Edwards said. “The help and care and love that they gave me, I’m able to give that back as well; by helping me be successful, I can continue to give back and pour into others so they can be successful as well. It’s not a handout if you’re utilizing the help to the fullest extent and turning it into something greater — that’s a hand up.”