Ocean County assistance programs.

Housing assistance, including energy bills, mortgage, and more.

A local non-profit agency, the Affordable Housing Alliance, provides families and individuals with numerous resources. Some of the assistance they offer includes foreclosure counseling, help for energy bills, and rental assistance.

The organization provides foreclosure counseling to low and many middle income homeowners who are delinquent in their mortgages or who may be in danger of foreclosure and losing their home. AHA will help these homeowners who need assistance by helping them obtain a loan workout solution or modification with their current mortgage holder. The goal is to reduce their monthly mortgage payments, get the lender to waive fees, and ensuring they have an affordable monthly payment over the long term. Find additional foreclosure prevention programs.

The AHA will also assist families and individuals by providing them help with paying energy bills. They assist in many ways, including helping people with the application process that is needed for them to secure temporary assistance to pay their home energy and heating bills. The assistance provided by AHA on the application process is critical to helping individuals and families who are seeking temporary relief in paying their gas, electric, heating, oil and propane bills. In addition to helping with the application process, AHA also is an authorized NJ SHARES Intake site, which means that they will assist those people with moderate household incomes by providing them with a one-time hardship payment once per calendar year.

Last, but not least, AHA also administers the New Jersey Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which is a federally funded program that assists low income households with summer cooling and winter heating bills. The program focuses on New Jersey's most vulnerable populations, especially the elderly, low-income families, and the disabled. Traditionally these individuals pay a high percentage of their total household income for home energy usage, in particular during the summer and winter.

In addition to AHA helping clients find affordable housing, they also can provide them with rent assistance. Short term, one time grants can be used to help pay rent, and prevent an eviction.

You can contact Affordable Housing Alliance at 732-389-2958 for more information on these or other programs.

Foreclosure counseling

The Community Action Agency (phone number (517) 784-4800) has opened a new center that will assist families who are facing foreclosure, homelessness, or people who are being evicted from their housing.

The Community Solutions Center, which is located at 511 S. Jackson St., will serve as the primary location for the free housing assistance and foreclosure-prevention services and transitional housing and homeless services. There are several services being offered, including the Community Solutions Center will also offer mediation services to help privately resolve disputes between two parties, such as homeowners and lenders.

Other services offered by the new office will include financial education, establishing and repairing credit, basic budgeting skills, avoiding predatory lending, help from medical debt collectors, basic banking skills, information on low interest loans, and referrals to other assistance programs.