How Ocean County's Eviction Prevention and Rapid Rehousing System Works
Ocean County runs its homeless prevention and rehousing programs through a network of nonprofits and county agencies coordinated under the federal Continuum of Care (CoC) system. The CoC is overseen by the Ocean County Homelessness Prevention and Assistance Coalition (HPAC), which connects the organizations delivering services on the ground. This page covers those programs — what they actually offer, who they serve, and how to contact them directly.
Homelessness Prevention: Keeping You in Your Home
The main agency handling homeless prevention for Ocean County residents is Family Promise of the Jersey Shore (website: https://www.familypromisesoc.org/). They provide financial help — covering back rent, mortgage arrears, and utility bills — for households that are at risk of losing housing but not yet displaced. This isn't a general emergency fund - however there are other options for rent assistance as well - see the Ocean County NJ rent assistance page.
To qualify, you typically need to show the crisis is temporary and that you'll be able to cover future costs once the immediate problem is resolved. Case management is part of the deal, with staff working alongside clients on next steps toward stability.
Family Promise is at 1001 S Main St in West Creek and can be reached at (609) 994-3317. Referrals for their prevention program also come through the Ocean County Board of Social Services, so if you're already in contact with the county, ask about Family Promise specifically.
Coordinated Entry and Rapid Rehousing: If You've Already Lost Housing
For people who are already homeless or have been displaced, the starting point is the Affordable Housing Alliance's (AHA) Coordinated Entry Team for Ocean County. Call them at (732) 341-2272 or visit their office at 405 Washington Street in Toms River. The website is https://housingall.org/homeless-services/. A caseworker will do an assessment and place you on the waiting list for available housing resources, including short-term rental assistance and services to help you find and keep a new unit.
This process — called Coordinated Entry — is how the county matches people to the right resource rather than having each agency run its own independent waitlist. It prioritizes people with the greatest barriers to stable housing, not just whoever calls first.
Rapid rehousing through this system provides short-term rental subsidies plus case management to help a displaced person get into a new apartment and stay there. The goal is to avoid long stays in emergency shelters by moving people into housing as quickly as possible.
HABcore also does street outreach and diversion work in Ocean County, funded through the NJ Department of Community Affairs. Their outreach workers connect with people living in encampments or cars and work to get them into permanent housing, often in partnership with other agencies. HABcore can be reached at (732) 544-1975.
What "Diversion" Means
Before anyone is placed into a shelter or formal program, the intake process includes a diversion step. A caseworker talks through whether there's a faster, simpler solution — reconnecting with family or friends, resolving a dispute with a landlord, or a small one-time payment that stabilizes a situation that's close to being resolved on its own. This keeps limited program slots open for the households that need the most support and can mean a quicker resolution for people whose crisis is genuinely short-term.
Free Legal Help Against Eviction
If you've been served eviction papers, South Jersey Legal Services (SJLS) provides free legal representation to low-income tenants in Ocean County. Their local office is at 215 Main Street in Toms River, reachable at (732) 608-7794. Website is https://sjlslaw.org/. For statewide intake, call (1-800-496-4570) with hours generally Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. SJLS is part of the Legal Services of New Jersey network and handles housing cases including evictions and housing discrimination. If you have a court date coming up, call before you go — representation makes a difference. For a more detailed overview, see the NHPB New Jersey free legal aid guide.
The Toms River Housing and Homeless Coalition (TRHHC) also operates a Housing Resource Center at 200 Corporate Circle in Toms River, open Mondays and Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Call them at (848) 223-7284. They work with individuals who are at risk of or currently experiencing homelessness in Toms River and Ocean County, connecting clients with available resources and services.
Help for Homeowners Facing Foreclosure
Renters aren't the only ones covered. The Affordable Housing Alliance provides HUD-certified foreclosure counseling to homeowners in Ocean County who are behind on their mortgage. Their counselors work directly with lenders and mortgage servicers to look for options — payment plans, loan modifications, or other ways to avoid losing the home. For foreclosure emergencies, call (732) 389-2958. Their Housing Stability program can also help with back rent and security deposits for eligible clients — more at https://housingall.org/.
Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) Funds
New Jersey administers federal Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) money through the Department of Community Affairs (DCA). These funds flow to nonprofits and can cover emergency shelter costs, homelessness prevention payments, and street outreach. In Ocean County, ESG dollars support several of the programs described here — but residents don't apply to ESG directly. You apply through the agencies. The right starting point is Family Promise for prevention, or the AHA Coordinated Entry line for rehousing. Learn more about how NJ manages these programs at https://nj.gov/dca/dhcr/offices/dhcrohp.shtml.
A Note on Shelter in Ocean County
Ocean County is the only county in New Jersey without a year-round transitional housing program, which puts additional pressure on the prevention and rapid rehousing system here. Emergency warming shelters (Code Blue sites) operate from November through March when temperatures drop below freezing, but people who are displaced outside that window have fewer immediate shelter options. That makes calling the Coordinated Entry line or Family Promise as early as possible especially important — waiting until a situation becomes a full crisis limits what's available
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