It’s something as old as the hills, and anyone old enough to remember former Republican Guilford County Commissioner Billy Yow likely remembers how he would rail against the following practice: The federal or state government pays for something for a few years and then stops – and, once the money runs out, local government picks up the tab and keeps the program going.
Two decades ago, people would ask Yow why he so often voted down what appeared to be “free money” for local programs, and Yow would give them that exact reason.
Well, things are the same as they ever were.
A Guilford County program created to help tenants avoid eviction is now about to make the transition from temporary federal funding to a locally funded county expense.
Any property owner who has tried to evict someone in Guilford County knows how hard it can be. Years ago, some landlords attempted to force tenants out by removing the front and back doors. Such self-help eviction methods are illegal, and landlords must now go through the court process.
Evictions in many cases involve a long, drawn-out court battle, with the landlord losing rent month after month the entire time.
At its Thursday, Aug. 6 meeting, the Guilford County Board of Commissioners is scheduled to approve an $860,866 contract with the University of North Carolina at Greensboro to continue operating the county’s Tenant Eviction and Mediation program for another year.
The program, commonly called TEAM, has been paid for since 2022 with federal Emergency Rental Assistance money and then federal American Rescue Plan Act funds.
Those federal funding sources have now been exhausted; so, the new contract will be paid for with local funds included in Guilford County’s fiscal 2026-2027 budget.
The county describes the contract as requiring no additional county funding because the money has already been included in the adopted budget. However, unlike in previous years, the nearly $861,000 will come from local county revenue rather than from temporary federal assistance.
Under the proposed contract, UNCG’s Center for Housing and Community Studies will continue working with Legal Aid of North Carolina to provide eviction mediation, housing counseling, landlord outreach and assistance connecting tenants with rental aid and other community services.
If approved, the one-year contract will run from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027, and it will limit the county’s maximum financial exposure to $860,866.
The program’s stated goal is to help tenants avoid eviction judgments, which can make it more difficult for them to find affordable housing in the future, and, when possible, help tenants remain in their current homes.
The program provides services at the courthouses in both Greensboro and High Point, including legal information, mediation and help locating rental assistance.
According to the county commissioners’ agenda, the TEAM program and Legal Aid operated clinics on 190 court days during 2025 and served more than 2,700 households.
There were 6,645 eviction cases on the court dockets on the days the clinics were operating.
Of those, 1,659 cases – about 25 percent – were dismissed by either the court or the landlord. Another 1,406 cases, or about 21 percent, were delayed by being continued until a later date.
The program also reported 907 individual contacts with landlords, most of whom owned between one and 10 rental units.
The contract doesn’t guarantee that the program will prevent a particular number of evictions. Instead, UNCG and Legal Aid are required to track a long list of performance measures – including the number of households receiving mediation services, the number referred for rental or utility assistance, landlord contacts and the final status of eviction cases.
The program will also track the number of tenants who appear for their court hearings, cases dismissed by judges or landlords and cases delayed through court continuances.
Legal Aid will separately report the number of tenants receiving consultations, the number of cases receiving extended legal services, the number of tenancies preserved and the number of eviction judgments avoided.
The courthouse eviction clinics are required to operate at least two days a week in Greensboro and at least two days a week in High Point.
UNCG’s portion of the program will include one full-time eviction mediation program coordinator, two full-time housing counselors or mediators and the equivalent of one full-time graduate assistant position divided between two part-time graduate assistants.
Legal Aid is expected to provide three full-time attorneys and one full-time paralegal to support the program.
The contract also includes a full-time landlord outreach specialist.
That employee will work with landlords involved in eviction cases as well as landlords who may be willing to rent to individuals and families who face obstacles finding housing.
The program is expected to communicate directly with landlords, conduct broader outreach campaigns and try to increase landlord participation in county housing programs.
UNCG will be required to maintain detailed information on clients, cases, referrals and outcomes through its case-management software.
The contract also calls for the collection of household information including rent owed, income sources, age, race, ethnicity, gender, ZIP code and whether minor children live in the household.
The agreement is cost-reimbursable, meaning UNCG will submit monthly invoices documenting the services provided and the progress made during the previous month.
The county will have up to 30 days after receiving a complete and accurate invoice to make payment.
Guilford County began contracting with UNCG for the eviction program on July 1, 2022, when large amounts of federal pandemic-relief money were still available.
The commissioners have repeatedly used federal funds to begin or expand county programs during the past several years.
As those temporary federal dollars disappear, the commissioners are increasingly faced with deciding whether to eliminate the programs or shift the costs to local taxpayers. Something Yow warned about.
In this case, the nearly $861,000 eviction program has survived the end of federal funding and is now set to become a locally funded county expense
