Support Refugee Housing

• Gain access to qualified potential tenants, which can contribute to fewer vacancies and shorter vacancy periods

• Clients have access to initial financial support for security deposits and first and last month’s rent

• JFS Silicon Valley clients have access to a dedicated case manager and a housing team who provide support and guidance in understanding their obligations related to being a responsible and good tenant, including home maintenance, making on-time payments and being good neighbors.

• Navigating a new culture and systems can take some time. In the event of a misunderstanding, JFS Silicon Valley staff will work with clients to clarify their roles and responsibilities as tenants.

• You have the opportunity to make a difference by giving refugees a safe environment, find stabilization and establish themselves in the United States.

Refugees are subject to the same requirements and laws as any other tenant. In the event that you have an issue, you have all rights available to you under the law.

Once a refugee family finds an apartment and signs the lease, JFS Silicon Valley helps furnish the rental property with essential household goods including beds, linens, couches, dining sets and basic kitchen items.

JFS Silicon Valley also assists in the transfer of utilities and helping clients understand how to make on-time utility payments.

Most of our clients are educated and/or had professions in their country of origin. JFS Silicon Valley offers Vocational English as a Second Language (VESL) classes and career counseling and placement services to help families become self-sufficient and no longer dependent on government benefits. Our career counselors provide clients with help writing resumes, practice interviewing skills and connect clients to employers based on their education, language level and professional experience. Our goal is to help clients find employment that will allow them to become financially self-sufficient and no longer need housing subsidies.

Refugees undergo 18-24 months of screening before being allowed to enter the U.S. The first step for most refugees is to register with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in the country to which s/he has fled. The UNHCR performs an initial assessment and qualifying refugees are then referred to the United States for resettlement and vetted by a Resettlement Support Center (RSC). National security agencies, including the National Counterterrorism Center/Intelligence Community, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the State Department all conduct checks. The Department of Homeland Security and United States Citizenship and Immigration Services personnel who are specially trained in interviewing, conduct in-person interviews. Refugees are then screened by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and The Transportation Security Administration program. After one year in the U.S., they are required to apply for a green card, which triggers another set of security procedures.