Beyoncé to donate $500,000 to people impacted by the eviction crisis

Beyoncé will offer $5,000 grants to help people facing foreclosures or evictions due to the housing crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

People can apply for the grants beginning January 7, 2021, the singer announced on her website Tuesday. Grants will be sent out to the 100 people selected in late January.

“Beyoncé is continuing her heart of support and helping where needed most. Phase Two of the BeyGOOD Impact Fund will now help those impacted by the housing crisis,” according to a news release.

“The housing moratorium is set to end on December 26th, resulting in mortgage foreclosures and rental evictions. Many families are impacted, due to the pandemic that resulted in job loss, sickness and overall economy downturn,” the release said.

An estimated 9.2 million renters who have lost income during the pandemic are behind on rent, according to an analysis of Census data by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Once the moratoriums are lifted, many of these renters will be expected to pay their entire back rent or come up with some sort of payment plan with their landlord — or they could face losing their homes.

Those who apply for the grants must submit the necessary documentation to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) by the deadline.

This is not Beyoncé’s first effort to help communities hurt by the pandemic.

BeyGOOD has teamed up with the NAACP to support Black-owned small businesses impacted by the pandemic, so far providing 250 businesses with $10,000 grants.

In May, she set up mobile Covid-19 testing sites with her mother, Tina Knowles-Lawson, in their hometown of Houston, Texas. She also donated, in partnership with Jack Dorsey’s Start Small fund, $6 million to coronavirus relief in April.