3 Tools That Actually Help Trans People Get Housed in Portland: Rent Well, OneApp, and Housing Connector
The affordable housing system in Portland was not built for trans folks. I don’t know who the heck it was built for actually. It wasn't built for people with eviction records or people of color or low income folks. It wasn't built for people whose credit scores dropped cause they had to take care of their mom. It wasn't built for folks who’s IDs don’t match the name they use everyday, whose documents and identity are in transition, or who've been turned down by landlords who went quiet after disclosure.
But three tools exist that were specifically designed to lower the barriers that keep people out of housing and they’re kinda cool.
Rent Well is a free tenant education course backed by a state-funded $5,000 landlord guarantee.
OneApp is a co-signer service that can unlock a specific apartment when a standard application won't.
Housing Connector is a nonprofit that builds relationships with landlords willing to reduce their screening criteria — and backs every lease with financial protection and two years of stability support.
WERQ TOGETHER is excited about all three. This guide explains what each one actually does, what it costs, who it's for, and how to access it — whether you're navigating a housing search on your own or working with a case manager at a local agency.
Why Barrier Reduction Matters More Than Referral Lists
Before we get into the tools, it's worth naming what we mean by "barrier reduction" — because it's different from what most resource guides offer.
A referral list tells you where to apply. Barrier reduction changes whether you get approved when you do.
Trans people face housing barriers that compound on each other. An eviction from three years ago when housing was unstable. A credit score that dropped when income was interrupted. A criminal record from charges that may have stemmed from the same period of instability. Legal documents that still show a previous name. These aren't independent problems — they're the predictable downstream effects of navigating a world that wasn't designed for us.
The standard housing application treats each of these as independent red flags. The tools in this guide treat them as context. They exist to change the math for landlords — to lower the risk of saying yes until the relationship has a chance to prove itself.
That's the frame. These tools don't make the landlord a better person. They change the financial calculation until the tenancy can demonstrate what the application couldn't.
Rent Well: Free Tenant Education Backed by a $5,000 State Guarantee
Website:rentwell.org | Phone: 503-515-1328
What it is
Rent Well is a free 15-hour tenant education course administered by Transition Projects, Inc., a Portland-based nonprofit. The curriculum was collaboratively developed in 2009 and covers every stage of the housing search: understanding and reviewing your credit, eviction, and criminal background reports; how to present your application compellingly; fair housing rights; budgeting for housing costs; and what to expect at move-in and move-out.
Graduates receive a certificate recognized by many Portland landlords and access to Oregon's Rent Guarantee Program— a state-funded financial guarantee administered by Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS).
What the $5,000 guarantee actually does
This is the part that matters most — and the part that's most frequently misunderstood.
The $5,000 guarantee goes to the landlord, not the tenant. It's state insurance. When a Rent Well graduate signs a lease, the landlord can register for the program within 30 days. If the tenancy fails in the first 12 months — unpaid rent, damages beyond normal wear, eviction costs — the landlord can submit a claim and be reimbursed up to $5,000 beyond the security deposit.
The effect for the tenant: landlords who would otherwise pass are more willing to say yes, because the risk of saying yes has been reduced by the state.
This is how it opens doors. Not by paying rent. By changing the landlord's risk calculation.
Who qualifies
To access the Rent Guarantee Program, participants must:
Have a household income at or below 60% of Area Median Income(roughly $39,000/year for a single person in Portland)
Have at least one housing barrier — eviction history, poor credit, criminal record, current homelessness, or having been a ward of the state
Be an Oregon resident
Complete the course through a participating provider agency with an active OHCS agreement
The course itself is open to anyone. The guarantee is for income-qualified participants with barriers.
One important caveat: guarantee funding is limited and first-come, first-served. Oregon's state budget funds the program, and when those funds are depleted before new appropriations, claims are paused.
Why we recommend it
Rent Well does two things simultaneously. It prepares you — you'll know your credit report, understand your rights, and have a housing portfolio to present to landlords. And it changes the landlord's risk calculation. Both things matter. Most housing programs do one or the other. Rent Well does both.
OneApp: A Co-Signer Service for When Standard Applications Won't Work
Website:oneapp.rentals
What it is
OneApp is a for-profit Oregon company — not a nonprofit, and not a government program — founded by Portland native Tyrone Poole. It functions as a lease guarantor: when a renter is denied or conditionally approved at a participating property, OneApp steps in as a co-signer, guaranteeing the landlord reimbursement of up to three times the monthly rent if the tenant defaults or causes significant damage.
OneApp has partnerships with over 1,000 apartment communities nationally, including properties across the Portland metro area.
How it works
When you apply at a participating property and face a denial or conditional approval based on credit, income, rental history, or criminal background, the property may refer you to OneApp. OneApp runs its own review — without a hard credit pull — and makes a near-real-time decision. If approved, it co-signs the lease. The landlord is protected. You get the apartment.
The real cost — and why to be honest about it
OneApp charges the tenant a co-signing fee equal to one full month's base rent, nonrefundable. A payment plan exists: 50% upfront plus five monthly payments with an additional risk fee.
This is a real cost that affects real people. OneApp reports that roughly 75% of applicants cannot participate, primarily because they can't afford the upfront fee. Before referring a client or pursuing OneApp yourself, that cost needs to be on the table.
We include OneApp in our toolkit because for the right situation — a specific apartment someone wants, a specific denial that OneApp can reverse — it genuinely works. But we present it honestly. It's not a free resource. It's a tool with a price, and that price is a barrier for many of the people who need it most.
Also worth knowing
OneApp's housing search platform — which previously listed thousands of Portland-area apartments available through their network — is currently paused. The value right now is the co-signing service at specific partner properties, not a general housing search tool. Check oneapp.rentals for current availability and participating properties.
Who it's for
OneApp is most useful when: a specific apartment in a specific building is what someone needs, a standard application has been denied or put on hold, and the person can access the co-signing fee (through savings, WERQ assistance, or other means).
It's less useful as a general housing search starting point. Start with Rent Well and Housing Connector first. OneApp is a targeted intervention for a specific barrier at a specific property.
Housing Connector: Technology That Opens Doors Landlords Would Otherwise Close
Website:housingconnector.com
What it is
Housing Connector is a Seattle-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that has expanded to Portland through a partnership with Multnomah County and the Joint Office of Homeless Services. It was founded by Shkëlqim Kelmendi, a Kosovo War refugee and former housing authority employee, and operates with significant backing from Zillow, which donates four full-time engineering positions to build and maintain the platform.
The model is straightforward: Housing Connector builds relationships with landlords who agree to reduce their screening criteria across six categories — credit, income, rental history, criminal background, and others. In exchange, those landlords get free referrals, reduced vacancy, and a financial protection package if a tenancy encounters difficulty.
What every Housing Connector tenant gets
When a Housing Connector-connected case manager places a client in a partner property, each resident gets:
Up to $5,000 in damage mitigation if the tenancy ends poorly
3 months of emergency rent coverage if the resident hits a financial crisis
1 month of vacancy loss coverage for the landlord
2 years of resident stability support, including mediation, conflict resolution, and case management coordination
Housing Connector manages these funds and serves as the single point of contact for the landlord when issues arise. If a conflict is escalating, Housing Connector calls the case manager before the landlord files anything.
The numbers
This model has produced a 99.4% eviction avoidance rate across all Housing Connector markets. Residents stay in the same unit at an 88% rate for at least a year. The average annual cost per person housed is $504 — compared to over $17,700 for a shelter bed. The math makes the case.
How WERQ accesses it
WERQ TOGETHER is onboarded as a Housing Connector community partner. Our staff completed training in April 2026, and we're committed to placing our first five clients through the program this year. As a partner agency, our peer navigators will have access to the Zillow-powered platform showing available units with reduced-screening terms, and our clients will be backed by the full mitigation package.
If you're working with a WERQ peer navigator, ask about Housing Connector availability when you start your housing search. If you're connected to another case manager or social worker, ask if their organization has a Housing Connector relationship — any community partner can refer clients.
Who it's for
Housing Connector is most useful for people who are working with a case manager or social service organization and need housing with reduced screening barriers. It's not a direct-access tool — you need a community partner agency to make the connection. That's why WERQ becoming a partner matters: it means our clients can access this tool through us.
How These Three Tools Work Together
The power of knowing all three is in knowing which one to reach for in which situation.
Start with Rent Well. It prepares you for any housing search and activates the state guarantee for landlords throughout the system. The preparation alone is worth the time, regardless of whether the guarantee is available. Take it through WERQ or another certified provider.
Use Housing Connector through your case manager. If you're working with WERQ or another Housing Connector partner, ask about available units in the network. These are properties where the landlord has already lowered the bar — the fight to get in is partially already won.
Turn to OneApp for a specific situation. If there's a specific apartment where everything else fits but the application isn't clearing, and you can access the co-signing fee, OneApp can unlock that door.
None of these tools asks you to be a perfect applicant. All three work precisely because the standard system has already excluded you. That's the point.
Portland's Broader Barrier-Reduction Ecosystem
Rent Well, OneApp, and Housing Connector are the three tools this guide focuses on, but they sit within a larger ecosystem.
Portland's FAIR Ordinance limits what landlords can hold against you. They can't auto-deny for felonies older than seven years, evictions older than three years, or credit scores above 500. You have 30 days to appeal any denial with a written reason. Know this before you apply anywhere.
JOIN PDX works specifically with people landlords routinely turn away — evictions, criminal records, immigration barriers. Their relationships with 500+ landlords means a referral from JOIN opens doors a cold application can't. joinpdx.org
WERQ TOGETHER's Safe Haven Home Share program matches trans and queer people who need housing with community members who have space to share. Lower barrier than traditional rentals — no credit score required, community-vetted hosts. Coming Summer 2026.
PadSplit launched in Portland in early 2026. Private furnished rooms, weekly payments, no minimum credit score, same-day approval possible. A fast landing pad while a longer-term housing search continues. padsplit.com
And if you face housing discrimination — if you believe a landlord acted against you because of your gender identity — Oregon's protections are in force regardless of federal policy changes. The Fair Housing Council of Oregon handles complaints for free: 503-223-8197, or fhco.org.
Get Connected
WERQ TOGETHER provides free housing navigation for trans and queer people in the Portland area. Our peer navigators know which programs are currently active, which waitlists are open, and how to sequence these tools for your specific situation.
Fill out our intake form anytime. No income threshold. No insurance required.
Last updated April 2026. Program details change — always confirm availability directly with each provider before relying on specific terms.
Become a monthly donor
WERQ TOGETHER is a 501c3 nonprofit in Oregon supporting trans folks on their way from survival to safety.
