Rooted Program Terms

ROOTED PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY POLICY

Housing Marketplace & Financial Coaching Services

Overview

This document outlines the eligibility requirements for accessing Rooted benefits. All criteria below must be met unless otherwise noted. Rooted is committed to applying these standards fairly and consistently.

Clarification of terms

The term “Rooted Marketplace benefits” refers to any Rooted benefits accessed via the Rooted Housing marketplace, including concessions / rent discounts and the Rooted Security Deposit Payment Program.

Rooted program benefits include benefits not included in the term “Rooted Marketplace benefits”, including free financial coaching and event attendance.

1. Who Can Use Rooted Programs

Rooted's programs are available to eligible employees of the following partner organizations:

Oakland Unified School District (OUSD)

All OUSD employees in long-term positions are eligible, including the following:

  • Teachers
  • Classified staff
  • Administrators
  • STIP substitutes
  • Oakland Teacher Residents

The following types of positions are not eligible:

  • Per diem employees
  • Long-term substitutes
  • Independent contractors
  • Individuals hired through partner organizations rather than directly by OUSD

Life Learning Academy

  • Full-time staff are eligible

2. Rooted Eligibility Requirements

In addition to employment eligibility (Section 1), all of the following conditions must be met to access Rooted programs:

  1. General Eligibility Requirements

    1. Good Standing with Rooted

      The participant must have complied with or completed all Rooted program requirements to-date, including but not limited to financial coaching, communication, and payment obligations. Regarding payment obligations, the participant must have no outstanding payment obligation to Rooted, or must be in good standing on an approved repayment plan, meaning that all scheduled payments have been made on time for at least 6 consecutive months.

    2. No Prior Terms of Service Violations

      The participant must not have previously violated the Rooted Marketplace Terms of Service.

    Participants who have been evicted from a Rooted-affiliated unit at any point in the past are not eligible for Rooted Marketplace benefits for 7 years from the date of that eviction.

  2. Unit-Specific Eligibility Requirements

    Eligibility for Rooted Marketplace benefits is assessed on a per-unit and per-tenant basis. Meeting general eligibility does not automatically qualify a participant for every unit listed on the Marketplace. The following additional requirements apply for educators to be eligible for Rooted benefits for a specific unit:

    1. No Co-Signers

      The participant must independently meet the housing provider's stated application criteria for the unit without the need for a co-signer. If a co-signer for the unit is required for housing provider eligibility, the participant is not eligible to receive Rooted benefits for that unit, even if the housing provider has approved their application. Co-signer arrangements may be considered on a case-by-case basis at Rooted's discretion.

    2. Income Requirement

      The participant's gross household income must be at least 2.75× the monthly rent for the unit in question. If this threshold is not met, the participant is not eligible to receive Rooted benefits for that unit — even if the housing provider has approved their application.

      Example: If the monthly rent is $2,000, the household's gross monthly income must be at least $5,500 (2.75 × $2,000) to qualify for Rooted benefits on that unit.

3. Housing Provider Eligibility Requirements

In addition to the above Rooted Eligibility Requirements, our participating housing providers also have requirements of all renters that typically include some variation on the following:

  1. Credit

    Positive credit history, generally a credit score of 650 or higher.

  2. Income

    Gross monthly household income of between 2.75 and 3 times the base (asking) rent. That means that your household’s total income before taxes needs to be at least 2.75x the monthly rent without any concessions applied.

  3. Bankruptcy History

    Participants with a bankruptcy discharged or filed within the last 7 years will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. In most circumstances, a recent bankruptcy will disqualify a participant from renting from most housing providers who participate in the Rooted Housing Marketplace.

  4. Tenancy & Eviction History

    Positive tenancy reference from previous housing providers. Participants with an eviction on their rental record are unlikely to be accepted by participating housing providers.

Participants are encouraged to contact Rooted or the applicable housing provider to discuss their situation before applying.

4. Verification and Partnership

Rooted works directly with the Talent and HR teams of partner organizations to verify employee eligibility. This partnership also helps ensure that newly eligible employees are informed about and connected to Rooted's resources in a timely manner.

If needed, participants may be asked to provide proof of hire or other documentation to confirm their eligibility status.

Eligibility status may be confirmed at any time by contacting Rooted directly (see Section 5).

5. Questions and Eligibility Inquiries

Anyone who would like to learn more, clarify their eligibility, or get connected to Rooted's services is encouraged to reach out:

6. Changes to These Terms

We may update these terms from time to time without notice.