Now accepting referrals and requests for help in Cumberland and York Counties.

We provide a bridge from crisis to stability.

Our Program

Everything we offer starts with Bridge to Stability, our current pilot program — case management, connections to emergency rental and mortgage assistance, direct outreach to landlords and lenders on your behalf, and help understanding the process and paperwork, so households can avoid eviction or foreclosure before it happens.

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Stabilize

We contact landlords and lenders directly to ask for a payment arrangement, connect families to emergency financial assistance, and refer households to free legal aid when a case needs a lawyer.

Adults and a child walking together holding hands

Support

Housing is rarely the only pressure a family is under. We connect them with the additional supports needed to keep a home stable — health care, food, and transportation.

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Empower

We focus on long-term financial empowerment through education, skill-building, and resource navigation. Our financial literacy programs help families build the knowledge and habits needed for lasting stability—budgeting, saving, understanding how credit works, and knowing your rights as a tenant. MEF provides financial education. MEF does not provide credit counseling, debt management, or financial advisory services.

Thrive

Stability is the beginning, not the finish line. A household that keeps its home can look further ahead — toward steady work, growing savings, and plans that reach past the current month. That’s the outcome we work toward, and why we check back at 90 days and again at 12 months.

What We Do — and What We Refer Out

We do:

Talk with your landlord or lender directly, help you understand notices and deadlines, help you complete forms you file yourself, build a household budget with you, and connect you with legal aid, emergency funds, and other local programs.

We don’t:

Give legal advice, represent you in court, act as a neutral third party between you and your landlord, or provide credit counseling, debt management, or financial advisory services. When a situation calls for any of those, we tell you and we refer you to someone who does them.

Through our comprehensive approach, we aim to help Maine families navigate housing crises, build financial resilience, and secure stable futures for themselves and their children.

Build Your Path to Employment

Hands writing notes beside an open laptop

Housing stability and steady employment go hand in hand.

We put together a free, self-guided tool to help clients assess their job readiness, connect with Maine employment resources, and access a free, trusted resume builder — with one-on-one support from our team available every step of the way.

Get Job & Resume Help →