A Hoarding Alliance local resource guide
A respectful place to begin, whether you are looking for support for yourself, worried about someone you love, or trying to respond to a safety, housing, care, or practical concern in Alachua County.
Start here - Fight the Blight
Our virtual groups give people affected by hoarding and clutter concerns a place to connect from Gainesville, Alachua County, and other communities. We can help you think through what is happening and what kind of next step may fit.
Call 911 for a medical emergency, fire, or immediate threat. For behavioral-health crisis support, call or text 988 or Meridian at (352) 374-5600. For resource navigation, call 211.
First conversations
You do not need to know the perfect service name before reaching out. These organizations can help you understand the landscape and identify a next step.
Florida 211 provides free, confidential navigation to housing, shelter, food, utility assistance, health care, transportation, child care, employment, behavioral-health, and crisis resources. It is a referral pathway, not emergency dispatch or a guarantee that a provider has capacity.
NAMI Gainesville offers free mental-health support, online groups, education, family programming, and advocacy. Ask about current group schedules, privacy, accessibility, and whether support is better suited to the person directly affected or a friend or family supporter; this is not emergency care or therapy.
Meridian lists Gainesville outpatient care and a crisis center available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Ask about current crisis, outpatient, substance-use, and recovery access, payment or coverage, transport, and which level of care fits; call 911 for a medical or life-threatening emergency.
The International OCD Foundation directory can be searched for clinicians, support groups, organizers, and programs that indicate an interest in hoarding-related care. Ask about experience, licensure, fees, insurance, wait time, privacy, and whether home-based or telehealth work fits.
Safety and stability
These pathways serve different situations. Read the labels carefully before calling, especially when a response may involve protective services, crisis response, city code, shelter, domestic-violence advocacy, behavioral-health support, or emergency dispatch.
Call 911 when there is immediate danger, fire, a medical emergency, violence, or a threat that cannot wait for a scheduled service. Emergency dispatch is not a hoarding-support program, counseling service, or cleanup provider.
Call or text 988 for free, confidential crisis support when someone is experiencing suicidal thoughts, emotional distress, or a behavioral-health crisis. 988 is not a cleanup, housing, or routine care service; call 911 for immediate danger, fire, or a medical emergency.
Meridian directs people with urgent mental-health concerns to its crisis line and says the Crisis Center operates 24/7. Ask what happens next, whether mobile or walk-in support is available, and which information or consent is needed; use 911 for a medical or life-threatening emergency.
Florida DCF explains that Adult Protective Services addresses abuse, neglect, exploitation, and self-neglect of elderly or disabled adults. A report may lead to protective investigation and service coordination; it is not a guaranteed cleanup, housing placement, or voluntary support outcome. Call 911 if the adult is in immediate danger.
Gainesville describes support through GRACE Marketplace, street outreach, Community Resource Paramedicine, and teams pairing police officers with Meridian mental-health clinicians. The CRP program can help underserved neighbors navigate medical care and services; ask what current help fits and whether consent is needed.
GRACE uses a Housing First approach and brings shelter, housing case management, meals, transportation, health care, and partner agencies together at one campus. Confirm current intake, accessibility, pets, belongings, length of stay, and bed availability before traveling.
Alachua County describes case management intended to reduce homelessness, health concerns, and welfare concerns, plus an Emergency Financial Assistance Program for certain rent, mortgage, and utility needs. The county directs people seeking homeless services to 211 or United Way of North Central Florida for intake and assessment.
Peaceful Paths is a domestic-violence safety pathway with a 24-hour helpline, confidential shelter, crisis counseling, advocacy, support groups, and help with protective injunctions. This is not general hoarding support; use it when violence, coercion, or stalking is part of the safety picture.
Alachua County Victim Services provides advocacy and crisis pathways for survivors, including assistance with protective injunctions and a 24-hour sexual-assault helpline. This is a confidential safety pathway, not a clutter or cleanup service; call 911 for immediate danger.
Gainesville Code Enforcement lists complaints involving junk, trash, debris, open or unsecured buildings, over-occupancy, and other municipal codes. The city requires a complainant’s full name and address for complaints; an inspection is not a guaranteed cleanup, relocation, or hoarding-support response.
People and practical help
These listings connect Gainesville and Alachua County residents with county-seat government, housing, homelessness navigation, food, legal and victim support, health care, peer support, benefits, disposal, organizing, and community resources. Ask about current availability, cost, scope, consent, and safety before relying on them.
Family Promise supports children and families facing homelessness through diversion, shelter, case management, meals, transportation, tenancy training, and affordable housing. Ask about current family eligibility, intake, accessibility, documents, and whether prevention or shelter is the right starting point.
Catholic Charities lists emergency assistance for people on the brink of homelessness, food pantry services, rural outreach, and housing assistance. Confirm current hours, documents, service area, and whether assistance is available for rent, utilities, food, or another need.
Alachua County maintains a housing-resources page connecting residents to housing counseling, affordable housing, rental resources, United Way 211, Habitat, the Neighborhood Housing Development Corporation, and VA housing assistance. Confirm which program serves the household, current funding, documents, and wait times.
The Gainesville Housing Authority provides affordable housing and Housing Choice Voucher information for eligible individuals and families. Confirm current waitlist status, application method, income limits, required documents, accessibility, and whether the address belongs in the city or county housing system.
Alachua County describes Lotus Counseling as an outpatient counseling center for mental-health and substance-use treatment for justice-involved or uninsured county residents and says it does not charge fees. Confirm current eligibility, appointment availability, scope, and whether the concern needs crisis or another service.
Gainesville Community Counseling Center describes licensed outpatient mental and behavioral-health services for Alachua County. Ask about current hoarding-related experience, fees, insurance, sliding or subsidized options, wait time, privacy, and whether home-based or telehealth support is offered.
The Florida Department of Health in Alachua County directs people in emotional distress to professional help and 988. Use it as a public-health orientation point, then confirm current local care, coverage, wait time, and accessibility directly with the provider.
Alachua County Community Support Services coordinates social services and provides contacts for general assistance, health and wellness, case management, veteran services, and victim services. Ask which office handles the person’s situation and what proof of county residency or household need is required.
Alachua County says residents with curbside service can request free pickup of qualifying bulk items such as furniture, mattresses, appliances, and other household items. Confirm what is accepted, how to schedule, where items must be placed, and whether the home is served by the county or city.
The county’s transfer station accepts separated household waste streams and lists current hours, fees, and special handling rules. Cover the load, separate materials, and confirm what is accepted before traveling; disposal access is not a home-cleanout, hauling, or organizing service.
Alachua County publishes guidance for paper, cardboard, containers, non-recyclables, carts, and collection practices. Use it to reduce confusion before moving items, and confirm whether a special or hazardous-waste route is needed instead of placing an item at the curb.
The Peer Tree is the private-pay pathway for organizing help, decluttering support, groups, family guidance, and practical next steps when a grant or public program is not the right fit. Ask about scope, cost, travel, consent, safety, and whether support is available in Gainesville or Alachua County.
Unburied, from The Peer Tree, offers a judgment-free digital pathway with peer support, groups, and tools for people directly affected and for friends or family supporters. It is not therapy, a crisis service, or a substitute for emergency help.
A note from the Alliance
This guide is anchored in Gainesville, the county seat of Alachua County, and includes city, countywide, regional, statewide, national, nonprofit, and independent pathways. A listing here does not mean Fight the Blight endorses every provider or can guarantee availability. The Hoarding Alliance is not a city or county agency, therapy practice, emergency service, or cleanup company. We will keep reviewing this page, but please confirm details directly before relying on them.
Need help choosing a path? Contact Fight the Blight