The nonprofit Housing for New Hope has taken the lead in helping soon-to-be displaced Lincoln Apartment tenants find new places to live, but the helper is asking for help itself.

Rehousing Coordinator Cynthia Harris said this week is going to be “booming” with households ready to move.

“A lot of manpower is needed,” she said.

Money is welcome, too; so are beds and mattresses.

Lincoln Apartments is a 150-unit low-income complex on Lakeland Street, owned by the nonprofit Lincoln Hospital Foundation. In late September, the foundation notified tenants that it intended to close the complex due to “unfavorable financial conditions.”

Residents were told to vacate by Oct. 31. After protests and intervention by city, county and nonprofit leaders, the foundation extended the deadline until January.

Some tenants have already moved, “but there are a lot of families and households remaining,” said Joi Stepney, assistant director at Housing for New Hope.

When the agency took on the Lincoln relocations, Harris said, she had 15 households on her list to help. By early last week, the number was more than 40 and she was expecting still more.

“My office is packed every day,” she said. “Some of those people are just kind of waiting until they have to go. It’s kind of hard to find housing at the last minute.”

It’s particularly hard when Lincoln tenants were paying about $360 a month rent, she said. There aren’t many places to live at that price, and those for whom housing can be found need money for deposits, utilities and advance rent.

“Most of these people, they really don’t have much income,” Harris said. “And nobody expected this (eviction), so nobody saved up for this.”

Housing for New Hope and several other nonprofits have about $5,000, but that’s not enough to cover the need, she said.

Some of those moving need furniture, especially beds and mattresses, she said; and Housing for New Hope needs volunteer manpower to help with actual moving. By late this week, Harris said, she expects several households will be ready to move every day.

“We’re going to be rolling,” she said. “I’d like to see these people in housing before Christmas.”