Hidden Homelessness in San Diego. Who they are ~ Why they don t get counted or funded ~ What we must do

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1 Hidden Homelessness in San Diego Who they are ~ Why they don t get counted or funded ~ What we must do

2 Homeless Women & Families America has the largest number of homeless women and children in the industrialized world. It s a depressing statistic exacerbated by a housing crisis that forced thousands of families out onto the street. The Best Way to End Homelessness, Alana Samuels, Citylab.com July 13, 2015

3 Homeless Women Homeless women are more vulnerable than their male counterparts, particularly when unsheltered. Female homelessness is often caused by a culmination of complex experiences and events, including sexual abuse and violence. Because the experience of being homeless is almost always traumatic for women, most homeless women are dealing with PTSD.

4 Housing Programs for Women MUST be Trauma-Informed Manifestations of PTSD impair one s ability to get and stay housed. Housing and shelter programs, including rapid rehousing and emergency shelter for families, must provide trauma-informed care and services that address maternal mental health, specifically maternal depression and PTSD. Feelings of intense distress Loss of interest in life in general Feeling detached from others Inability to plan ahead Sleep problems Irritability and outbursts of anger Difficulty concentrating Hypervigilance and paranoia Depression and hopelessness

5 Homeless Families Homeless families lack traditional support systems to fall back on, such as extended family for child care or financial assistance. Housing programs often separate families just when they need the emotional support they get from being a family. Most shelters are only for individuals or moms with children, excluding fathers and spouses. Fewer affordable housing units are available for families or being built.

6 Homeless Families Families with male and female children require 3 or more bedrooms for Sec. 8 vouchers, but these units are scarce and rent is more than the vouchers will cover. Single fathers with children also need family appropriate housing. Few emergency shelters accept children. Rescue Mission is the only emergency shelter for women with children in Downtown San Diego.

7 Homeless Single Moms Finding and keeping employment is complicated and difficult when a family doesn t have a home particularly for single parents. Single working moms have a double economic hit trying to raise a family on one income plus often being paid less than their male counterparts. Child care is expensive and hard to find, particularly if parents earn just enough income to disqualify them for benefits but not enough to pay for both child care and housing.

8 Homeless Children Many homeless children have physical, emotional, behavioral, and cognitive issues due to exposure to trauma and high levels of stress. For children, significant adversity during critical periods can alter their developing brain s architecture and make it difficult for the body to manage stress. 50% of homeless children perform below grade level and 33% under the age of five demonstrate more than one developmental delay. One of the things we note during recessions is that young families and kids tend to be the ones who go into poverty first, almost like a canary in a coal mine. But also in the back end, kids are the last to recover. Because this recession was because of housing, it s been particularly bad for kids. --Bruce Lesley President, First Focus Campaign for Children Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University, 2010

9 Not Visible / Not Counted Homeless women and families are not getting counted because they must stay hidden for safety.

10 Women and families must be invisible Because of their vulnerability to assault and rape, and fear of having their children taken by CPS, homeless women and families prioritize safety over other basic needs, choosing informal, marginalized accommodations such as: doubling up with friends or relatives, exchanging sex for a place to sleep staying in a cheap motel at the beginning of each month until the money runs out.

11 Out of Sight, Out of Mind Because homeless women and families are not visible, they do not exist in the public mind and there is no political pressure to help. In order to create public outcry necessary to get them the help they need, we must expose their existence.

12 Women and Families are Not Visible to the Point In Time Count Volunteers HUD mandates, but doesn t fund, an annual homeless count throughout the country every January. The Point in Time Count (PITC), recently renamed WeALLCount includes: Count of Unsheltered persons Count of Sheltered persons Interviews of unsheltered persons: In 2015, 23% of the unsheltered homeless were interviewed, providing data used to estimate demographic details of the unsheltered population.

13 Women and Families are Not Visible to the Point In Time Count Volunteers The Point in Time Count (PITC), recently renamed WeALLCount includes: An Unsheltered homeless person resides in: A place not meant for human habitation, such as cars, parks, sidewalks, outside abandoned buildings. A Sheltered* homeless person resides in: An emergency shelter, including temporary emergency shelters only open during severe weather. Transitional housing for homeless persons. * Sheltered DOES NOT include persons doubled-up or in motels, even though these accommodations are almost always temporary, insecure, unsafe and inappropriate, particularly for children.

14 Number of homeless persons in San Diego County determined by the Point in Time Count (PITC)

15 There is a way to count homeless families who are missed by the PITC All schools are required to report to the U.S. Department of Education the number of students enrolled who are homeless. The McKinney-Vento Act defines homeless children and youths as individuals who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence. Fortunately this count includes families who are couch surfing or living in hotels/motels California had the largest number of homeless children: more than 310,000, or 23 percent of the national total. *McKinney-Vento grants support state efforts to provide equal access to free and appropriate public education to homeless students and to gather information about those students and their needs.

16 Homeless Students Reported by San Diego County Public Schools In 2014 there were 22,189 homeless public school students in San Diego County (up from 15,685 in 2011).

17 San Diego County Homeless Public School Students by Nighttime Residence If we leave out the students who are in Temporary Shelters or Unsheltered (assuming they are included in the PITC) then: 80.0% were doubled up with friends or relatives 3.5% were in hotels/motels 83.5% of 22,189 San Diego County homeless students are not considered homeless by HUD and Not Counted in PITC

18 Using this data to determine the true number of Homeless Families in County of San Diego not included in the PITC

19 29,883 homeless individuals NOT included in San Diego County PITC Add this to the 8,506 homeless individuals counted by the 2015 PITC for San Diego County

20 Using the same calculations to determine true number of homeless persons for the City of San Diego

21 City of San Diego Homeless Public School Students by Nighttime Residence In 2014 SDUSD reported 7,340 homeless public school students in City of San Diego. If we leave out the students who are in Temporary Shelters or Unsheltered (assuming they are included in the PITC) then: 69.5% were doubled up with friends or relatives 2.8% were in hotels/motels 72.3% of 7,340 City of San Diego homeless students are not considered homeless by HUD and Not Counted in PITC

22 Using this data to determine the true number of Homeless Families in City of San Diego not in the PITC

23 8,853 homeless individuals NOT included in City of San Diego PITC Add this to the 5,538 homeless individuals counted by the PITC for City

24 Not Funded Not Served Because of their nighttime choices, homeless women and families are not recognized as homeless and there is no funding to help them.

25 Not considered homeless by HUD HUD s narrow definition of homeless leaves out the hidden homeless. Under the Hearth Act, in order to use HUD funding for programs to assist homeless persons, the individual must fall under categories that exclude families who are: doubling up staying in a motel for part of the month until their money runs out recently discharged from the military

26 Not prioritized by HUD HUD has created strong incentives for prioritizing projects that serve single adults who are chronically homeless (living on the streets or in shelters only), such that communities have little to no incentive to prioritize programs serving families and unaccompanied youth and in fact risk continued funding if they do so. (Facts About the Homeless Children and Youth Act (H.R. 576/S. 256))

27 Not funded by HUD Current law prohibits a Continuum of Care from using more than 10% of its funds to serve homeless, unaccompanied youth and families with children who actually meet their definition of homelessness. So even families and youth who can meet the HUD definition, are highly unlikely to get help.

28 What needs to be done to house homeless women and families

29 To house 10,000 families we need to consider their unique needs at each point of intervention and create BIG solutions. Create safe emergency shelter now for women and families Advocate & legislate for counting & housing homeless women and families Prioritize family homelessness prevention Help families overcome barriers to renting Facilitate the rental search process Rehab properties for very affordable housing for families Create Traumainformed housing programs for women and families Build THOUSANDS of very affordable housing units NOW! Create family-friendly housing alternatives Housing First must include keeping families housed

30 Create safe emergency shelter now for women and families Women and families cannot wait while we build sufficient affordable housing they need a safe place to live now even if it is just a meantime solution. Humane Emergency Habitation Units provide security and privacy, so a homeless woman or family can focus on getting beyond their homeless situation instead of spending all of their time and resources finding a place to sleep. Feeling safe: A door to lock so you can feel secure at night and to store your stuff during the day

31 Transforming Homeless Encampments into Humane Emergency Habitation Clusters Dangerous homeless encampments are springing up all over the city and county Replace them with safe and organized Humane Emergency Habitation Clusters with restrooms, showers, organized food and supplies donations, security, maintenance and access to supportive services.

32 Identify sites for Humane Emergency Housing Some possibilities: CALTRANS (excess) land beneath overpasses. Rehab Neil Good Day Center for housing units. Private property, such as the lots on NE and SE corners of Imperial and 17 th St.

33 Prioritize Family Homeless Prevention Provide legal and housing counseling services for families in crisis. Offer eviction intervention for every family facing eviction. Intercede quickly to keep a family housed or to get them re-housed. Prioritize keeping families intact unless domestic violence is involved.

34 Advocate & legislate for counting and housing homeless women and families Use school data when assessing homeless numbers in San Diego City and County Include needs of women and families when creating affordable housing Allocate funds specifically for permanent affordable housing for women and families

35 Help families overcome barriers to renting Renter training and certification would help families overcome barriers to affordable rentals by training them to be highly qualified and desirable tenants. Applicants with a low FICO score or past eviction could provide a prospective landlord with a certificate showing completion of a renter training program. Landlords agree to accept renter training certificate in lieu of credit requirements. By offering this alternative to all applicants, landlords would be in compliance with fair housing requirements.

36 Facilitate the rental search process Problem: Listings on Craigslist are often scams that take advantage of desperate people traps to get application fees on rentals that don t exist, or outof-state scams that ask for security deposits for rentals that are not even owned by the listing party. Listings from affordable housing developers often have no vacancies, no one answers the phone or no one returns voice messages. Solution: Affordable rental listings on RemarkableRenter.org that are accessible to renters upon successful completion of the renter certification program. These would be actual listings by participating landlords not scams.

37 Create trauma-informed programs for women and families. PTSD must be recognized as a disability and tenants suffering with PTSD must be given the same ADA rights and considerations as any other disability.

38 Rehab properties for very affordable housing for families The City of San Diego has been rehabilitating properties such as the PATH Connections Housing and the Churchill Hotel for homeless individuals. We need housing for families. Family housing should have areas for children to play and be safe.

39 Create family-friendly housing alternatives Sustainable, car-free neighborhoods of Tiny Home Clusters with shared common areas for kitchen/dining, laundry, showers, library/media center Located near transit Community garden Workshops and market

40 Build THOUSANDS of very affordable units NOW! Keys to Housing: A Toolbox to End Family Homelessness San Diego County has a deficit of over 90,500 very-low and low income rental units! Market forces will not generate affordable rentals when the vacancy rate in San Diego is less than 2%. Rental assistance or a Sec. 8 voucher is only good if you can find a rental where you can use it.

41 Housing First must include keeping families housed Once a family is housed, we must keep them housed. Housing First isn t just removing the barriers to getting a homeless person housed, we also need realistic behavior expectations while they adjust to being housed. It takes time for anyone who has experienced homelessness to re-acquire the mental and emotional skills necessary to maintain housing. This is particularly important when dealing with a family, where each member of the family is adjusting at their own pace.