Housing First: A New Approach to Ending Homelessness for Families

Transcription

1 THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE TO END HOMELESSNESS, INC. Husing First: A New Apprach t Ending Hmelessness fr Families Many cmmunities are adpting a Husing First apprach t ending hmelessness fr families. The apprach is based n tw very simple principles: 1. The best way t end hmelessness is t help peple mve int permanent husing as quickly as pssible. 2. Once in husing, frmerly hmeless peple may require sme level f services t help them stabilize, link them t lng-term supprts, and prevent a recurrence. Of curse, Husing First really isn t that new. Sme cmmunities have been practicing it fr years, with extrardinary results.! The city f Philadelphia has used a Husing First apprach t reduce the number f peple in shelters.! In 2002, the Pew Partnership fr Civic Change recgnized Beynd Shelter, a Husing First prgram in Ls Angeles, as a Slutin fr America. They stated: The Husing First prgram breaks the cycle f hmelessness by placing sme f the mst vulnerable and at-risk hmeless families in the natin immediately int permanent husing and then prviding them with intensive supprt services. Fllwing is a list f questins that are frequently asked abut the Husing First apprach. What is a Husing First apprach? A Husing First apprach cnsists f three cmpnents: Crisis interventin, emergency services, screening and needs assessment: Individuals and families wh have becme hmeless have immediate, crisis needs that need t be accmmdated, including the prvisin f emergency shelter. There shuld be an early screening f the challenges and resurces that will affect a re-husing plan.

2 Permanent husing services: The prvisin f services t help families' access and sustain husing includes wrking with the client t identify affrdable units, access husing subsidies, and negtiate leases. Clients may require assistance t vercme barriers, such as pr tenant histry, credit histry and discriminatin based n ethnicity, gender, family make-up and incme surce. Prviders may need t develp a rster f landlrds willing t wrk with the prgram and engage in strategies t reduce disincentives t participate. Case management services: The prvisin f case management ccurs (1) t ensure individuals and families have a surce f incme thrugh emplyment and/r public benefits, and t identify service needs befre the mve int permanent husing; and (2) t wrk with families after the mve int permanent husing t help slve prblems that may arise that threaten the clients' tenancy including difficulties sustaining husing r interacting with the landlrd and t cnnect families with cmmunity-based services t meet lng term supprt/service needs. Targeting: Is a Husing First apprach apprpriate fr all peple experiencing hmelessness? A Husing First apprach that emphasizes a rapid return t permanent, independent husing is nt believed t be apprpriate fr all peple experiencing hmelessness. Sme may require lnger stays in transitinal husing befre re-entering husing t cpe with ther issues such as dmestic vilence r substance abuse addictin. There is a small ppulatin f chrnically hmeless peple wh will require permanent supprtive husing t exit hmelessness. Finally, many individuals and families have the capacity t exit hmelessness rapidly withut any additinal frms f assistance. Families with significant barriers t becming re-hused have been the initial target ppulatin fr Husing First services. Husing First prgrams have attempted t target thse individuals and families wh are mst likely t remain in the hmeless service system lnger withut such assistance. Such targeting effrts have resulted in greater emphasis n upfrnt husing assessments t determine the permanent husing strategy that best meets the individual r family's needs.

3 Assessment: Hw d yu knw a family/individual is "ready" fr husing? All prgrams assess the individual r family's "readiness" fr Husing First services. Obviusly, having a surce f incme, which includes a welfare grant, r access t a husing subsidy is a primary and immediate cncern. There must be sme assurance the husing is financially affrdable t the family r individual ver the lng term. This, f curse, means that Husing First prviders must be attentive t the availability and parameters (such as time limits) f publicly funded prgrams -- such as Temprary Assistance t Needy Families (TANF) and Sectin 8 husing vuchers. It is imprtant t stress that Husing First prviders d nt believe husing shuld cme after successful interventins t help an individual r family achieve self-sufficiency. Indeed, sme believe it is nt until a family is stabilized in their wn permanent husing that real prgress in meeting ther family gals can be made. A Husing First apprach incrprates transitinal case management services fllwing a placement in permanent husing that helps families stabilize in their husing and links them with the apprpriate services in the cmmunity t meet their lng-term supprt needs and gals. In sme cases, a family assessment indicates t prgram prviders that stays in transitinal husing may be beneficial fr the family. Fr example, sme dmestic vilence prviders believe transitinal husing can prvide vulnerable families the mre intensive, n-site supprt required during the early days and mnths f separatin frm an abusive partner. Thse with a recent histry f drug/alchl addictin may find stays in transitinal husing prgrams enhance their recvery wrk. It is imprtant t recgnize, hwever, that fr the majrity f individuals and families experiencing hmelessness, stays in transitinal husing are nt indicated. It is typically mre cstly t the cmmunity t prlng the perid f time in which an individual r family remains hmeless. Transitinal husing shuld therefre be used purpsively, when indicated by the needs f the family r individual. Finally, an essential cnsideratin fr thse adpting a Husing First mdel is respnding t the cncerns f landlrds. In many cmmunities, it is very difficult t lcate husing affrdable t very lw-incme individuals and families. Husing First prviders rely n extrardinary effrts t attract and maintain a rster f landlrds willing t accept their clients -- particularly thse with mre "challenging" rental histries. Because Husing First prviders are s dependent upn their reputatin amng landlrds t build a pl f husing pprtunities fr their clients, they must have sme cnfidence in the clients' capacity t be gd tenants. Inevitably, Husing First prviders will wrk with individuals r families whse rental histries may indicate a high level f "risk" bth t the landlrd and the reputatin f the Husing First prvider. Husing First innvatrs are respnding t this challenge by wrking cperatively with area landlrds t explre hw t reduce r share the risk burden.

4 Husing Assistance: What kind f husing assistance is recmmended and hw can yu help families find husing when there is NO affrdable husing? Husing assistance typically invlves helping the individual/family identify apprpriate husing ptins, negtiate with landlrds, and intervening when prblems develp fllwing a husing placement that threatens the client's tenancy. Husing assistance may als include prviding financial assistance fr security depsits, rent guarantees and husing applicatins. Develping husing resurces has becme a necessary cmpnent f implementing a Husing First apprach -- this may invlve marketing the prgram t landlrds t develp a base willing t wrk with the Husing First prgram. Develping husing resurces might als include wrking clsely with the lcal public husing authrity t maximize the cmmunity's husing resurces fr clients. The increasing difficulty in lcating affrdable husing accessible t very lw-incme individuals and families des present a significant challenge fr Husing First prviders. It is even mre challenging fr the many individuals/families wh exit hmelessness withut access t Husing First services. There is a need t cntinue t develp and refine strategies t lcate and develp mre husing pprtunities in the cmmunity and thrugh the use and expansin f publicly funded husing resurces. Husing First innvatrs have fund that landlrds are ften mtivated t lease an apartment t a hmeless individual r family when they knw that there is a supprt system t prvide assistance -- r t call if a prblem arises. Case Management: What is the fcus f case management wrk and why shuld hmeless assistance dllars pay fr services t families and individuals wh are n lnger hmeless? Husing First appraches shifts the paradigm f service prvisin t hmeless peple. In the prevailing mdel, individuals and families ften remain eligible fr case management services and supprts nly as lng as they cntinue t be hmeless. The gal f such case management services is t stabilize the individual r family s they can enter husing. Husing First mdels attempt t significantly reduce the length f time peple are hmeless. Fllw-up case management services are required t help the individual r family stabilize after they are hused. Reducing the length f time families are hmeless presents great cst-savings t hmeless prgrams, the cst f the fllw-up case management a fractin f that required t meet the cmprehensive needs f the family wh remain hmeless fr a lnger perid f time. Individuals and families will require sme immediate shrt-term case management while still in emergency shelters t reslve immediate, pending crises. The initial case management services that begin in the emergency shelter ften fcuses n addressing the

5 barriers that prevent the individual/family frm re-entering husing. Utilizing a Husing First apprach, hwever, means nt predicating prvisin f husing n cmpleting case management services. Fllw-up case management services shuld be prvided t the individual r family fr at least six mnths t ne year and may vary in intensity depending n the need f the family. Case management is expected t be transitinal, therefre, linking individuals and families with n-ging need fr supprts t cmmunity-based services is a fcus f case management services. Rle f transitinal husing: Desn't the Husing First apprach underplay the value f transitinal husing t accmmdate the shrtage f affrdable husing and help families achieve real selfsufficiency? The Alliance believes there is a rle fr transitinal husing fr individuals and families experiencing hmelessness. The Alliance strngly believes transitinal husing funded ut f the hmeless assistance funds shuld be used purpsefully -- t achieve an end t hmelessness. The Alliance is cncerned, hwever, that transitinal husing has becme a "waiting area" fr t many individuals/families whse nly real re-husing need is an assurance f affrdability. The cnsequence is that thse individuals/families wh might benefit frm the supprts a transitinal husing prgram may prvide -- fr example, a family fleeing an abusive relatinship r an individual wrking n his/her sbriety -- are diverted frm the help they need because f the backlg f peple seeking assistance. By prviding the Husing First assistance t help thse wh can mve rapidly ut f hmelessness, transitinal husing can be utilized t serve thse wh wuld derive the greatest benefits frm it. Permanent supprtive husing: Many hmeless families appear t need n-ging supprt, s shuldn't we just develp mre permanent supprtive husing prgrams fr families? While husing with supprts attached may benefit a brad spectrum f individuals and families, the Alliance recgnizes that sufficient funding is unlikely within the existing federal husing budget and abslutely impssible ut f the limited hmeless assistance dllars. Instead, the Alliance supprts targeting existing Supprtive Husing, Shelter Plus Care and SRO permanent supprtive husing dllars t thse with disabilities and experiencing chrnic hmelessness, and wh withut such assistance, wuld never escape hmelessness. This may include sme families. It is true that many f the individuals and families wh have experienced hmelessness might benefit frm n-ging supprts -- and the gal f the transitinal case management wrk fllwing a husing placement is t put thse supprts in place. Studies and experience demnstrate that even thse with multiple challenges can live independently

6 in the cmmunity when they have access t supprtive services delivered by mainstream prgrams. Questins: What d we need t cnsider when develping a Husing First prgram? Each cmmunity will need t assess its existing resurces. A Husing First apprach can be adpted by ne agency r it can be accmplished thrugh the cllabratin f agencies each prviding specialized services. The questins that need t be evaluated in each cmmunity are: Which individuals/families experiencing hmelessness shuld be targeted fr Husing First services? Wh will be respnsible fr the referral and assessment f individuals/families? Wh can prvide individuals/families with husing assistance, including: Help vercming barriers t accessing affrdable husing including addressing pr credit, evictin histries, lack f mve-in funds Lcating subsidized r affrdable units in the cmmunity, Develping greater affrdable husing resurces by wrking with landlrds, public husing authrities, etc. Serving as a resurce t landlrds fllwing a husing placement fr prblems/issues that may develp. Wh will prvide the case management services t the individual/family, including: Time-limited case management immediately after the mve, Linking individual/family with needed supprts in the cmmunity, Helping t reslve crises that may evlve fllwing a husing placement. What funding resurces are available? What utcme data elements shuld be captured? Fr mre infrmatin, g t the Husing First Netwrk at