The Road to Ending Homelessness:
Detroit in Driver's Seat

Last month, CSH joined with the City of Detroit and the Detroit Continuum of Care in celebrating a continued and steady decline in the number of people in the Motor City experiencing homelessness, noting a 15% drop in 2017 over the previous year including a 4% drop among homeless veterans. The City and CSH credit the reduction to the "Housing First" approach to homelessness, which relies on the supportive housing model with wraparound services to ensure success for those in need of stability. With technical assistance provided in part by CSH, Detroit added 143 permanent supportive housing units in 2017 and expects to add another 300 over the next five years.

Helping Seniors & Our Partners at Avalon

Avalon Housing in Ann Arbor, Michigan, one of the sites participating in the CSH Classic Social Innovation Fund (SIF) Health initiative, has been selected by the Glacier Hills Legacy Fund at the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation as a finalists in "Vital Seniors: A Community Innovation Competition," a $2.5 million initiative designed to catalyze high-impact innovation and create enduring outcomes for vulnerable seniors and their caregivers in Washtenaw County, Michigan. For this Competition, Avalon will work with CSH to develop a specialized, multidisciplinary team allowing over 230 seniors to successfully age in place in supportive housing.

It's Still the Affordability Problem

Last week, Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS) released its annual report, "The State of the Nation's Housing 2018." The report examines the state of the housing market in 2018, finding that an increasing number of low- and moderate-income families lack access to affordable housing options and homeownership is becoming less affordable. Forty-seven percent of renters were cost-burdened, including 11 million severely cost-burdened renters who paid more than half their monthly incomes towards rent, a significantly higher rate than in 1988. The problem is particularly acute for low-income renters: 80 percent of renters earning less than $30,000 were cost-burdened, including 55 percent with severe burdens.

Making the LEAP in Houston

Citing increased rents and a sharp drop in vacancies after Hurricane Harvey, JPMorgan Chase & Co. has joined with CSH, the Houston Housing Authority, Coalition for the Homeless, and the City of Houston to launch the Landlord Engagement and Assistance Program (LEAP), a new initiative designed to boost the availability of affordable rental units by bringing Houston's landlords together with prospective tenants experiencing homelessness. "Landlords with existing rental units are the largest suppliers of affordable housing in Houston so this makes them critical partners in helping people quickly exit homelessness and work toward a path of stability," said Samantha Maggiani, CSH Program Manager in Texas.

Insights on CA Families & Homelessness

The most recent issue of Insights, published by the California Child Welfare Co-Investment Partnership, highlights opportunities and recommendations to address the challenges linked to housing insecurity with the goal of improving outcomes for California's children and families. CSH and our experts feature prominently in this issue where there are a number of references to, and details of, initiatives that form the backbone of our One Roof effort to help families facing housing instability and child-welfare involvement.

Breaking Silos, Addressing Family Homelessness

A report commissioned by CSH and authored by University of Chicago Urban Labs found there are 10,000 families in Chicago experiencing homelessness or living doubled-up with family and friends. What is unique about the report itself is the sources of the data. For the first time, Chicago Public Schools and the City's homeless services shared data around the families they serve. The result is a better understanding of just how many families lack access to stable housing. "Our goal is to work across partners in the community and with City agencies and Chicago Public Schools to increase resources for high-need families without a home," said Betsy Benito, director of CSH initiatives in Illinois. We are grateful to Polk Bros. Foundation, the Chicago Community Trust, and the Pierce Family Foundation for their support of this report.

Chicago Flexible Housing Pool RFP

The City of Chicago Department of Family and Support Services is seeking applications for an array of services and activities that collectively perform the function of a Coordination Agency for the City's new Flexible Housing Pool (FHP). The overarching objective of the FHP is to rapidly and simply connect individuals with complex needs who are frequently using crisis systems (e.g., emergency rooms, shelters, or jail detention) to supportive housing and increase access to needed services. CSH has been a partner and advisor in the development of the FHP. Details about the RFP, due July 10, can be found here.

A Coordinated Community Response

CSH is partnering with the City of Chicago and a host of Chicagoland nonprofits to sponsor a community event promoting Coordinated Entry. The Unified Community Response forum is an opportunity to learn how Chicago and Cook County's Homelessness Continua of Care are embracing a new approach to change the course of homelessness through collaboration, data-informed population needs, and equitable access to housing and resources. Learn more about and RSVP for the July 11 event here.

Stopping the Revolving Door

According to a report by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, approximately 40% of individuals in a jail or prison between 2011 and 2012 reported having a chronic health condition. Upon release, many individuals lacked stable housing and ongoing care coordination, exacerbating their illnesses. Health centers can play a pivotal role in improving the health of justice-involved people. Our new report "Stopping the Revolving Door: How Health Centers Can Serve Justice-Involved Populations" examines three case studies of health centers serving justice involved populations and provides recommendations for replication in other communities. Join us for a webinar on July 18 at 2:00pm ET where we will discuss the three case studies in greater detail.

Research on Housing & Healthcare Outcomes

"Housing as healthcare" is the maxim often used to describe the critical impact of housing on the health conditions and needs of vulnerable populations. CSH reviews the state of available research literature on this topic in our new published paper, "Supportive Housing & Healthcare Outcomes." Our goal is for supportive housing and healthcare providers to use this brief as a starting point for further exploration of the studies that most closely align with their interests related to the nexus of housing and healthcare.

Pay for Success Opportunity

CSH is soliciting applicants who are interested in using the Pay for Success (PFS) model to create supportive housing for vulnerable populations. Applicants should be interested in the opportunity to further a PFS initiative in their community by building the capacity of nonprofit service providers. Please note that unlike prior rounds of competition, applicants are not required to have received other federal funding for PFS exploration. Communities that are participating in the Data-Driven Justice Initiative to use data to drive system reform for vulnerable justice-involved populations will be prioritized for this award. Find the full application and the information you need by clicking here.