HUD’s new report, reported on last week, is available here. The study concludes that communities should explore strategies to:
- Avoid extensive use of high-cost homeless programs (i.e. transitional housing) for individuals or families who primarily need permanent housing without supports or those whose service needs can be met by mainstream systems.
- Alter the way that homeless assistance systems respond to households that are unable to remain stably housed and face repeated instance of homelessness. Communities could consider models such as Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing.
- Work with mainstream systems (especially criminal justice, mental health and substance abuse systems) to design appropriate discharge planning strategies and ways to identify clients at-risk of homelessness to prevent homelessness.
