Local Solutions to Homelessness: Key Takeaways From the 2024 State of Homelessness Webinar

Local Solutions to Homelessness: Key Takeaways From the 2024 State of Homelessness Webinar

Solutions to addressing homelessness hinge on strategic partnerships among CoCs, PHAs, and local governments.

Since 2011, the National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) has released annual reports reviewing the state of homelessness and emerging trends in the United States. "The State of Homelessness: 2024 Edition" uses the 2023 HUD Point-In-Time (PIT) count and Housing Inventory Count to offer insight about the number of individuals experiencing sheltered and unsheltered homelessness, the individual and systemic factors that lead to homelessness, and the effectiveness of the homeless response system.

In August 2024, NAEH's Homelessness Research Institute hosted an event titled State of Homelessness Webinar: A Path Forward to present report findings. NAEH research analyst Daniel Soucy shared data and takeaways from the report and leaders from Tennessee, Texas, and California highlighted innovative strategies and solutions to reduce unsheltered homelessness locally. Moderated by NAEH analyst Andrew Hall, the panel included MacKenzie Kelly, executive director of Chattanooga Regional Homelessness Coalition (CRHC); Sarah Kahn, president and chief executive officer of Housing Forward in Dallas, Texas; and Robert Ratner, director of the Santa Cruz County Human Services Department's Housing for Health Division.

The Current State of Homelessness 

HUD's PIT homelessness count in January 2023 revealed that more than 650,000 people nationwide are experiencing homelessness. This record-high count, largely driven by a 23 percent rise in rates of first-time homelessness between 2019 and 2023, also revealed a disproportionate increase in the rate of homelessness experienced by people of color. Since 2015, Hispanic or Latino, American Indian or Alaskan Native, and Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander populations have seen increases in their homelessness rates of 59 percent, 53 percent, and 21 percent, respectively. Asian-American households experienced the largest increase in homelessness rates, rising 91 percent from 2015 to 2023. In response to this overall increase, service providers assisting these populations have expanded their supports. In 2023, the number of people that frontline workers helped to secure shelter exceeded the number of those with no alternative but to sleep outside.

Despite evidence showing that the homeless response system has been effective — fewer people returned to homelessness in 2023 compared with 2019 — the data show that affordable housing shortages for low-income groups continue to drive homelessness rates. Soucy stated that this finding is "unsurprising" given the inadequate investment in preserving and building new affordable housing. He emphasized that policymakers must pair affordable housing with income and health supports to keep people stably housed.

Local Trends

The national data show that homelessness rates increased in most communities from 2022 to 2023, but local trends in Texas, Tennessee, and California tell a different story. The panelists shared that rates of sheltered and unsheltered homelessness have decreased in their communities since 2021, which they attribute to changes in Continuum of Care (CoC) practices in response to dramatic increases in homelessness during the pandemic. For example, CRHC, which covers 11 counties in southeast Tennessee, saw rates of unsheltered and sheltered homelessness increase 40 to 50 percent during the pandemic, but homelessness rates decreased dramatically in 2023 to prepandemic numbers and continued to decrease over the past year.

Kahn shared that in Dallas and Collin counties in Texas, rates of unsheltered homelessness more than tripled, and the overall homelessness rate increased by approximately 45 percent between 2015 and 2021. Since 2021, however, rates of unsheltered homelessness decreased by 24 percent and the overall rate of homelessness decreased by 19 percent.

Ratner described a similar reduction in homelessness rates in Santa Cruz County, but he pointed out that disparities in homelessness rates across different demographics mirrored national trends. Specifically, he mentioned that the county "has a lot of work to do" to address the significant rise in homelessness among Latino residents and improve supports for seniors and people living with disabilities.

Reforming Coordinated Access

The state of homelessness during the pandemic marked a turning point in the three local homeless service providers' approach to coordinated entry. Kelly explains that in Chattanooga, CRHC overhauled its coordinated entry system after realizing that it "was broken." The CoC found that people on the referral list were either unreachable or not a good fit for the housing program. The CoC responded by creating a web-based survey to generate a more community-focused and trauma-informed assessment. The assessment, which previously relied on a specific social worker or caseworker to administer, now permits school systems and libraries to administer it through new partnerships. In addition, more housing organizations are voluntarily taking referrals from the coordinated entry system. As a result, CRHC's coordinated entry system has expanded its reach from 3 access points to more than 30. Similarly, Santa Cruz County transitioned its coordinated entry system from the Vulnerability Index–Service Prioritization Decision Assistance Tool, which it found ineffective, to a local assessment process. Rather than placing individuals on a list to be scored, the new assessment examined the specific life conditions of the people needing housing assistance. Ratner explained that this tailored approach shifted people from being stuck on waitlists to connecting them to the resources that they need.

Dallas and Collin counties' coordinated entry reform serves as a model for encampment responses. Created under a partnership involving the city of Dallas and the All Neighbors Coalition led by Housing Forward, the Street to Home encampment response model is Housing Forward's 4- to 8-week protocol for closing encampments by offering all inhabitants at a specific location permanent housing and supportive services. During that period, the CoC brings comprehensive rehousing services onsite that include street medicine teams, behavioral health specialists, housing navigators, and care managers. Once all encampment residents are rehoused, the encampment is closed and the city coordinates with Housing Forward staff to reopen the public spaces to the community. According to Kahn, this model is "actually ending a person's homelessness" rather than simply displacing residents to nearby encampments.

Centralized Approach Through New Partnerships

All the panelists stated that rates of sheltered and unsheltered homelessness in their communities decreased because their agencies shifted from a siloed approach to a centralized strategy that relies on new partnerships formed since the pandemic. In 2021, Santa Cruz County created the Housing for Health Partnership (H4HP), which serves as the county's federally designated CoC. The CoC established a 3-year strategic framework for a mission to "drive strong collaborative action to ensure all residents within Santa Cruz County have stable, safe, and healthy places to live." One example of such collaborative action is H4HP's partnership with the Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz for using HUD's Family Unification Program. By working with the child welfare department, the housing authority has created strong referral networks that expedite families' access to resources. Ratner said that thanks to the partnership, the housing authority has removed barriers to accessing housing vouchers for families who have a history with the criminal justice system.

Kelly shared that in 2022, CRHC entered a strategic partnership with the city of Chattanooga that allowed the CoC to expand resources beyond the city. She specifically pointed to the city's contribution to the $1.3 million flexible housing fund, which pays upfront costs that are barriers to housing. The city contract, which requires the agency to create a strategic plan for addressing homelessness, has released funds that the agency has used to overhaul its coordinated entry system. In addition, CRHC has leveraged more than $500,000 in city funding to receive support from other partners in affordable housing development.

In Dallas and Collin counties, the challenge of leveraging limited funding for rehousing led to a more centralized approach to keep up with demand. Housing Forward, which leads a coalition of more than 140 organizations, created a strategy in which providers codesigned a common approach to deliver services with clear performance measures for racial equity in areas that include rehousing, permanent supportive housing, and coordinated outreach. Kahn also shared that the city rapidly scaled its rapid rehousing program by pulling together resources from the city, county, and private-sector partners.

As the panelists emphasized, solutions to addressing homelessness hinge on strategic partnerships among CoCs, public housing agencies, and local governments. They also shared the understanding that support services require authentic engagement with people who have experienced homelessness. According to Kahn, their diverse voices and firsthand experiences inform practice and policy and are part of a continuous process of improvement. Because all three of the panelists' CoCs have seen continued decreases in overall rates of homelessness while the national trend is rising, the strategies shared may prove beneficial in other parts of the country.