1. Prioritizing Permanent
Housing: Advanced
Re-Housing Strategies
National Alliance to End Homelessness
National Conference on Ending Family Homelessness
February 11, 2011, Oakland, CA
Beyond Shelter
1200 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 600
Los Angeles, CA 90017
(213) 252-0772
2. Strategies for Overcoming
Tenant Screening Barriers
Boost system capacity for housing search
and placement to address common
argument of “but there’s no affordable
housing”
Establish housing locator agencies
Provide capacity building grants to service
providers
3. Strategies for
Overcoming Barriers (Cont’d)
Develop tenant education programs with
official certificates and/or letters of
recommendation to landlords
Example: Oregon Second Chance Renter
Rehabilitation Program
Example: United Way of King County (Seattle)
Ready to Rent Program
4. Strategies (Cont’d)
Offer financial incentives to owners
Increased deposit amounts
“Signing bonuses”
3 months rent up front
Quarterly payments
Bonuses for referrals of fellow landlords to the
program
Housing repair grants
5. Strategies (Cont’d)
Offer time-limited financial guarantees or
protections
Rent guarantees
Wear and tear guarantees
Example: King County (Seattle) Risk
Reduction Fund/Landlord Liaison Project
Example: Salt Lake County, UT HARP
Program
7. Strategies (Cont’d)
Offer (or stipulate) protective payee
services to overcome high rent-income
ratios
Example: Tabor Community Services (Shelter to
Independent Living Program) in Lancaster, PA
8. Strategies (Cont’d)
Master lease units
A third party (e.g., public or private agency) is
the leaseholder and sub-leases to homeless
family
After transitional period of time (e.g., 3 – 6
months), complete control of lease transferred
from agency to head of household