Watch Out For “Housing First" Misinformation

Misinformation on a policy known as Housing First is not new. However, there are fresh attempts being made to intentionally misguide the public on what Housing First is and what the model advocates.

"Housing First" is when providing permanent housing is prioritized before attending to anything less critical, such as getting a job, budgeting properly, or attending to substance use. It is a model grounded in screening into services, not out, and recognizes agency through a participant’s choice. Participants exercising choice throughout the process of housing selection and the supportive services with which they participate, have demonstrated more people remaining housed. CSH (the Corporation for Supportive Housing), the National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH), and other organizations across the country advocate for Housing First policies, as seen in this testimonial video from NAEH. It is an approach shown to save lives and money.

Housing First is part of multiple recommendations outlined in the Blueprint to End Homelessness in Washtenaw County, published back in 2004. It is also included in Michigan’s first collaborative statewide housing plan (Goal 3.3, Strategy 3.3.C) released this past May. In the Washtenaw Housing Alliance’s (WHA) February 2022 newsletter, we shared about our advocacy for the “Housing First” model. It seems obvious and yet, sadly, permanent housing is not always the first assistance connected to someone experiencing homelessness.

Recent misinformation is claiming Housing First is not effective; that its success is only on the individual level, not for a community. The National Low-Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) is most cautious of how the Housing PLUS Act and model legislation from the Cicero Institute are making their way into national and local conversations on homelessness prevention, sheltering, and housing programs. Any actions or legislation that criminalizes homelessness, imposes punitive requirements, and prevents the development of affordable housing are not better attempts for success on the community-level. On the contrary, it will only erode community stability at the direction of housing market forces.

A significant barrier to expanding and consistently implementing Housing First as a strategy in many communities is a lack of sustained funding. Endowments like the Sister Yvonne Gellise (SYG) Fund are more critical than ever in filling funding gaps for permanent supportive housing services in Washtenaw County. Last year, the SYG Fund – which is at the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation – was fortunate to receive a $1M funding commitment and met requirements for a $500K Challenge Match from a local foundation. This donation is value added to the City of Ann Arbor’s Affordable Housing Millage, which was adopted in November 2020. The millage will raise approximately $6.6M for affordable housing.

As Jennifer Hall from the Ann Arbor Housing Commission (AAHC) stated in her presentation at the City’s ARPA Funds Q&A Session on January 19th, the Millage is “incredible, super helpful, super useful in moving us forward toward adding affordable housing to the community. But it’s simply going to be gap financing. It’s no way able to provide all of the funding to build all the affordable housing that’s needed.” When factoring in supportive services to any future affordable housing projects, this money really is not enough.

In the same session, Aubrey Patiño from Avalon Housing shared that, “Unfortunately, our community has not acquired new HUD [Housing and Urban Development] funding for supportive housing since 2016.” She later went on to say that providers, particularly as part of groups like the Community Housing Prioritization (CHP) committee, have gone out of their way “to not duplicate services, to work as a collective, to prioritize resources for those who need them the absolute most.” Our county’s homelessness response is not by mistake, but an act of a collective, and “if we chip away at the safety net by loss of funding, we may see an increase in visible street homelessness and more and more a kind of attrition in the progress that we’ve made over the last five to ten years.”

To this point, Washtenaw County’s Continuum of Care network of service providers as well as those participating in the CHP committee look to prioritize Housing First practices into what they do. Knowing that this model is not always common knowledge to others in our county, WHA and its members try to engage and educate local policy makers, law enforcement, and, to a lesser extent, business leaders. Some may remember the Housing and Human Services Advisory Board (HHSAB) leading panel presentations and community conversations on different topics related to housing and homelessness during the first half of this year. If you missed it, the Affordable Housing Education Series is still available for viewing.

Recently, NLIHC hosted a “Housing First” webinar series to educate the public on the emerging threats people experiencing homelessness face as well as the long-term solutions and successful strategies to address unsheltered homelessness. This series made clear: misinformation on Housing First is counterproductive and makes it even harder for people to exit homelessness. Housing is a basic human right. Housing First recognizes this life-sustaining relationship.

The WHA would like to give much appreciation to all its member agencies, the CHP Committee, and other county service providers who join us in advocating for Housing First and permanent supportive housing every day.