homelessness and affordable housing · homelessness and affordable housing ... want to hear this...
TRANSCRIPT
Faith Partners for Housing SW WA
Want to hear this presentation?Visit our website at https://affordablehousing465.w ordpress.com/ 1
Homelessness and Affordable Housing
Making Connections
• Started meeting in late 2015• Response to:
• Changing experiences at the WHO• Courtyard Village and similar situations• Surge in requests for rental assistance at St.
Vincent de Paul
You can make a difference
Why We’re HereFAITH PARTNERS
FOR HOUSING
Some Reasons to Be Here
• More people living on the streets• Tent “cities” on our sidewalks• WHO and other shelters full every night• 2200 schoolchildren homeless• In 2016, only 30% of families and 45% of
individuals requesting shelter were served
"The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever y ou did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.‘” Matthew 25:40
“Why do these, our brothers and sisters, have no place to live? Why are these brothers and sisters of ours homeless?” Pope Francis, Sep 24, 2015
Faith Partners for Housing SW WA
Want to hear this presentation?Visit our website at https://affordablehousing465.w ordpress.com/ 2
Who Are the Homeless? Are Homeless Moving to Vancouver?
• Over 80% of ourhomelesshad an addressin Clark County
We Don’t See Everyone
For every person living on the street, another 8 or 9 people are…
living in their car
“doubled up” orcouch surfing
staying in a shelter
� Chemical dependencies� Long-term unemployment� Serious mental illness� Near-minimum wage job � Family problems – domestic violence, LGTBQ,
divorce, etc.� Credit problems and evictions� Underemployment – cannot find full-time work� Dependent on Social Security or SSI
More risk factors � more likely to be homeless
Some Risk Factors for Homelessness
Faith Partners for Housing SW WA
Want to hear this presentation?Visit our website at https://affordablehousing465.w ordpress.com/ 3
A Continuum of Causes
9
Some people have many barriers, some just a few.
Is This Different?
• Did you see all these kinds of homelessness 30 years ago?
• How about 10 years ago?
The 1960s
� Dependent on Social Security/SSI
� Underemployment – cannot find full-time work
� Credit problems and evictions
� Family problems – domestic violence,
LGTBQ, divorce, etc.
� Near-minimum wage job
� Serious mental illness
� Long-term unemployment
� Chemical dependencies
“De-institutionalization”: closure of mental hospitals
The 1970s
� Dependent on Social Security/SSI
� Underemployment – cannot find full-time work
� Credit problems and evictions
� Family problems – domestic violence,
LGTBQ, divorce, etc.
� Near-minimum wage job
� Serious mental illness
� Long-term unemployment
� Chemical dependencies
Faith Partners for Housing SW WA
Want to hear this presentation?Visit our website at https://affordablehousing465.w ordpress.com/ 4
� Dependent on Social Security/SSI
� Underemployment – cannot find full-time work
� Credit problems and evictions
� Family problems – domestic violence,
LGTBQ, divorce, etc.
� Near-minimum wage job
� Serious mental illness
� Long-term unemployment
� Chemical dependencies
Chronic Homelessness
Chronic Homelessness
Repeated or lengthy periods without shelter and a disabilityUsually have multiple risk factors
The 1980s
� Dependent on Social Security/SSI
� Underemployment – cannot find full-time work
� Credit problems and evictions
� Family problems – domestic violence,
LGTBQ, divorce, etc.
� Near-minimum wage job
� Serious mental illness
� Long-term unemployment
� Chemical dependencies
Manufacturing jobs dwindlePublic housing funds slashed > 50%
The 1990s
� Dependent on Social Security/SSI
� Underemployment – cannot find full-time work
� Credit problems and evictions
� Family problems – domestic violence,
LGTBQ, divorce, etc.
� Near-minimum wage job
� Serious mental illness
� Long-term unemployment
� Chemical dependencies
More living-wage jobs lostCredit issues
� Dependent on Social Security/SSI
� Underemployment – cannot find full-time work
� Credit problems and evictions
� Family problems – domestic violence,
LGTBQ, illness, divorce, etc.
� Near-minimum wage job
� Serious mental illness
� Long-term unemployment
� Chemical dependencies
Situational or Family Homelessness
Have barriers – less than ideal renters
Situational Homelessness
Faith Partners for Housing SW WA
Want to hear this presentation?Visit our website at https://affordablehousing465.w ordpress.com/ 5
The 2000s
� Dependent on Social Security/SSI
� Underemployment – cannot find full-time work
� Credit problems and evictions
� Family problems – domestic violence,
LGTBQ, divorce, etc.
� Near-minimum wage job
� Serious mental illness
� Long-term unemployment
� Chemical dependencies
More low-wage and part-time workLess housing built during the recession
Affordability in Vancouver
Average Rentin Clark County
Monthly income: 40hr/wk minimum wage WA
Affordability in Vancouver
Average Rentin Clark County
Monthly income: 40hr/wk minimum wage WA
Affordability in Vancouver
Average Rentin Clark County
Monthly income: 40hr/wk minimum wage WA
Faith Partners for Housing SW WA
Want to hear this presentation?Visit our website at https://affordablehousing465.w ordpress.com/ 6
Affordability in Vancouver
Average Rentin Clark County
Monthly income: 40hr/wk minimum wage WA
Why is Rent So High?
Vacancy Rate
What Will Happen Next?
Vacancy Rate
Minimum Wage Increase in WA
?
What Will Happen Next for Seniors?
Faith Partners for Housing SW WA
Want to hear this presentation?Visit our website at https://affordablehousing465.w ordpress.com/ 7
Economic Homelessness
� Dependent solely on Social Security/SSI
� Low-wage job (or even medium-wage)
Economic Homelessness
No barriers to renting other than inadequate income.
Different Reasons, Different Solutions
“Housing First”- Stable housing- Health care
Affordable Housing- Low-cost housing- Transportation
Transitional Housing & Shelters- Mentoring- Case Management
26
Chronic Homelessness
Situational Homelessness
Economic Homelessness
Clark County’s Affordable Housing Gap
Not enough low-cost housing
Longer shelterstays
More people on the street
3000 to 6000 units short 3000 to 6000 units short
As People of Faith, What Can We DO?
Let’s take a look at filling the housing gap
Faith Partners for Housing SW WA
Want to hear this presentation?Visit our website at https://affordablehousing465.w ordpress.com/ 8
Good News: We Have Builders
Apartments & Multiplexes
• (VHA)
• REACH
• Second Step
Houses
• Habitat for Humanity
• Proud Gr
New Methods:
• It can take years to assemble funding, so…• Developers need “patient” land
and buildings
• Nonprofits can buy or lease land• Contributing can be affordable!• A lasting legacy
Builders Want “Patient” Land
Faith Partners for Housing Contact: Mark Maggiora
Be Open to Affordable Housing
• Learn about projects planned for your neighborhood• Who will live there?• Will support services be needed?• Are traffic & parking plans adequate?
• Engage with developer, city, county to make it work• Share the facts – talk to your neighbors, church
groups, neighborhood groups
Faith Partners for Housing Contact: Denny Scott
Want to rent to low-income?Worried about risk?
Two programs toreduce landlordrisk:
• Share ASPIRE
• Second Step Story Street
Can start with a single unit.
Rent to Low-Income Households
Faith Partners for Housing Contact: Kathy Iberle
• Rent subsidies paid directly to
landlord
• Participants become model
tenants via RentWell
education, case management
• Landlord has 24/7 support
from case mgrs
Faith Partners for Housing SW WA
Want to hear this presentation?Visit our website at https://affordablehousing465.w ordpress.com/ 9
• Homeowner rents a room to another person• Expands housing within existing units• Provides extra income & companionship
• Safety• Background checks on both landlord & renter• Match people who are likely to do well together• Formal, written agreements• Mentor/mediator available
• Pilot program in 2015 placed 20+ people• Less than $2000 per household!
• Permanent program would be $50K per year
Possibility: Shared Housing Different Kinds of Tiny Houses
A HutNo plumbing
Shared bathroomsNo kitchen
No heatOften no electricity
A HouseToilet/Sink
ShowerKitchen
HeatFull electricity
A CottageToilet/Sink
Shared showersShared kitchen
HeatFull electricity
Quixote Village in OlympiaPortland homeless village A tiny house on AirBnB
Land and permits are part of the cost
We’ll probably need more than one solution:• Rent-a-room programs (Shared housing)• Recovery programs (e.g. Oxford House)• Zoning changes to allow smaller houses• Inclusionary zoning – require low-cost housing• Tax credits & incentives to for-profit builders• Non-profit housing developments. Co-ops?• Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)• Living solutions with Shared
showers/laundry/kitchen (SROs or cottages)• Maintain existing homes owned by low-income• And more…
Many Possible Solutions
• Turn your worksheet over• Write your dream for our community
What is my dream?
36
I will pour out my spirit upon everyone;
your sons and your daughters will
prophesy, your old men will dream
dreams, and your young men will see
visions. Joel 2:28.
Faith Partners for Housing SW WA
Want to hear this presentation?Visit our website at https://affordablehousing465.w ordpress.com/ 10
• The homeless are a diverse group.• There’s a continuum of reasons for
homelessness.• Different reasons require different
solutions, but…• Homelessness is much higher when
there’s not enough affordable housing.
There are things we can do…Where will you go?
We’ve Learned… Question and Answer