Volume 17, Issue 4

2006

 

 

This article reviews what is known about the role of housing and services
in reducing family homelessness. People in families comprise 33 percent of
the homeless population, but few resources are available to fully meet their
needs. Some researchers have suggested that the vast majority of these families
do not need services and that housing vouchers alone can end most family
homelessness.

The literature on the effects of housing subsidies and services on homeless
families is limited compared with the literature on homeless individuals.
Evidence suggests that access to housing vouchers seems to increase residential
stability and that case management and other services also contribute to residential stability and other desirable outcomes, including family preservation
and reunification. Additional research is needed to better understand the role
of housing and services in stabilizing different subgroups of families, as well as
which approaches are most cost-effective.