Rapid Rehousing was created in response to COVID-19. Congress passed the CARES ACT in March 2020. Funds must be used to prevent prepare and respond to COVID-19 among individuals and families who are homeless or receiving homeless assistance. This program must also support additional homeless assistance and homelessness prevention activities to mitigate the impacts created by the virus.
Goals of Rapid Re-Housing
Rapid Re-Housing is designed to assist homeless or imminently homeless families by quickly:
- Reduce the length of times program participants spend being homeless.
- Households exit homelessness and obtain permanent housing.
- Lessen the likeliness that individuals and families return to homelessness.
Research suggest that rapid re-housing is more cost-effective than transitional housing. A rental contract is between the property owner and family, with the Daniel Pitino Shelter agreeing to help with a percentage or fixed amount of rent each month to help stabilize the family. The rental assistance may be as short as 3 months or may be longer depending on the circumstances.
Core Components
- Housing identification
- Move-in assistance
- Rental assistance
- Ongoing housing-focused case management services
Participant Requirements
Participants must be willing to participate in the program, committed to make efforts to increase self-sufficiency, wiling to have a contract between themselves and a landlord, and take over full contract of rental lease when the subsidy concludes.
Flexibilities
Subsidies are applied by their duration and amount to house and stabilize individuals and families based on their needs. This is not a “one-size-fits-all” program. Our program recognizes and focuses on individual needs of each household. Rental assistance and housing focused case management can be provided for up to the program maximum of 24 months. Participants will be reassessed every 3 months to determine if and when the level of assistance should be adjusted.
Case Management Program
Participants may choose to enroll in our case management program. Upon enrollment, we will work together to customize your case management plan to ensure it meets the needs and goals of you and your family and provides the necessary tools for you to succeed while you are participating in our program and after the program ends. Our case management program maximizes support and plays an important role in generating positive outcomes for you and your family by providing the following benefits:
- Collaborative assessment, planning, and evaluation process to promote and increase the standard of well-being for you and your family.
- Customized support and service plan created by you and your caseworker to develop and strengthen a stable living environment for you and your family.
- Linkages and referrals to community resources to enhance your community knowledge and obtain needed services.
- Assistance with reassessment and follow up of case plan to ensure ongoing maintenance of service plan to ensure quality of care.
- Promotes and strengthens self-management skills for you and your family.
- Alleviates and reduces the impact of homelessness on you and your family.
- Assistance in obtaining and maintaining benefits, stabilization services and housing stability.
- Enhances efficient and effective service delivery for you and your family.
- Advocacy to identify barriers and gain access to services and resources for you and family.
If case management sounds like something you feel would benefit you and your family, we will set up an appointment with your assigned case worker to get you enrolled.
Please note, you may enroll or terminate your case management services at any time, so please keep this number handy in case you decide to enroll at a later date.
Participant Selection Procedures
- Selections of applications from the waiting list will be on a first come, first served basis.
- Daniel Pitino Shelter will be providing rental assistance to homeless individual’s transitioning from the Daniel Pitino Shelter. These individuals will have priority over the waiting list and will be adhered to first.
- The Rapid Re-Housing will provide financial assistance to individuals who meet the definition of Homelessness if there are no individuals on the waiting list from the Daniel Pitino Shelter.
- Individuals must meet the definition of homelessness below:
- An individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.
- An individual who has a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings, including a car, park, abandoned building, bus or train station, airport, or camping ground.
- An individual or family living in a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designated to provide temporary living arrangements (including hotels and motels paid for by federal, state or local government programs for low-income individuals or by charitable organizations, congregate shelters, and transitional housing).
- An individual who resided in a shelter or place not meant for human habitation and who is exiting an institution where he or she temporarily resided.
- An individual or family who will imminently lose their housing (as evidenced by a court order resulting from an eviction action that notifies the individual or family that they must leave within 14 days, having a primary nighttime residence that is a room in a hotel or motel and where they lack the resources necessary to reside there for more than 14 days, or credible evidence indicating that the owner or renter of the housing will not allow the individual or family to stay for more than 14 days, and any oral statement from an individual or family seeking homeless assistance that is found to be credible shall be considered credible evidence for purposes of this clause; has no subsequent residence identified; and lacks the resources or support networks needed to obtain other permanent housing.
- Unaccompanied youth and homeless families with children and youth defined as homeless under other Federal statutes who have experienced a long-term period without living independently in permanent housing, have experienced persistent instability as measured by frequent moves over such period, and can be expected to continue in such status for an extended period of time because of chronic disabilities, chronic physical health or mental health conditions, substance addiction, histories of domestic violence or childhood abuse, the presence of a child or youth with a disability, or multiple barriers to employment.