Family Options Study Brief

Description

On July 8, 2015, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published the 18-month outcomes from the Family Options Study: Short-Term Impacts of Housing and Services Interventions for Homeless Families. The study shows that an offer of housing subsidies or rapid re-housing reduced episodes of homelessness in emergency shelter and transitional housing, as compared to the assistance that families would normally have received. The study also shows that both housing subsidies and rapid re-housing were cost effective. Families offered transitional housing did not receive significant benefit despite the fact that transitional housing was the most costly intervention.

This policy brief outlines the study’s key findings and delves further into the policy implications for Continuums of Care (CoCs) and Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) Program recipients, as well as Public Housing Agencies (PHAs).

Resource Links

• Family Options Study: Short-Term Impacts of Housing and Services Interventions for Homeless Families (PDF)
• Family Options Study Brief (PDF)

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