Factors related to rapidity of housing placement in Housing and Urban Development-Department of Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing program of 1990s

Abstract

Abstract-TheHousing and Urban Development-Department of Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program is the largest supported housing program in the country for homeless veterans who are seeking rapid entry into permanent independent housing. This study examined factors related to how rapidly clients were housed in the early years of the program and how long they stayed in the program. Mental health, substance abuse, work/income, criminal history, and site were examined as predictors of process times. Regression analyses based on 627 HUD-VASH clients who entered the program between 1992 and 2003 showed that client characteristics were not rate-limiting factors for obtaining HUD-VASH housing; i.e., clients who had greater substance abuse problems or more extensive criminal histories did not take longer to obtain housing. The large differences associated with site of entry partly reflected a curvilinear relationship between the duration of operation of the HUD-VASH program and process times; i.e., at relatively younger and older programs, clients entered housing slightly faster than at programs in the middle range. Lastly, HUD-VASH clients whose case managers reported good therapeutic alliances stayed in the program longer. These findings have implications for the continued expansion of the HUD-VASH program.

Understanding Housing Delays and Relocations Within the Housing First Model

“…When the principles of 'housing choice' and 'immediate placement' conflicted, choice prevailed -notably the principle most determined by a consumer-driven approach and tied to long-term recovery outcomes. This tendency supports previous findings that case managers with "good therapeutic alliances" and shared decision-making with consumers resulted in longer-term engagement, and supports the need to better understand consumer and provider perspectives (Tsai et al, 2011).…”

“…Within HF, embracing a consumer-driven approach can mean providers support consumers choices for housing -and working with their 'ambiguousness' -though continuous service engagement and motivational interviewing to support consumers' housing and recovery goals.-Our findings also raise questions about consumer characteristics associated with the timing of housing placement. As noted earlier, one study which assessed this issue found consumer characteristics and histories had little impact on how quickly consumers were placed into independent housing (Tsai et al, 2011). The present study largely upheld this finding for consumers experiencing long delays and/or requesting multiple transfers, as issues related to choice appeared to play a predominant role.…”

“…Yet a study of over 600 chronically homeless veterans admitted to the Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing program, which adopts the HF policy, found the average amount of time it took for consumers to be screened, admitted and housed in permanent independent housing was 241 days, with nearly half of the time spent from intake to referral (Tsai, O'Connell, Kasprow, & Rosenheck, 2011).…”

“…Some common structural factors affecting how rapidly consumers can access housing include housing availability and affordability, funding and income rates, and landlord recruitment and engagement. The type of partnerships with housing providers also affects timing; for example, some programs own or hold the lease to apartments which they rent to consumers, while others have housing partners retain apartments for consumers (Tsai et al, 2011). The effect of consumer characteristics on housing placement and relocations remains largely unexplored.…”

“…The effect of consumer characteristics on housing placement and relocations remains largely unexplored. The one known quantitative study that examined effects of consumer characteristics on placement timing concluded that consumer mental health, substance use, employment status/income, and criminal history explained little of the variance in the process time for housing access (Tsai et al, 2011). A study that assessed consumer characteristics' effects on housing tenure patterns found only gender and prior living situation to be significant, with men and individuals recruited directly from the streets to be more likely to experience temporary departures after housing (C. Pearson et al, 2009).…”