Supportive housing is permanent, high-quality, affordable housing combined with supports – people who work with tenants to get counseling, health care, medication, training in basic life skills, and jobs - whatever is needed to help them put their lives back on track. Supportive Housing is designed to serve those who would not be able to stay housed without a wide range of supportive services. People living in supportive housing usually have a long history of homelessness and often face persistent obstacles to maintaining housing, such as a serious mental illness, a substance use disorder, or a chronic medical problem. Many tenants face more than one of these serious conditions. While services are necessary to help tenants maintain stability, being housed is an essential first step in addressing these conditions that often have gone untreated for many years. Therefore, the combination of housing and supportive services creates a synergy that allows tenants to take steps toward recovery and independence.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Identifying Homelessness:

• looks like any other apartment building. Each unit has a private bath and kitchen. Tenants hold their own leases and pay their own rents.
• is for a mix of people. The tenancy is a mix of formerly homeless, working people and people with disabilities to provide positive role models and to prevent stigmatization.
• is designed for people who can live independently. As in all buildings, tenants must be responsible to their neighbors and are subject to eviction for disruptive or dangerous behavior.
• provides independence, peer support and a sense of community, which are often lacking in the lives of the formerly homeless and people with disabilities.
• has on-site support staff to provide crisis intervention, case management, help in basis living skills, and help in obtaining needed health care and job training.
• is cost-effective. Supportive housing costs less than most alternative approaches to care and saves dollars otherwise spent on crisis treatment.
• has a proven track record of success. A recent government study found that more than 85% of supportive housing residents stay housed and become good neighbors.
• is not a group home or any type of treatment program. It is permanent housing in which services are provided on an as-needed basis.
• is neither a welfare hotel nor a government run housing project. The housing will be privately owned and managed by a non-profit organization with a proven track record that will be accountable to its neighbors.
• is not for everyone. Tenants will be screened to ensure that they want to be good neighbors and are able to live independently.
• is not a shelter. Supportive housing is permanent (not emergency) housing. Tenants hold leases and pay rent while having access to services that will help them live independently.
• does not hurt the neighborhood. Instead, it helps solve local homelessness and provides much-needed affordable housing units, it will upgrade and enhance the property on which it is built or rehabilitated, and it will be well run and well managed. The property will be well maintained, and security enhancements will ensure the safety of tenants and neighbors. Recent studies of communities where supportive housing has been developed found that not one experienced a drop in property values, increased crime or a change in the neighborhoods character.

The four categories most often identified as the reasons for homelessness are mental illness, alcohol abuse, unemployment and the lack of affordable housing. Frequently a combination of factors results in homelessness. There has been a recent increase in economic homelessness, which is characterized by persons who require few ongoing services but need affordable housing options to end their homelessness.

Homelessness in Manchester

The 2006 Point-in-Time Count of the Homeless survey prepared by The Planning and Human Services Departments of Manchester indicates that chronic homelessness is becoming more prevalent in the Manchester area. Chronic homelessness can be described as those persons who reported prior homelessness. Sixty-three percent of respondents in 2006 said they had been homeless before with many reporting several periods of homelessness in the prior year. In 2005 the percentage of persons reporting prior homelessness was 44%. The significant (19%) increase in chronic homelessness indicates the difficulty the chronic homeless are having in ending their homelessness.

Although many who experience homelessness in Manchester would be considered chronically homeless, others are homeless or at risk of losing homes due to current economic situations. In both 2006 and 2005, only eighteen percent of respondents would have money for a security deposit if affordable housing were available. According to the 2004 survey, 20% of respondents would or might possibly have money for a security deposit. This data seems to indicate that, for the vast majority, the lack of money for a security deposit was a major barrier to ending their homelessness.

The 2006 survey asked the respondents what would help solve their current homelessness. Of those who responded, 67.3% mentioned affordable housing, supportive housing or housing subsidies. Almost 30% (29.6%) mentioned employment, consistent employment or better paying employment. Of those who responded three-quarters (75.5%) mentioned housing, employment or both. Obviously, respondents equate their homelessness directly to their financial situation. These answers drive our analysis of the needs of the homeless in Manchester.