We can end homelessness.

I am nearing 30 years as an advocate for housing justice. Something I tell myself frequently is that we can end homelessness, which is primarily the byproduct of not having enough affordable housing and secondarily of not providing supports to youth or those struggling with mental illness or substance abuse disorders.

In the late 1970s, enough affordable housing was available for extremely low-income households. Homelessness, while it existed, was a significantly smaller problem than it is now. Then, in the early 1980s, the federal government dramatically cut its investment in affordable housing, a reduction from $81 billion to $18 billion. Then, in 1987, the government put a paltry billion dollars into emergency shelter development to address the homelessness problem it created. While housing was out of reach for nearly all those falling into homelessness, the numbers increased as (in part):  

1. The federal government put a freeze on building more public housing.
2. Housing choice vouchers never became an entitlement based on income—only 1 in 4 eligible currently receive a subsidy.
3. In many states, landlords can discriminate against those who have a subsidy to pay for their housing.
4. More and more mainstream systems (e.g., the criminal justice system and the mental health system(s)) fail to serve the most vulnerable—usually due to a lack of resources.
5. Lack of ample affordable housing options often means that those who have an eviction on their record are at high risk of homelessness.

This story could disempower me, but it doesn’t. Why? Because times haven’t been as bad as they are now, and voters could demand that the federal government re-engage in the development and subsidization of affordable housing. We know more now about how to help people trapped in homelessness simply because they cannot afford what is available: build more housing to reduce competition for what is now a scarce resource and put more money into rental subsidies for low-income households. And for those who face other challenges in maintaining housing (e.g., youth and those who struggle with mental illness or substance abuse disorders), we know how to provide them with the support that will allow them to manage and often thrive in their living situation. Lastly, we know that ending homelessness is cheaper than tolerating it. For instance, several communities across the country have focused and been successful in ending veteran homelessness, spending about the same as a homelessness response but getting better results through investment in supportive housing targeted at veterans’ needs.

We can end homelessness. The history of how we got to this point and the knowledge gained over the past 45 years tells us this is so.