Affordable housing – According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, and the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development, the generally accepted definition of affordability is for a household to pay no more than 30% of its annual income on housing. Households that pay more than 30% of their income for housing are considered cost-burdened and may have difficulty affording other necessities such as food, clothing, transportation, and medical care.

Chronic homelessness – Having more than four episodes of homelessness within three years or being homeless for a year consecutively. Also required to have a disability of long duration which includes physical, emotional, mental, or substance abuse.

The Grand Rapids Area Coalition to End Homelessness – A community collaborative working as a planning body and catalyst for changing how our community responds to individuals and families who are experiencing a housing crisis or who are homeless. The Coalition is also the housing subcommittee of the Kent County Essential Needs Task Force and is the Housing Continuum of Care for Grand Rapids, Kent County, and Wyoming.

Emergency shelters – Temporary places for people to stay who are without a stable place to live. Emergency shelters are available to anyone without a primary residence; however some emergency shelters may only serve a certain gender or household make-up (e.g., only families and not individuals). Emergency shelters in the Grand Rapids/Kent County community most often limit the households time of residing there temporarily to a maximum of 30 days. A stay in emergency shelter includes access to supportive services, case management, food/meals, child care and transportation assistance, and sometimes a variety of additional supports related to helping the household get back into housing and remain there.

Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) – An electronic data collection system that stores longitudinal person-level information about people who access homeless services while also protecting client confidentiality. It is designed to aggregate client-level data to generate an unduplicated count of clients served within a community’s system of homeless services. The Homeless Management Information System may also cover a statewide or regional area and include several Continuum of Cares. The system can provide data on client characteristics and service utilization.

Homeless – A homeless person, as defined in the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act of 1987, lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence or their primary residence is one of the following:

• A temporary place for people about to be institutionalized;
• Any place not meant for regular sleeping accommodation by humans; or
• A supervised temporary shelter.

This definition also includes people who are at risk of losing their housing because they are being evicted from their residence or they are being discharged from institutions, such as hospitals or prisons, and have nowhere else to go. The definition of homelessness is currently being revised by the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development due to the passage of the HEARTH Act in May 2009. For specific information on how the definition of homelessness is expanding, please see: www.hudhre.info/hearth

Homeless prevention – A process in which a household at risk of homelessness avoids actually becoming homeless. Financial assistance to prevent an eviction, mediation to address problems with a landlord or lender, and case management can all prevent individuals and families from becoming homeless.

Household – Anyone who resides together in their housing. A household could be a single individual, a couple, or a parent(s) and his/her children. Housing Assessment Program – Kent County’s centralized intake, assessment and referral service for households in need of homeless resources and services, including temporary placements, that promote homeless prevention and rapid re-housing for households with a housing crisis. This centralized intake and assessment approach ensures a coordinated and targeted utilization of community resources which promote housing stability. The Housing Assessment Program is a program of The Salvation Army Booth Family Services.

Housing Continuum of Care – The U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development-required regional or local planning body that coordinates housing and services funding for homeless families and individuals. The U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development makes the Continuum of Care responsible for the biannual count of the homeless population and an annual enumeration of emergency systems, transitional housing units, and beds that make up the homeless assistance systems.

Housing crisis – A situation that occurs when a household’s housing stability is in jeopardy, meaning they are at risk of losing their housing.

Housing First – An approach in which housing comes first and services second (after housing is stabilized). The central goal is to re-house persons as soon as possible. This approach includes interventions that are designed to help homeless persons move more rapidly out of the homeless system and back into housing. It can include short-term intervention strategies while the household is homeless, and once housed, includes access to case management, supportive services or other non-financial assistance to support long-term housing stability and prevent the reoccurrence of a housing crisis. Programs utilizing a Housing First approach do not include the requirement of activity completion in order to obtain housing, (e.g., having to attend classes, skill building, trainings, enrollment in programs, etc.) but instead services or activities are voluntary and offered to the household once in housing. Additionally, a Housing First approach does not connect tenancy to the successful completion of program activities. The supportive services may be time-limited or ongoing and vary in intensity depending upon the needs of the household.

Housing Resource Specialist – A community-based case management model which provides case management and supportive services to households who are at-risk of homelessness or those who are literally homeless. Housing Resource Specialists provide services to prevent a homeless episode or rapidly re-house households who are homeless. Services are provided to enhance the household’s housing stability and to link households to community resources. All referrals to a Housing Resource Specialist originate from the Housing Assessment Program. Housing Resource Specialists provide services under the auspices of the Housing First approach.

Missions – Faith-based organizations providing emergency accommodations to a large number of people one night at a time. Typically an overnight stay would also include a meal, and often includes a requirement to participate in a faith-oriented worship service, along with access to some supportive services or resources most often related to life skills.

Permanent housing – Housing that is stable and a place where a household can reside on a continuous basis and is not temporary or short-term in nature.

Permanent Supportive Housing – A combination of affordable housing coupled with supportive services targeted to persons who are homeless, and/or at-risk of primary homelessness and also have multiple barriers to accessing mainstream permanent housing. Permanent Supportive Housing can vary from a congregate setting to scattered-site apartments. Supportive services are optional for the residents.

Quality housing – Housing that meets local, state, and federal codes and that is also safe and sanitary as a means for preventing disease and injury. Rapid re-housing – Assisting homeless households return to permanent housing as soon as possible while reducing the length of time people remain in homeless shelters.

Substandard housing – A dwelling that does not meet local housing and occupancy codes.

Transitional housing – Most transitional housing programs for homeless people that exist today specialize in serving households with sufficient barriers to getting or keeping housing where a period of stabilization, learning, and planning appear needed if they are ultimately to leave homelessness for good. One of the few statutory limitations placed on transitional housing is that it can only provide housing for up to 24 months. Another requirement is that transitional housing programs offer supportive services designed to help clients make the transition to regular housing, including the option that supportive services continue for up to six months after official program exit. The programs can be project-based (in a single building or complex of buildings) or tenant-based (scattered-site), or provide a “transition in place” format that lets clients stay in their program units and eventually take over the lease, with supportive services being gradually reduced as a household’s need for them diminishes. Transitional housing projects can serve a variety of homeless populations, including single adults with a variety of disabilities, families, domestic violence victims, and women seeking to regain custody of their children.

U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development – The federal agency focused on community development, homeless assistance, fair housing, faith-based and neighborhood partnerships, healthy homes, public housing, rental assistance and sustainable communities. HUD’s mission is to increase homeownership, support community development and increase access to affordable housing free from discrimination. www.HUD.gov