Diana Ionescu wrote:

According to McLean, “Houston worked with surrounding county governments, various community stakeholders and nonprofit service providers to develop a model that, despite operating with a small budget, has decreased the area’s homeless population by roughly 63% since 2011, according to a recent city report.”

Houston’s success is attributed to three main factors:

  • Housing First: “The city employs a housing-first model that prioritizes providing permanent housing to people experiencing homelessness as quickly as possible with no barriers to entry. The city then provides wraparound support services to ensure they remain housed.”
  • A regional continuum of care that puts all organizations and agencies providing services to unhoused people under one umbrella.
  • Data-driven decisionmaking that relies on proven data to allocate resources and decide on what projects and initiatives to support.