Housing Assistance

Community Services Board Permanent Supportive Housing

Permanent Supportive Housing is a Housing First model program that offers services to individuals with a serious mental illness (SMI) regardless of current sobriety or use of substances, poor credit, or financial history, poor or lack of rental history, criminal conviction, or behaviors that indicate a lack of housing readiness.

The Permanent Supportive Housing Program (PSH) provides a support system to empower individuals to move forward from prior challenges and establish stable housing to improve quality of life through a person-centered and recovery-oriented approach. Stable housing creates opportunities to access needed medical care, mental health care, and substance use treatment on a consistent basis, build and maintain relationships and have security in basic needs.

PSH programs for individuals with SMI, including those with co-occurring medical conditions or substance use disorders (SUDs), must prioritize serving those who meet one or more of the following criteria. Adults with serious mental illness, as defined by the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Development Services (DBHDS), who are currently: 1. patients in state psychiatric facilities who are interested and eligible for PSH, or 2. residents of supervised residential settings (e.g., assisted living facilities, group homes) who can live more independently, or 3. chronically homeless, or literally homeless and at risk of becoming chronically homeless, or 4. unstably housed and frequent users of hospital or criminal justice system interventions.

Eligibility Requirements for a PSH Program

The following are the eligibility requirements for the permanent supportive housing program:

• You must have a physical or mental illness that makes it difficult to work
• You must have low income
• Your health condition has caused you to go into poverty if you are not already in poverty.
• You must be homeless or at risk of becoming homeless within 30 days.
• You must be dealing with addiction issues.

A caseworker will be assigned to you to complete the screening process for admission to the program. For additional information please call 804-748-1544.

SSI/SSDI, Outreach, Access and Recovery (SOAR)

SOAR is a model designed to increase access to disability income benefits for individuals who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness. Applicants would need to be adults and have a serious mental illness, medical impairment, and/or a co-occurring substance use disorder.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) defines adults as persons 18 years of age or older as well as individuals who are within one month of their 18th birthday. SSA will also accept an SSI application from a youth up to 180 days before his or her foster care eligibility will end due to age.

Many people who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness also suffer from disabling mental illnesses, co-occurring substance use, trauma, and/or other medical issues. Accessing the income and health care benefits that SSI/SSDI provides can be a critical first step on the road to recovery. However, their circumstances can impede access to these benefits.

Important information to know:

• SSA communicates mainly by mail, which is a challenge when one does not have a permanent, reliable address.
• People who are experiencing homelessness often have sporadic medical care, making it difficult to access medical records to document disability.
• Symptoms can interfere with cognitive functioning, making it difficult to navigate a complex system.

To learn more about the SOAR Program, please contact the Assessment and Resource Team (A.R.T.) at 804-748-1100 and we will answer any additional questions or provide case consultation for a prospective candidate.

Housing Families First

Building Neighbors
Building Neighbors is a rapid re-housing program that helps families experiencing homelessness move into permanent housing as quickly as possible, then provides supportive services to help them sustain it. To learn more about Building Neighbors and how to gain access to the program, please contact Housing Families First by email or call 804-236-5800.

Bringing Families Home
Bringing Families Home is a program that helps students, and their families move into a home of their own before they need emergency shelter and other crisis services. This is in collaboration with Housing Families First. These families have income and often are highly mobile, living in hotels and with friends and family without the financial resources and support needed to secure permanent housing. Bringing Families Home now includes housing support for students and families in Chesterfield County Public Schools and Henrico County Public Schools. To learn more about Bringing Families Home, please call 804-748-1100 and ask for the Assessment and Resource Team (A.R.T.). The A.R.T. staff will screen prospective families to determine eligibility for the program.