Many people find themselves having a hard time handling housing costs these days. In fact, millions of Americans are overpaying on housing costs and millions more are in poverty. Because of this, the government has a variety of support options. One support opportunity that often gets overlooked is Continuum of Care (CoC).

What is Continuum of Care (CoC)?

CoC is a local or regional body that plans and coordinates services and housing funding for individuals and families dealing with homelessness. The program dates back to 1995. Back in 1995, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) started requiring communities to submit a single application for McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants. They made this requirement in hopes to streamline the funding application process. On top of that, a single application encourages the coordination of housing and service providers locally while promoting the development of CoCs. Through this coordination, HUD had the hopes to get a structural and strategic approach to both housing and providing services to homeless people. To help with the strategic side of things, a CoC can help by giving homeless people services and housing designed for their specific needs.

There are Four Parts to CoC

HUD defines CoC as “a community plan to organize and deliver housing and services to meet the specific needs of people who are homeless as they move to stable housing and maximize self-sufficiency. It includes action steps to end homelessness and prevent a return to homelessness.”

There are four main parts that HUD identifies as being necessary for CoC. These parts are:

• Outreach, assessment, and intake of individuals to identify the needs of those in need. This includes the housing and service needs as well as provides a link to the adequate level of both.
• Emergency shelter opportunities that can give safe and immediate shelter. This is an alternative to individuals and families that would otherwise sleep on the street.
• Transitional housing which also provides support services designed to develop the skills of those in need. The skills that people will learn will help them once they have a permanent house.
• Permanent and permanent supportive housing to give families and individuals the opportunity to get an affordable place to live with services (if necessary).

What are Important Activities for CoC 

Since CoCs are designed for local (or regional) support, they will be the ones that need to manage and track the homeless community of their area. One of the most important activities that CoCs will do is to try to track down and count the homeless people in their locality. They will do this biannually, which means two times a year! Another important activity that CoCs will conduct is the yearly count for transitional housing units, emergency systems, and beds that are a part of the homeless assistance systems.

Why are These Counts Important?

The reason that these counts are important is that they give an overview of the homeless community that CoCs are aiming to support. It can also give CoCs the numbers they need to properly redirect their funding, resources, and services accordingly.

Understanding CoC Support

We talked about the four parts of a CoC earlier. It’s important to specifically highlight some of the parts that benefit people dealing with homelessness. Some of the parts that we talked about were emergency shelters, transitional housing, and permanent supportive housing. While each CoC will have its own specific support opportunities for its locality or region, you can expect to come across at least one (if not all) of these types of housing support opportunities.

Emergency Shelters

When people talk about emergency shelters, they are likely referring to a facility that has the main goal of providing temporary shelter to those in need. Typically this means people who are generally homeless or for specific populations in need. These facilities do not need occupants to sign agreements of occupancy or leases in order to benefit from the shelter. These shelters play an important role in the community that they serve. That’s because people experiencing homelessness can have a place to go to immediately while trying to figure out their next steps in their housing journey. While trying to find their next housing situation, the shelter can provide services that go hand in hand with the needs of those that are homeless. You can search for homeless shelters in your area by looking online or getting in touch with local support agencies like your local PHA, Habitat for Humanity, etc. 

Transitional Housing

There is a variety of types of transitional housing available to those in need. Popular transitional housing includes:

• Transitional Shelters
• Rapid Re-Housing

Transitional Shelters

Unlike an emergency shelter, transitional shelters typically give people the opportunity to get housing support for a longer time period. The exact period will vary depending on the shelter and can be for a period of up to 24 months. The goal of transitional shelters is to give people the tools they need to work towards self-sufficiency like starting their careers, getting permanent housing, resolving personal challenges, and more.

Rapid Re-Housing

Another housing support option is rapid re-housing. This support option gives short-term rental assistance and services to those in need. The goal of this support opportunity is to give support to people who are trying to get housing quickly while helping people achieve self-sufficiency. There are no preconditions that come along with this support option. That means there will not be employment requirements, criminal record limitations, etc. This is different from transitional housing because it is less expensive but also lasts for a shorter period.

Permanent Supportive Housing

Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) is a type of support housing opportunity that aims to provide both affordable housing assistance and voluntary support services. The services are designed to address the needs of people that often deal with homelessness. The goal of these services is meant to build independent living and tenancy skills. On top of that, it is supposed to connect people with the right services for healthcare, treatment, and employment.

Bottom Line

If you are facing homelessness, there may be more support than you realize for your situation. One often overlooked support opportunity is Continuum of Care (CoC). CoC is a local or regional body that plans and coordinates service and housing funding for individuals and families dealing with homelessness. There are four main parts that HUD identifies as being necessary for a CoC. These parts are;

• Outreach, assessment, and intake of individuals to identify the needs of those in need. This includes the housing and service needs as well as provides a link to the adequate level of both.
• Emergency shelter opportunities that can give safe and immediate shelter. This is an alternative to individuals and families that would otherwise sleep on the street.
• Transitional housing which also provides support services designed to develop the skills of those in need. The skills that people will learn will help them once they have a permanent house.
• Permanent and permanent supportive housing in order to give families and individuals the opportunity to get an affordable place to live with services (if necessary).

For more information, you will want to get in touch with local agencies like your local Public Housing Authority (PHA). They will have information about local housing support available!