Definition
The provision of voluntary, housing-focused supportive services is the feature that differentiates permanent supportive housing (PSH) from traditional affordable housing, and PSH has been proven to be a highly effective intervention for people who have experienced homelessness. Few funding streams are specifically designed to cover services in supportive housing and PSH developers must be creative and flexible in their efforts to secure service funding resources and/or outsource services to community service providers. Appropriate supportive service activities may vary depending on the tenant population, and even within populations, the specific supportive services offered can vary greatly.
Supportive services costs may include (as applicable to the project target population):
- Case management;
- Tenancy supports;
- Resident services to access community-based services;
- Substance-use counselors;
- Childcare workers.
Supportive services may be offered on-site or off-site or a combination of both depending project design and space available in the housing development.
