Homeless Prevention
Facing Challenges Together
Helping others, Changing Lives
The Homeless Prevention program offers the necessary assistance to prevent individuals or families from moving into an emergency shelter or into homelessness. This program has been designed to assist individuals as well as families to regain stability; this may look like helping with their current permanent housing or moving into other permanent housing to achieve stability. Additionally, NMCAA provides eviction prevention through rent assistance. The Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency is dedicated to supporting its community members.
If you, or someone you know, is experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness, please call or email.
Rent Assistance
Furthermore, the program may assist with rent assistance up to three months past due. For those that are at risk of eviction, our program has, when able, paid in full for what is due. Often NMCAA will also work with other partnering agencies to assist with the past rent due amount. Homeless Prevention programming also offers Housing Based Case Management (HBCM), where case managers meet with tenants at their home at least once per week. All the following basic principles influence every aspect of what Homeless Prevention stands for:
Principle 1: Crisis Resolution:
Undoubtedly, every situation that could result in homelessness is a crisis for the person experiencing it. Crisis Resolution responses must include rapid assessment and triaging which is based upon urgency. The first priority is personal safety, this includes deescalating of the person’s emotional reactions. We define action steps that the individual can successfully achieve as well as assist with actions that the individual is temporarily unable or unwilling to attempt. The overall goal is to help individuals take control over their own problem-solving.
Principle 1: Crisis Resolution:
Undoubtedly, every situation that could result in homelessness is a crisis for the person experiencing it. Crisis Resolution responses must include rapid assessment and triaging which is based upon urgency. The first priority is personal safety, this includes deescalating of the person’s emotional reactions. We define action steps that the individual can successfully achieve as well as assist with actions that the individual is temporarily unable or unwilling to attempt. The overall goal is to help individuals take control over their own problem-solving.
Principle 2: Client Choice, Respect & Empowerment:
People in crisis may feel paralyzed by the urgency as well as potentially devastating consequences of their situation. Homelessness prevention services must help people in crisis regain a sense of control and a feeling of empowerment to actively overcome obstacles. There is a constant emphasis on the client’s goals, choices, and preferences. An unwavering respect of their strengths and reinforcement of progress are essential for empowerment. However, this does not mean that clients are protected from the natural consequences of their actions.
Principle 3: Provide the Minimum Assistance Necessary for the Shortest Possible Time:
Respect includes letting go as soon as the person has the resources, knowledge, and tools to continue their lives–however they choose to live them. Providing just enough to prevent homelessness enables a program to help far more people in crisis. Often this means ensuring resources are used to help persons at-risk of losing housing or any persons who would otherwise end up on the street or in an emergency shelter before using resources to provide assistance for other needs. Providing non-essential assistance to one client could prevent another community member from receiving necessary housing support.
Principle 4: Maximize Community Resources:
Mainstream assistance programs are intended to be the backbone of every community. Creating duplicate services for a sub-population such as people at risk of homelessness allows mainstream agencies to continue to bypass or ineffectively serve people who have a right to better quality and access. Duplication also wastes valuable, limited resources that could be spent to keep more households from becoming homeless.
Principle 5: The Right Resources to the Right People at the Right Time:
The earlier a program intervenes in a housing crisis, the lower the cost. The outcomes may look impressive, but research shows that most people who receive prevention assistance would not have become homeless even without assistance. The later the intervention, the more costly and the lower the success rate. But at the latest stages of an individual’s housing crisis, it is virtually certain she or he would have become homeless without assistance. Good prevention programs strive to target people who have the highest risk of becoming homeless but who also have a good chance of remaining housed if they receive assistance.
Principle 2: Client Choice, Respect & Empowerment:
People in crisis may feel paralyzed by the urgency as well as potentially devastating consequences of their situation. Homelessness prevention services must help people in crisis regain a sense of control and a feeling of empowerment to actively overcome obstacles. There is a constant emphasis on the client’s goals, choices, and preferences. An unwavering respect of their strengths and reinforcement of progress are essential for empowerment. However, this does not mean that clients are protected from the natural consequences of their actions.
Principle 3: Provide the Minimum Assistance Necessary for the Shortest Possible Time:
Respect includes letting go as soon as the person has the resources, knowledge, and tools to continue their lives–however they choose to live them. Providing just enough to prevent homelessness enables a program to help far more people in crisis. Often this means ensuring resources are used to help persons at-risk of losing housing or any persons who would otherwise end up on the street or in an emergency shelter before using resources to provide assistance for other needs.Providing non-essential assistance to one client could prevent another community member from receiving necessary housing support.
Principle 4: Maximize Community Resources:
Mainstream assistance programs are intended to be the backbone of every community. Creating duplicate services for a sub-population such as people at risk of homelessness allows mainstream agencies to continue to bypass or ineffectively serve people who have a right to better quality and access. Duplication also wastes valuable, limited resources that could be spent to keep more households from becoming homeless.
Principle 5: The Right Resources to the Right People at the Right Time:
The earlier a program intervenes in a housing crisis, the lower the cost. The outcomes may look impressive, but research shows that most people who receive prevention assistance would not have become homeless even without assistance. The later the intervention, the more costly and the lower the success rate. But at the latest stages of an individual’s housing crisis, it is virtually certain she or he would have become homeless without assistance. Good prevention programs strive to target people who have the highest risk of becoming homeless but who also have a good chance of remaining housed if they receive assistance.
Homeless Prevention in Action
In 2022, the Homeless Prevention team helped families and individuals step out of homelessness, with eviction prevention, rent assistance, and more. The Homelessness Prevention team helped families and individuals with Prevention Financial Assistance, avoiding eviction, Diversion Programs, Housing Programs, and Street Outreach.
For a Wexford County family of seven experiencing homelessness, safe housing became a reality through the combined efforts of Diversion, Outreach and Case Management Staff at NMCAA. Security deposit and rental assistance provided helped move this family into stable housing. An “in-home” case manager worked alongside the family to support their housing goals and work on the skills needed to maintain a happy and safe home for a lifetime.
Community Impact
2021
Homeless Prevention in Action
In 2022, the Homeless Prevention team helped families and individuals step out of homelessness, with eviction prevention, rent assistance, and more. The Homelessness Prevention team helped families and individuals with Prevention Financial Assistance, avoiding eviction, Diversion Programs, Housing Programs, and Street Outreach.
Additional Rental Information
Need more help? We have additional resources for renting in the following areas. Receive rent help today.
Homeless Prevention Program
NMCAA is committed to making homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring in every community across our service region.
Homeless Prevention Program
NMCAA is committed to making homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring in every community across our service region.