In 2010, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development launched its ambitious Family Options Study with the promise of developing a rigorous, evidence-based national strategy for ending family homelessness.
Following hundreds of families in 12 communities over the course of three years and measuring progress on dozens of outcomes, it has been called “the largest experimental study ever conducted to test different interventions designed to address family homelessness.
Many hoped a study this large would shed light on— and possibly settle—a crucial policy debate:
Should anti-homelessness efforts focus primarily on immediately placing families in homes and subsidizing their rent, the approach known as “rapid rehousing”?
Or should those efforts also address the factors that cause many to become homeless in the first place— such as a lack of education or job skills, mental health issues, and substance abuse—through service-rich “transitional housing”?