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How effective homelessness prevention impacts the length of shelter spells

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  • Goodman, Sarena
  • Messeri, Peter
  • O’Flaherty, Brendan

Abstract

Homelessness prevention programs intervene with households apparently in imminent danger of becoming homeless, and try to keep them housed. If they are at least partially successful, how do they change the average shelter spell of households actually becoming homeless? We use data from 2003 to 2008 for Homebase, a New York City homelessness prevention program that studies have found to be effective in reducing shelter entries. Homebase made no difference in average shelter spells at the community level. This result, like many results about shelter spell length, is not easy to reconcile with the idea that shelter spell length is a reflection of the seriousness of underlying problems.

Suggested Citation

  • Goodman, Sarena & Messeri, Peter & O’Flaherty, Brendan, 2014. "How effective homelessness prevention impacts the length of shelter spells," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 23(C), pages 55-62.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jhouse:v:23:y:2014:i:c:p:55-62
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jhe.2014.01.003
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. O’Flaherty, Brendan, 2012. "Individual homelessness: Entries, exits, and policy," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 21(2), pages 77-100.
    2. Allgood, Sam & Warren, Ronald Jr., 2003. "The duration of homelessness: evidence from a national survey," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 12(4), pages 273-290, December.
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    1. Goodman, Sarena & Messeri, Peter & O'Flaherty, Brendan, 2016. "Homelessness prevention in New York City: On average, it works," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 31(C), pages 14-34.
    2. Jarvis, Justin, 2015. "Individual determinants of homelessness: A descriptive approach," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 23-32.
    3. O'Flaherty, Brendan & Scutella, Rosanna & Tseng, Yi-Ping, 2018. "Private information, exits from homelessness, and better ways to operate rehousing programs," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 93-105.
    4. Cobb-Clark, Deborah A. & Herault, Nicolas & Scutella, Rosanna & Tseng, Yi-Ping, 2016. "A journey home: What drives how long people are homeless?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 57-72.
    5. David S. Lucas, 2017. "Federal homelessness policy: A robust political economy approach," The Review of Austrian Economics, Springer;Society for the Development of Austrian Economics, vol. 30(3), pages 277-303, September.
    6. Bostic, Raphael & Ellen, Ingrid Gould, 2014. "Introduction: Special issue on housing policy in the United States," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 1-3.
    7. O'Flaherty, Brendan, 2019. "Homelessness research: A guide for economists (and friends)," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 1-25.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Homelessness prevention; Shelter spells; Family homelessness;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • H53 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Welfare Programs
    • H43 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Project Evaluation; Social Discount Rate
    • H42 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Publicly Provided Private Goods
    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making

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