SAN FRANCISCO—The end of June saw a prevalence of articles on the homeless, including the June 28-29 feature in the San Francisco Chronicle, “Stories on Homelessness”; Blanca Torres' “If Seattle Can Build Enough, Why Can't We?” in the June 27 issue of the Business Times; and the June 29 New York Times editorial, “Let Them Eat Cash.” As a result of these articles, I have been queried by both colleagues and friends to offer my opinion as to whether the homeless problem can be solved, and if so, how? Ms. Real Estate does not have the hubris to believe she can suggest a permanent solution. However, below she prescribes five policy Do's and Don'ts that, if followed, would greatly reduce the homeless problem.

Ms. Real Estate

Five Do's and Five Don'ts to Reduce Homelessness in Your Community

Do's

1. As economically vibrant cities like Seattle, Washington are doing, encourage the development of enough market rate housing to at least keep up with demand. Keeping housing supply and demand in relative balance prevents housing prices and rentals from escalating significantly. Even better, from an affordable housing perspective, are communities that routinely entitle enough new residential projects to overbuild, as Phoenix and Las Vegas have done consistently. Such cities always have a greater supply of affordable housing due to the availability of housing vacated by those who can afford better.

2. When building new housing for the childless homeless, create attractive micro-units (250-350 square feet) that at a minimum contain a cooktop, microwave and small refrigerator in the kitchen area, a full shower bath, with the provision of a bed, chair and small closet area with drawers. The structure should also contain meeting areas for counseling and social interaction of the residents, as well as provide routine medical services. In their poorest area, postal code V6A, Vancouver provides a proud example of how to do it right. Support services are provided in the neighborhood SROs. Addicts and non-addicted homeless are provided decent housing. The police are perceived as helpful, not as a threat to the formerly homeless.

3. Renovate older multifamily structures for family housing. In addition to social services, communal spaces are a must for children to both play and receive learning assistance.

4. Job training programs, for those homeless who can take advantage of them, are one of the most effective ways to reduce homelessness. Small financial rewards should be used to encourage those who are making progress, both as an incentive and as a learning tool for managing financial resources.

5. Disincentives need to be available and enforced for those homeless who do not give up their street patterns of drug sales/purchases, addiction, harassment of the public and/or anti-social behavior like urinating and defecating in public. Citations not followed through with real consequences encourage and reinforce bad behavior.

Don'ts

1. Don't restrict multi-family and single family market rate development in the belief that you can make up for the resulting shortfall in total housing supply with below market and public housing. That won't happen.

2. Don't concentrate your homeless housing in one rundown neighborhood like San Francisco does in the Tenderloin. The congregation of the formerly homeless encourages remaining on the streets and pursuing old habits.

3. Don't assume that the “homeless” are also “stupid.” Just like the word got back to Central America when it appeared the U.S. was going to be more “accepting” of child immigrants as future citizens resulted in 50,000 immigrant children since October, the homeless are plenty smart enough to be attracted to those communities that offer the most and require the least.

4. Don't assume that if you provide inadequate housing plagued by cockroaches, rats and bedbugs that your homeless will be satisfied and remain in their units during the day.

And

5. Don't let those communities who bus their homeless to yours get away with it. At the very least, see that this information is made public.

Instant Insights /

What to Do (and Not Do) About Homelessness

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