Housing Stabilizaton Services

People with disabilities often need support to live successfully in the community. However, that support is often unavailable. Affordable housing is not always enough; challenges such as mental illness and developmental disabilities can make it difficult for someone to find housing, budget, interact with landlords and neighbors, and understand the rules of a lease. With the right support, provided by a professional with knowledge and experience in housing, more people can be successful. Housing Stabilization Services is a new Medical Assistance benefit designed to help people with disabilities and seniors find and keep housing. Housing Stabilization Services is a home and community-based service. At Assisted Home Health Care, the purpose of our service is to support an individual’s transition into housing, increase long-term stability in housing within the community, and avoid future periods of homelessness or institutionalization.

What’s Included in Housing Stabilization Services:

  • Housing Consultation

    • Assisting the person to access documentation required for Housing Stabilization Services eligibility

    • Developing a Housing Focused Person-Centered Plan based on assessment outcomes

    • Supporting the person in identifying their strengths, needs and wants in housing including cultural requirements and/or preferences

    • Supporting the person to make an informed choice in their housing transition or sustaining provider

    • Offering resource information for services that support non-housing related goals as identified in the person-centered planning process

    • Coordinating with other service providers currently working with the person

    • Helping the person understand their rights to privacy and appeal information

    • Annually updating the person-centered plan as it relates to housing

  • Housing Transition

    • Supporting the person in applying for benefits to afford their housing, including helping the person determine which benefits they may be eligible for

    • Assisting the person with the housing search and application process

    • Assisting the person with tenant screening and housing assessments

    • Providing transportation with the person receiving services present and discussing housing related issues

    • Helping the person understand and develop a budget

    • Helping the person understand and negotiate a lease

    • Helping the person meet and build a relationship with a prospective landlord

    • Promoting/supporting cultural practice needs and understandings with prospective landlords, property managers

  • Housing Sustaining

    • Developing, updating and modifying the housing support and crisis/safety plan on a regular basis

    • Preventing and early identification of behaviors that may jeopardize continued housing

    • Educating and training on roles, rights, and responsibilities of the tenant and property manager

    • Transportation with the person receiving services present and discussing housing related issues

    • Promoting/supporting cultural practice needs and understandings with landlords, property managers and neighbors

    • Coaching to develop and maintain key relationships with property managers and neighbors

    • Advocating with community resources to prevent eviction when housing is at risk and maintain person’s safety

    • Assistance with the housing recertification processes

    • Continued training on being a good tenant, lease compliance, and household management

    • Supporting the person to apply for benefits to retain housing

    • Supporting the person to understand and maintain/increase income and benefits to retain housing

    • Supporting the building of natural housing supports and resources in the community including building supports and resources related to a person’s culture and identity

    • Working with property manager or landlord to promote housing retention

    • Arranging for assistive technology

    • Arranging for adaptive house related accommodations.