Family Options Study

On July 8, 2015, please join the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as the Department releases the 18-month outcomes of the Family Options Study, a multi-site random assignment experiment designed to study the impact of various housing and services interventions for homeless families.

HUD launched the Family Options Study in 2008 in response to Congressional direction and with the goal of learning more about the effects of different housing and services interventions for homeless families. Between September 2010 and January 2012, a total of 2,282 families (including over 5,000 children) were enrolled into the study from emergency shelters across twelve communities nationwide and were randomly assigned to one of four interventions: 1) subsidy-only; 2) project-based transitional housing; 3) community-based rapid re-housing; or 4) usual care. Families are being tracked for a minimum of three years, and primary outcomes of interest fall under five domains: housing stability; family preservation; adult well-being; child well-being; and self-sufficiency.