June 08, 2020

Early data from King County, Washington, show Black people experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic were more likely to get housing placements as “external fills,” or when they were in direct contact with housing providers, rather than with the county’s standard placement evaluations. During the pandemic, King County opted to allow external fills to house people more quickly. Critics say King County’s standard evaluation metrics favor white applicants. “This interim process shows that we can quite quickly create something better than what we have.… Maybe we just need to tap the expertise of our local providers,” said Noah Fay, director of housing programs at Downtown Emergency Service Center in Seattle.

In the high-cost, tech hubs of San Francisco and Silicon Valley, California, many low- wage, retail and service workers are forced into overcrowded houses, making it nearly impossible for families to abide by social distancing guidelines and easier to contract the coronavirus. In 2018, the US Census Bureau reported 13.4 percent of California’s rental units were considered overcrowded. Burdened by housing, economic, and health crises, residents are often choosing between eviction or living in an overcrowded house. “No matter what they decide, the risk is more exposure to this virus,” stated lawyer Nazanin Salehi, with the nonprofit group Community Legal Services. 

The Justice Department will award $35 million in housing assistance grants to 73 nonprofit organizations across the country for survivors of human trafficking. The grant will provide survivors with short-term or transitional housing assistance and employment counseling, among other specialized services. “Housing is a really good early step in the process of people reclaiming their dignity. There are other parts, medical care, therapy, job training, that are needed as well. But this increase is a positive thing,” stated Mark Lagon, former ambassador-at-large to combat human trafficking.

Policymakers can provide redress to the acute housing instability caused by COVID-19 through long-term, lasting affordability mechanisms that address existing structural economic and housing inequities. Lasting affordability refers to legal restrictions on land and property to guarantee affordable home expenses, as well as supporting mechanisms that allow affordable rents and home prices to continue in perpetuity. Experts say policymakers could consider community land trusts, inclusionary housing policies, limited-equity cooperatives, and deed-restricted housing programs.