Most homeless adults in the US are single individuals. Between mental illness, physical disability, substance abuse, lack of social skills, a fierce independent streak, and/or neurocognitive disorganization, a lot of these individuals are unable to live normal, productive lives. In the olden days, such persons (mostly men) often lived in Single-Room Occupancy hotels, often called “Residential Hotels". SRO units were teeny, without bathrooms or kitchens, but at least they provided shelter from the elements and some protection from criminal predators.
Unfortunately, residential hotels are becoming a relic of the past. For instance, San Francisco had 65,000 residential hotel units in 1910; today there are only around 19,000 units. If we really want to get serious about reducing urban homelessness in the US, we need to bring back residential hotels. Of course, I'm talking new, improved residential hotels, with support services available to all residents.
I propose two types of residential hotel units: teeny SROs and tiny studio apartments. The SROs would be old-school 8x10 rooms, bathroom down the hall. These units would have a bed, dresser, fold-down table, and mini-frig with hot plate and microwave. Studio apartments would be 8x20, which is enough for a bed, dresser, bathroom, fold-down table, and kitchenette, as in the following imagining:
These would be prefabs, made in a factory, narrow enough to transport by truck, and thus relatively cheap. Homeless individuals would initially be housed in Level 1 units, where they'd stay until they could pay towards rent for Level 2 units (sliding scale, automatically deducted from earnings, savings or benefit checks). Support staff would help residents without income apply for financial assistance, such as Veteran benefits, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), as well as local cash assistance programs for individuals who don't qualify for federal benefits. Residents who expressed interest in work would be referred to job training and placement services.
How many homeless residents would eventually be able to pay towards rent so they could live in Level 2 units? I'm guessing almost all the long-term homeless, mainly via federal disability benefits secured with the help of support staff*. I'm talking older individuals with cognitive impairments due to mental illness or a lifetime of substance abuse. As for the rest, I don't know. But those who don't qualify for the relative luxury of Level 2 units would at least have a guaranteed roof over their heads, even if it means having to use a communal bathroom.
Sounds expensive? Kinda, but it's all relative. One estimate puts the annual cost of subsidized and supported permanent housing at $30,000 per person in state, federal and local funding, compared to an estimated $85,000 a year in police, ambulance and other emergency services for chronically homeless persons. So, if done right, building residential hotels for the homeless could actually save money.
Next: Enough of carrots: time to discuss sticks.
* Many homeless individuals who likely qualify for government assistance don't receive any because they either don't want it or think they wouldn't qualify. For instance, San Francisco's 2017 homeless census revealed that 54% of the city's homeless who were not receiving any form of government support reported they did not want assistance, 12% did not think they were eligible, and 10% reported they had never applied. Just 6% of those not receiving any benefits had ever applied for assistance (4% still waiting for a response and 2% turned down).