Washington, D.C.’s Mayor Muriel E. Bowser has made it part of her mission in the city’s highest office to delve into the homelessness conundrum and emerge with concrete solutions. A proponent of the “housing first” philosophy which first became popular in the 1990s, Bowser is putting the city’s money behind the effort, with a line item for the creation of 365 permanent housing units for homeless single adults.

  • DC is attacking the homeless problem with a "housing first" approach.
  • Open Arms Housing is a success story.
  • The DC mayor hopes to provide an additional thousand permanent housing units by 2020.

Washington, D.C.’s Mayor Muriel E. Bowser has made it part of her mission in the city’s highest office to delve into the homelessness conundrum and emerge with concrete solutions.

A proponent of the “housing first” philosophy which first became popular in the 1990s, Bowser is putting the city’s money behind the effort, with a line item for the creation of 365 permanent housing units for homeless single adults. Many believe that “housing first” is a better option than increasing the number of homeless shelter beds, and adding in supportive services.

She is credited with fueling the momentum behind an effort to provide permanent, safe apartments for the homeless, especially the single female adult demographic. Bowser’s plan to end chronic homelessness by 2020 includes about a thousand additional permanent, supportive housing units.

One of new buildings meeting this need, in the District’s Trinidad neighborhood in Northeast, provides shelter for four formerly homeless women. These lucky four are among 2,700 adults in the District who live in permanent supportive housing units.

They are beneficiaries of Open Arms Housing, which operates two small buildings, one of which opened in October. Open Arms has been in business since 2009, and recently told The Washington Post that in that time, only one resident has ended up back on the street.

The apartment buildings are paid for with a mix of  of local, federal and donated funds. Everything inside the apartment is donated, right down to decorative touches. Tenants sign a lease, and are required to pay 30 percent of their income as rent.

Sometimes, these permanent supportive housing units are located in otherwise market-rate apartment buildings. Some arrangements, like that used by Open Arms, have social workers and other staffers on-site to serve myriad resident needs as they work toward permanency.

Studies have shown that support wrapping around the newly homed costs less than so many of the other costs associated with homelessness, such as emergency room visits and inability to get to or keep a job.

Agencies such as Open Arms carefully track clients even after they leave, and can attest to the success of the housing first philosophy. As the agency told The Post, the women who have left their apartments have gone on to move in with relatives, to nursing homes or group homes, or have become self-sufficient enough to live independently.

Email Kimberley Sirk.

Show Comments Hide Comments
Sign up for Inman’s Morning Headlines
What you need to know to start your day with all the latest industry developments
By submitting your email address, you agree to receive marketing emails from Inman.
Success!
Thank you for subscribing to Morning Headlines.
Back to top
Only 3 days left to register for Inman Connect Las Vegas before prices go up! Don't miss the premier event for real estate pros.Register Now ×
Limited Time Offer: Get 1 year of Inman Select for $199SUBSCRIBE×
Log in
If you created your account with Google or Facebook
Don't have an account?
Forgot your password?
No Problem

Simply enter the email address you used to create your account and click "Reset Password". You will receive additional instructions via email.

Forgot your username? If so please contact customer support at (510) 658-9252

Password Reset Confirmation

Password Reset Instructions have been sent to

Subscribe to The Weekender
Get the week's leading headlines delivered straight to your inbox.
Top headlines from around the real estate industry. Breaking news as it happens.
15 stories covering tech, special reports, video and opinion.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
It looks like you’re already a Select Member!
To subscribe to exclusive newsletters, visit your email preferences in the account settings.
Up-to-the-minute news and interviews in your inbox, ticket discounts for Inman events and more
1-Step CheckoutPay with a credit card
By continuing, you agree to Inman’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

You will be charged . Your subscription will automatically renew for on . For more details on our payment terms and how to cancel, click here.

Interested in a group subscription?
Finish setting up your subscription
×