HUD is the federal cabinet-level agency responsible for national housing policy, fair housing enforcement, and oversight of programs serving people experiencing homelessness. HUD administers the CoC Program, Emergency Solutions Grant, HOPWA, and other major funding streams that shape local homeless response systems. The agency publishes annual funding competitions, sets HMIS data standards, and defines the eligibility rules that guide how communities respond to homelessness.

The CoC Program is HUD's primary competitive grant program for funding housing and services for people experiencing homelessness. CoC funds support permanent supportive housing, rapid rehousing, transitional housing, and supportive services across the country. Communities compete annually for CoC funding through HUD's Notice of Funding Opportunity process, and awards are based on system performance and community need.

ESG is a HUD formula grant that flows to states and entitlement jurisdictions to fund emergency shelter operations, street outreach, homelessness prevention, and rapid rehousing. Unlike CoC funding, ESG is allocated by formula rather than competitive process. Recipients must match ESG funds dollar-for-dollar and document outcomes through the Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report.

HOPWA is a HUD formula grant providing housing assistance and supportive services to low-income people living with HIV/AIDS and their families. HOPWA funds transitional and permanent housing, rental assistance, and health-related supportive services. Grantees must be in metropolitan areas that meet HUD's threshold for HIV/AIDS prevalence.

PATH is a SAMHSA-funded formula grant that supports outreach, case management, and referral services for people experiencing homelessness who have serious mental illness. States receive PATH funds and subgrant to local providers who connect clients with mental health treatment, housing, and benefits. PATH does not fund housing directly but helps unsheltered people access services that lead to stable housing.

SSVF is a VA-funded grant program that provides rapid rehousing and homelessness prevention to very low-income veteran households. Grantees offer time-limited rental assistance, case management, and help accessing mainstream benefits. SSVF coordinates closely with VASH vouchers as part of the federal strategy to end veteran homelessness.

RHY refers to the federal program cluster funded by the Family and Youth Services Bureau under the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act. RHY programs include Basic Center, Transitional Living, and Street Outreach programs serving youth under 25 who are homeless or at risk. Most RHY programs use a comparable database rather than HMIS due to confidentiality requirements.

A NOFO is the official federal announcement that a grant competition is open and accepting applications. HUD publishes the CoC NOFO each year, specifying eligibility rules, scoring criteria, and application deadlines. Reading the NOFO carefully is essential because it sets the specific requirements for that year's competition and often introduces policy changes.

e-snaps is HUD's online portal for submitting CoC Program funding applications and executing grant agreements. Collaborative Applicants use it to assemble the CoC consolidated application, while project applicants submit their individual project applications through the same system during the annual competition. Access is account based and tied to a specific applicant profile, so requesting access early matters, since registration problems are a common cause of missed deadlines.

YHDP is a HUD grant program that funds selected communities to build coordinated systems for preventing and ending youth homelessness. Selected CoCs receive multi-year funding plus technical assistance to produce a coordinated community plan, with meaningful youth leadership required in governance through a Youth Action Board. YHDP permits more flexible project types than the standard CoC Program, which lets communities test approaches designed specifically for young people.

CDBG is a flexible HUD formula grant that entitlement communities and states use to support a wide range of housing, community development, and economic development activities. Some communities apply CDBG funds to homelessness prevention, affordable housing development, and transitional housing. CDBG carries fewer categorical restrictions than CoC or ESG, giving localities broad discretion in how they deploy the money.

HOME is a HUD formula grant that provides funds to states and localities to build, buy, and rehabilitate affordable housing or provide direct rental assistance to low-income households. Communities commonly use HOME funds to develop permanent supportive housing and affordable rental units for people exiting homelessness. All HOME-assisted units must serve households at or below 80% of the Area Median Income.

VASH is a joint program between HUD and the VA that combines HUD Housing Choice Vouchers with VA case management and clinical services for veterans experiencing homelessness. Veterans receive a voucher to use in the private rental market and access ongoing VA supportive services. HUD-VASH has helped communities reach functional zero for veteran homelessness and serves as a model for integrated housing and clinical programs.

The Housing Choice Voucher program is the largest federal rental assistance program, helping low-income households pay for housing in the private market by covering the gap between the fair market rent and the household's contribution. Voucher holders find their own units and pay roughly 30% of their income in rent, with HUD covering the rest up to payment standards. Many people experiencing homelessness receive HCV vouchers through CoC referrals or VASH.

A Project-Based Voucher (PBV) is a type of Housing Choice Voucher attached to a specific unit rather than to a household. Public Housing Authorities contract with property owners to set aside units for PBV assistance, ensuring affordable units remain available in a building long-term. CoC grantees commonly use PBVs to fund permanent supportive housing because they guarantee stable occupancy subsidies.

Rapid Rehousing funding from HUD supports short-to-medium-term rental assistance, housing search assistance, and case management to help people exit homelessness quickly. HUD funds RRH through both the CoC Program and the Emergency Solutions Grant. The RRH funding model prioritizes fast connection to housing without requiring service readiness as a prerequisite for assistance.

PSH funding supports long-term subsidized housing paired with voluntary supportive services for people with chronic disabilities who have experienced long-term or repeated homelessness. HUD funds PSH primarily through the CoC Program, and PSH projects receive the highest priority in the annual renewal competition. CoCs must dedicate a significant share of their grant funding to PSH under HUD's chronic homelessness priority requirements.

The McKinney-Vento Act, first enacted in 1987, is the primary federal law authorizing programs to address homelessness in the United States. It built the first coordinated federal response to homelessness, created the emergency shelter and transitional housing programs, established HUD's role in funding homeless assistance, and defined federal definitions of homelessness for program eligibility. HUD created the Continuum of Care application framework administratively in 1994 and 1995, and the HEARTH Act of 2009 wrote that framework into statute while consolidating programs and adding performance requirements.

The Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing Act of 2009 reauthorized and restructured HUD's homeless assistance programs under McKinney-Vento. HEARTH consolidated several separate grant programs into the single CoC Program, codified the Continuum of Care framework in statute, established one unified federal definition of homelessness, created a permanent funding category for rapid rehousing, and set the performance benchmarks HUD still measures CoCs against. The CoC Program rule that implemented HEARTH also required communities to run coordinated assessment. HEARTH works alongside Housing First but does not enact it. Housing First spread instead through HUD funding competition scoring priorities and the 2010 Opening Doors strategic plan.

Opening Doors was the first federal strategic plan to prevent and end homelessness, released by the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness in 2010. The plan set goals to end veteran and chronic homelessness by 2015 and family, youth, and long-term homelessness by 2020. Although those deadlines were not fully met, Opening Doors shaped federal policy and CoC-level planning for more than a decade.

Fair Market Rents are HUD-published figures representing the 40th percentile of gross rents for standard-quality units in a given metropolitan area or county. FMRs determine payment standards for Housing Choice Vouchers and set maximum rents for CoC and ESG rapid rehousing assistance. HUD updates FMRs annually, and advocates sometimes challenge them when they undercount actual market rents in high-cost areas.

Area Median Income is the midpoint income for all households in a given metropolitan area or county, calculated by HUD annually. AMI serves as the standard benchmark for determining eligibility for most federal housing programs and affordable housing developments. Most programs serving people experiencing homelessness target households below 30% or 50% of AMI, called extremely low income and very low income, respectively.

Housing First is a recovery-oriented approach that prioritizes connecting people to stable permanent housing as quickly as possible, without requiring sobriety, treatment participation, or compliance with services as a prerequisite. The model is grounded in research showing that housing stability itself produces better health, behavioral health, and employment outcomes. Supportive services are offered voluntarily once a person is housed.

Emergency shelters provide immediate, short-term accommodation for people who have no place to sleep. They range from large congregate facilities to smaller safe havens and may be low-barrier or require compliance with certain rules such as sobriety or curfews. Emergency shelters serve as entry points to the homelessness response system and should connect residents to coordinated entry for rapid housing placement.

Transitional housing provides a temporary residential setting, typically for 6 to 24 months, combined with intensive supportive services intended to help participants achieve housing stability. The model was once dominant in the homelessness response but has declined as evidence favored rapid rehousing and permanent supportive housing. Transitional housing remains appropriate for specific populations, such as youth or domestic violence survivors, who benefit from structured time-limited support.

Permanent supportive housing provides long-term affordable housing with voluntary, flexible supportive services for people with chronic health conditions or disabilities who have experienced chronic homelessness. Tenants hold a lease and carry full tenant rights, and they can remain in the housing indefinitely. PSH has the strongest evidence base among housing interventions for ending chronic homelessness.

Rapid rehousing is a housing intervention that helps people exit homelessness quickly by providing short-term rental assistance, housing search and placement services, and follow-up case management. The approach assumes most people can stabilize in permanent housing with brief support and does not require participants to complete treatment before receiving assistance. RRH is most effective for people whose homelessness is driven primarily by economic crisis rather than chronic disability.

Safe Havens are a low-barrier residential program for people with serious mental illness who are living unsheltered and are unwilling or unable to participate in traditional shelter or treatment. Safe Havens offer 24-hour residence with few rules, voluntary services, and a therapeutic environment designed to build trust over time. They are funded through the CoC Program and serve as a stepping stone toward more stable housing.

Homelessness prevention programs provide financial assistance, legal aid, and case management to households facing imminent loss of housing. They are funded through ESG, CoC, and other sources and typically target households that meet HUD's definition of imminent risk of homelessness. Effective prevention programs use targeting tools to prioritize households most likely to actually become homeless without intervention.

Diversion is a strategy at the front door of the homelessness system that helps people resolve their housing crisis without entering emergency shelter. A trained specialist explores all possible alternatives, including family connections, community resources, and alternative housing options, and may provide small amounts of financial assistance to make those options viable. Diversion reduces demand on shelters and helps people maintain their existing social connections.

Street outreach programs send teams into unsheltered locations to make contact with people sleeping outside, in vehicles, or in places not meant for human habitation. Outreach workers provide basic supplies, safety assessments, and relationship-building to create pathways into housing and services. Effective outreach is trauma-informed, low-barrier, and focused on housing placement rather than service utilization alone.

Scattered-site housing places tenants in units distributed throughout the community in privately owned buildings, rather than in a single dedicated facility. Supportive services are delivered by staff who visit tenants in their homes. Scattered-site models are used in rapid rehousing, VASH, and permanent supportive housing, and they support community integration and tenant choice.

Project-based housing concentrates subsidized or supportive housing units in a single building or facility owned or leased by a service provider. Services are often delivered on-site, making this model well-suited for people with high support needs. This approach offers intensity and ease of service delivery but can limit tenant choice and create concentrated poverty if not well managed.

Master leasing is a model in which a nonprofit or housing program holds the lease on a unit and subleases it to a program participant. This arrangement allows organizations to house people who may not qualify for their own lease due to credit history, prior evictions, or other barriers. When participants are ready, they may transition to holding the lease in their own name.

Bridge housing provides temporary shelter that is more structured and supportive than emergency shelter, designed to serve as a transition point while a person awaits placement in permanent housing. It keeps people engaged with services and the housing placement process during periods of high demand or limited supply. Bridge housing is commonly used in high-cost markets where waits for permanent housing are long.

Interim housing is any temporary housing that fills the gap between unsheltered homelessness and permanent housing placement. Programs may be time-limited and linked to coordinated entry, with specific eligibility criteria based on prioritization status. The term is often used interchangeably with bridge housing, though some communities distinguish between them by intensity of services.

Recuperative care, also called medical respite, provides short-term residential care for people experiencing homelessness who are recovering from illness, injury, or a medical procedure that requires a clean environment and consistent monitoring. Hospitals use recuperative care programs to safely discharge patients when returning to the street would interfere with recovery. These programs reduce hospital readmissions and connect participants with housing and supportive services.

Shared housing programs match two or more unrelated individuals to share a housing unit, reducing per-person housing costs and addressing affordability barriers. Some programs pair people experiencing homelessness with stable homeowners who have spare rooms. Shared housing can be an effective intervention in high-cost markets where affordable standalone units are scarce.

Tiny home villages are communities of small individual structures providing private, dignified shelter to people experiencing homelessness. They are typically operated by nonprofits or cities and include shared facilities, on-site services, and community governance structures. Villages offer more privacy than congregate shelter and are often used as bridge housing while residents await permanent placement.

Navigation centers are a low-barrier shelter model developed in San Francisco that provides sleeping space, meals, and intensive case management to people with high barriers, including couples, people with pets, and individuals with significant behavioral health needs. Staff work intensively to connect residents to housing and benefits. Navigation centers accept people as they are and impose few program rules.

Low-barrier shelters reduce or eliminate common entry requirements, such as sobriety conditions, curfews, separation of couples, and restrictions on pets, to reach people who would otherwise remain unsheltered. These programs accept people regardless of substance use or behavioral health status. Low-barrier design is a core principle of Housing First and is associated with reaching the most vulnerable people.

The treatment-first model conditions access to permanent housing on prior completion of substance use treatment or behavioral health services. This approach has been largely discredited by research showing that housing stability improves treatment outcomes better than the reverse. Most systems have moved away from the treatment-first model toward Housing First approaches that provide housing without preconditions.

The staircase model, also called the treatment continuum or linear residential treatment model, assumes that people must progress through a series of increasingly independent residential programs before they are ready for permanent housing. Each step carries eligibility requirements, and participants must demonstrate housing readiness before advancing. Housing First research showed this model is less effective than providing permanent housing directly.

Coordinated Entry is a community-wide process that standardizes access to housing and services for people experiencing homelessness. All CoC-funded projects must participate in CE, which creates a single pathway from homelessness to housing using standardized assessment tools and prioritization criteria. CE systems match people to the interventions most likely to end their homelessness based on need and vulnerability.

An access point is a designated location or process through which people experiencing homelessness can enter the coordinated entry system and receive a housing assessment. CoCs must maintain access points that are easily reachable by all subpopulations, including unsheltered individuals and domestic violence survivors. Many CoCs operate multiple geographically distributed access points connected by a shared referral system.

No wrong door is a coordinated entry principle that any point of contact with the homelessness system, including shelters, outreach teams, and social service agencies, can connect a person to assessment and housing resources. The goal is to eliminate the experience of being turned away and redirected elsewhere without assistance. Systems implementing no wrong door train front-line staff across multiple agencies to initiate the CE process.

The VI-SPDAT is a standardized brief assessment tool used by many CoCs to measure the vulnerability and service needs of people experiencing homelessness and inform housing prioritization decisions. It scores individuals on health, behavioral health, history of homelessness, and social risk factors using a series of questions. Use of the VI-SPDAT has declined in some communities due to concerns about racial equity and validity, leading many CoCs to develop local alternatives. Assessment tooling is set locally, so the instrument your CoC uses may be a VI-SPDAT, a differently named tool such as a VAT, or a locally built alternative. Confirm your own CoC's standard rather than assuming any one tool applies everywhere.

The SPDAT is a longer, more in-depth assessment tool that accompanies the VI-SPDAT and guides case management planning after a person has been matched to housing. It gathers detailed information about strengths, goals, and barriers to housing stability. The SPDAT is typically completed by a case manager rather than an outreach worker.

A By-Name List is a real-time, person-centered registry of every individual and household known to be experiencing homelessness in a CoC. BNLs are a key tool for functional zero campaigns because they allow communities to track exactly who needs housing and make systematic matches to available resources. Maintaining an accurate BNL requires active data sharing, regular case conferencing, and a strong HMIS infrastructure.

The active list is the subset of the By-Name List that includes people currently experiencing homelessness who are engaged with the system and available for housing placement. People move off the active list when they become housed, cannot be located, or are otherwise inactivated. Communities use the active list to measure progress toward functional zero and to prioritize housing outreach.

Prioritization is the process of determining which people on the by-name list should receive available housing resources first, based on vulnerability, length of homelessness, and other criteria set by the CoC. CoCs must maintain written prioritization policies that comply with HUD requirements and address equity concerns. Transparent and consistently applied prioritization is a cornerstone of an effective coordinated entry system.

In coordinated entry, a referral is the formal process of matching a person from the by-name list to a specific available housing or services slot and communicating that match to the receiving program. Referrals are tracked in HMIS and measured for timeliness and conversion rates. A successful referral results in enrollment in the housing program and, ultimately, a move into housing.

Housing navigation is a service that helps people experiencing homelessness identify, apply for, and secure housing in the private rental market or in subsidized programs. Navigators address practical barriers such as application requirements, credit history, and landlord relations. Housing navigation is a core service in rapid rehousing programs and coordinated entry systems.

In coordinated entry, diversion refers to conversations at system entry that help people resolve their housing crisis without using shelter or other homelessness system resources. A trained diversion specialist explores the person's full situation, including safety, family connections, and short-term options. Diversion is most effective when paired with small amounts of flexible financial assistance and a non-judgmental approach.

In coordinated entry, an assessment is the standardized process of gathering information about a person's housing history, vulnerability, and service needs to inform prioritization and program matching. CoCs use tools like the VI-SPDAT for initial screening and more comprehensive instruments for match decisions. Assessments must be consistent, standardized, and reviewed regularly for racial equity and accuracy.

Triage in homelessness services refers to the rapid identification of the most urgent needs at first contact and the immediate connection to appropriate assistance. Effective triage separates people who can be diverted from homelessness from those who need shelter or intensive intervention. Triage questions typically cover safety, immediate basic needs, and circumstances of housing loss.

Case conferencing is a regular multi-agency meeting in which representatives review the by-name list together, problem-solve on behalf of individuals experiencing homelessness, share updated information, and make housing match decisions. It is the operational mechanism for maintaining an accurate active list and moving people into housing. Effective case conferencing is structured, time-limited, and focused on action.

The community queue is the ordered list of people on the by-name list who are eligible for and awaiting a specific type of housing, such as permanent supportive housing or rapid rehousing. People are placed in the queue based on prioritization criteria and matched to housing as slots become available. Managing the queue fairly and transparently is a key coordinated entry governance responsibility.

In coordinated entry, a person is considered matched when they have been selected for a specific housing program or unit and the referral has been accepted by both the program and the individual. Being matched is a milestone that indicates a person has moved from the waiting queue toward active housing placement. Tracking match-to-move-in time is an important system performance indicator.

A person is enrolled when they have formally entered a housing program, typically indicated by an intake appointment, signing a program agreement, and opening a case in HMIS. Enrollment precedes actual move-in for programs that provide pre-housing services. HMIS tracks enrollment dates to measure program utilization and the time between referral and housing entry.

In coordinated entry and system performance tracking, housed means a person has moved into permanent housing, whether in their own lease, a subsidized unit, or a stable doubled-up arrangement with family. Being housed is the primary outcome the homelessness response system works toward. Housed is distinct from being enrolled in a housing program, which indicates active service receipt but not yet physical move-in.

A person on the by-name list is designated inactive when they cannot be located, have declined housing, or have otherwise disengaged from the system. Inactive status is different from housed: it means the community does not know where the person is. CoCs must have written policies for how long a person can remain inactive before removal from the list.

Returned to homelessness refers to a person who previously exited the homelessness system to permanent housing but subsequently became homeless again. This is a key system performance measure tracked through HMIS. High return rates suggest that housing placements lack sufficient stability or that people are not receiving adequate follow-up support.

The Violence Against Women Act requires that survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking receive equal access to homeless assistance programs regardless of their victimization history. Coordinated entry systems must have VAWA-compliant referral pathways that protect survivor confidentiality. Many CoCs operate a separate, confidential CE track for domestic violence survivors through comparable database-participating programs.

HMIS is a locally administered software system used by CoC communities to collect client-level data on people experiencing homelessness, their use of housing and services, and their housing outcomes. HUD requires all CoC-funded programs to participate in HMIS and mandates standardized data elements, data quality standards, and annual reporting. HMIS data produces the Annual Performance Report, Point-in-Time Count, and federal system performance measures.

Universal Data Elements are the set of client-level data fields that all HMIS-participating programs must collect for every client served, regardless of program type or funding source. UDEs include name, date of birth, Social Security number, race, ethnicity, gender, veteran status, and disabling condition. Consistent collection of UDEs enables unduplicated counting and system-level analysis across programs.

Program-specific data elements are additional HMIS fields required for clients enrolled in programs funded by specific HUD grant types, such as CoC, ESG, or HOPWA. These fields go beyond the universal elements to capture information relevant to that funding stream's reporting requirements. Examples include income and benefit changes at entry, annual assessment, and program exit.

Common Data Elements are the program-specific fields that more than one federal funder requires, so they get collected across many project types instead of for a single funding stream. They cover areas such as income and sources, non-cash benefits, health insurance, disability detail, and domestic violence history. Grouping them as common lets HMIS vendors build one shared set of screens rather than duplicating near-identical fields for every funder.

Project Descriptor Data Elements describe the project itself rather than the people it serves, covering organization and project identifiers, project type, CoC code, operating start and end dates, housing inventory, and funding sources. HMIS Leads maintain these records, and they determine whether a project appears correctly in the Housing Inventory Count and in system-level reports. Incorrect project setup is a frequent root cause of reports that look wrong even when the client data behind them is clean.

Sage is HUD's online reporting repository where grantees upload required performance reports, including CoC Program Annual Performance Reports and ESG Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Reports. Reports are generated from HMIS or a comparable database and then uploaded to Sage, which validates the file and flags data issues before submission is accepted. HUD field office staff review submitted reports in Sage, so upload errors left unresolved can delay grant close-out.

HUD Data Standards are the official specifications, updated annually, that define required data elements, response categories, definitions, and collection requirements for all HMIS-participating programs. All HMIS software vendors must comply with HUD Data Standards to remain authorized. Updates require HMIS leads and vendors to update their systems and retrain staff before the effective date.

Data quality in HMIS refers to the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, and consistency of client records in the system. High data quality is essential for producing reliable reports, accurate PIT counts, and meaningful system performance measures. Common data quality issues include missing fields, incorrect dates, duplicate enrollments, and excessive use of "don't know" or "data not collected" response codes.

The APR is a standardized HUD report that CoC-funded grantees submit each year, summarizing program activity, client demographics, and housing outcomes for the reporting period. APRs are generated from HMIS data and submitted through the HUD Exchange. Strong APR performance data demonstrates program effectiveness and supports renewal funding in the annual CoC competition.

The CAPER is the annual performance report required of ESG grantees, submitted to HUD via the Integrated Disbursement and Information System. Like the APR, it documents client characteristics, services provided, and housing outcomes for the year. HUD uses CAPER data to evaluate program performance and to hold ESG grantees accountable for matching funds and housing outcome requirements.

The Housing Inventory Count is an annual census of all housing beds and units dedicated to serving people experiencing homelessness in a CoC, conducted on a single night in late January. The HIC captures capacity across emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent supportive housing. HIC data is reported to HUD as part of the Point-in-Time report and tracks growth or reduction in housing capacity over time.

The PIT Count is a census of people experiencing homelessness on a single night during the last ten days of January. HUD requires CoCs to count sheltered people every year, and requires an unsheltered count only every other year, though most CoCs choose to run an unsheltered count annually. The sheltered count comes from HMIS records, while the unsheltered count sends community volunteers out to survey the places where people sleep outside. CoCs report PIT data to HUD, which publishes it nationally, and the results track trends in homelessness over time.

System Performance Measures are seven standardized metrics HUD uses to evaluate how well a CoC's entire homeless response system is working. They include measures of length of time homeless, returns to homelessness, number of people experiencing homelessness, housing placements, and employment and income growth. SPMs are calculated from HMIS data and reported to HUD annually through the HUD Data Exchange.

The LSA is a standardized annual HMIS report that captures data on all persons served across a CoC's homeless response system over a one-year period, used to calculate System Performance Measures. It is submitted through the HUD Data Exchange as a CSV export generated by the HMIS system. The LSA replaced earlier SPM reporting methods and provides more consistent data comparisons across communities.

An entry assessment is the collection of required HMIS data elements at the time a client enrolls in a program. Entry assessments capture prior living situation, income sources, disabling conditions, and other program-specific fields. Complete and accurate entry data is foundational to meaningful program reports and system-level performance analysis.

An exit assessment is the collection of required HMIS data at the time a client leaves a program, including destination, income at exit, and benefit changes. Exit data is critical for measuring housing outcomes and calculating performance measures such as successful housing destinations. Missing exit assessments are one of the most common HMIS data quality problems.

An annual assessment is a required update to HMIS data collected for clients who remain enrolled in a program for longer than one year. Annual assessments capture updated income, benefits, and other program-specific elements. Completing annual assessments on schedule is a data quality requirement that directly affects system performance measure calculations.

An interim update is a change to a client's HMIS record that occurs between entry and exit, reflecting a significant change such as a new income source, change in household composition, or new disabling condition. Interim updates keep client records current and ensure that performance reports reflect actual client circumstances. Not all programs require interim updates, but they improve data accuracy for system-level analysis.

Destination is the HMIS data element recorded at program exit that captures where a client went when they left the program. HUD classifies destinations as permanent (such as rental housing or staying with family permanently), temporary (such as transitional housing), institutional (such as jail or hospital), or other. Destination data is the primary indicator of housing outcome in HMIS reporting and system performance measurement.

Living situation is an HMIS data element collected at program entry that describes where the client was residing before they enrolled. It is used to determine whether the client meets HUD's definition of homeless, at risk of homelessness, or fleeing domestic violence. Accurate living situation data is required for program eligibility determinations and federal reporting.

In HMIS, an enrollment is the record created when a client begins receiving services from a specific program, starting with an entry date and ending with an exit date. Each enrollment captures data about that particular period of service. A client can have multiple enrollments across different programs and different time periods.

In HMIS, an exit is the formal closure of a program enrollment, recording the exit date and destination. Timely exits reflect accurate program tracking and good data quality. Enrollments without exits, called stale or open enrollments, are a common data quality issue that inflates counts of people currently receiving services.

Bed utilization rate measures how often funded beds are occupied relative to total capacity, expressed as a percentage. A high utilization rate indicates that a program is fully serving its funded capacity, while a low rate may signal access barriers or operational issues. HUD tracks bed utilization in the Housing Inventory Count and considers it when evaluating program performance.

An unduplicated count is a count of unique individuals served, where each person is counted only once regardless of how many programs they used or how many times they enrolled during a reporting period. HMIS enables unduplicated counting across programs in a CoC by linking records from different agencies. Unduplicated counts are used in PIT reports, APRs, and system performance measures to avoid overstating the number of people served.

A duplicate entry in HMIS occurs when the same client is entered as two different people, typically with slightly different name spellings or dates of birth. Duplicates inflate counts of people served and create fragmented, inaccurate client records. HMIS systems include matching algorithms to detect potential duplicates, but staff review and regular data cleanup are still required.

The HMIS Lead is the organization a CoC designates to administer HMIS for the entire CoC. The role covers software management, user training and technical assistance, data quality oversight across every participating program, and the HMIS reports HUD requires each year. The HMIS Lead holds the system contract, makes sure participating programs meet HUD data standards, and coordinates with the Collaborative Applicant on annual reporting. One organization often holds both roles, though a CoC can assign them separately.

A comparable database is an HMIS-equivalent system used by victim service providers and certain other organizations that are prohibited from entering client data into HMIS due to confidentiality requirements. Comparable databases collect the same HUD-required data elements and must meet the same data standards as HMIS. Domestic violence programs report to HUD using comparable database data in lieu of HMIS.

A data sharing agreement is a legal document that governs how client information is shared between agencies participating in HMIS. It specifies what data can be shared, for what purposes, with whom, and with what privacy protections. All HMIS participating agencies must sign the CoC's data sharing agreement before accessing the system.

A Release of Information is a consent form signed by a client authorizing a program to share their personal information with other agencies in the HMIS system. Without a signed ROI, a client's data can only be seen by the program where they are enrolled. ROI policies vary by CoC, but all must comply with applicable federal and state privacy laws.

Client consent in HMIS refers to the process of informing clients about how their data will be collected, stored, shared, and used, and obtaining their agreement before entering their information. HUD requires that clients be informed of their rights before their data is entered into HMIS. Some CoCs use opt-out consent models for basic data entry while requiring affirmative consent for data sharing across agencies.

The Data Quality Framework is HUD's guidance document for CoCs and HMIS leads on measuring and improving data quality across their HMIS system. The DQF identifies key data quality dimensions including completeness, accuracy, consistency, and timeliness, and provides benchmarks for each. HMIS leads use the DQF to build data quality plans and monitor compliance across participating programs.

The HUD Exchange is HUD's online resource and reporting platform where grantees access guidance, submit reports, and complete training. APRs, LSAs, and other required submissions are processed through the HUD Exchange. Staff from CoC-funded programs routinely use the HUD Exchange for technical assistance resources, reporting tools, and policy updates.

The HUD Data Exchange is HUD's online portal for HMIS system-level data submissions, including the LSA, Housing Inventory Count, and PIT count data. It is a component of the broader HUD Exchange platform. HMIS leads submit community-level data to the HDX each year, and HUD aggregates those submissions for national homelessness reporting.

A CSV (comma-separated values) export is a standardized file format used to transfer HMIS data out of a local system for submission to HUD or for external analysis. HUD's HMIS CSV specifications define the exact file structure required for federal submissions such as the LSA. All authorized HMIS software vendors must produce HUD-compliant CSV exports.

An API (Application Programming Interface) in the HMIS context is a technical interface that allows data to be exchanged between HMIS systems, coordinated entry platforms, and partner applications programmatically. Some CoCs use APIs to enable real-time data sharing between their HMIS and coordinated entry software. HUD has been developing HMIS API standards to improve interoperability across systems.

ServicePoint is an HMIS software platform originally developed by Bowman Systems that became one of the most widely deployed HMIS systems in the country. Bowman Systems was acquired by WellSky in 2019, and ServicePoint has been succeeded by WellSky Community Services. Many CoCs migrated their data to updated platforms during and after that transition.

WellSky is a health and human services technology company that produces WellSky Community Services, one of the most widely used HMIS platforms in the country. WellSky acquired Bowman Systems, the developer of ServicePoint, in 2019. WellSky Community Services is the successor product to ServicePoint and is used by hundreds of CoCs.

Clarity Human Services is an HMIS and coordinated entry software platform developed by Bitfocus that is used by many large CoCs. It offers integrated HMIS and coordinated entry functionality, including a mobile-friendly outreach app. Clarity is known for its dashboard and reporting features and has been adopted by several of the largest urban CoC systems in the country.

Under 24 CFR 578.3, HUD defines a chronically homeless person as an individual or head of household with a disability who lives in a place not meant for human habitation, a safe haven, or an emergency shelter, and who has lived that way continuously for at least 12 months or on at least four separate occasions in the last three years that together total at least 12 months. Nothing in the definition requires the person to be unaccompanied, so a family headed by someone who meets it also qualifies as chronically homeless. A stay in an institutional care facility of fewer than 90 days does not break the continuity and counts toward the 12 month total, as long as the person was homeless immediately before entering. Time in transitional housing does not count toward chronic homelessness, because transitional housing sits outside the qualifying living situations. CoC Program rules prioritize chronically homeless households for permanent supportive housing.

HUD defines literally homeless people as those lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, meaning they are sleeping in emergency shelters, transitional housing, or places not meant for human habitation. Literal homelessness is the primary eligibility category for most CoC and ESG programs. People who are doubled up or at risk of homelessness generally do not qualify as literally homeless under HUD's definition.

HUD defines imminent risk of homelessness as losing one's housing within 14 days with no subsequent residence identified and no resources to obtain housing. This status qualifies people for certain CoC and ESG prevention and rapid rehousing programs. Documentation requirements for imminent risk can create barriers for households in informal or unstable housing situations.

Doubled up describes a living situation in which a household stays temporarily with another person or family because they have no housing of their own. Doubled-up households are not considered literally homeless under HUD's primary definition but are recognized as at risk. The McKinney-Vento Act for education recognizes doubled-up children as homeless for school enrollment purposes.

Couch surfing refers to moving temporarily between other people's homes because one lacks stable housing. Like doubling up, couch surfing generally does not count as literally homeless under HUD's HMIS definition but reflects significant housing instability. Young people disproportionately experience couch surfing, which makes them harder to identify and serve through traditional homelessness programs.

At-risk of homelessness describes people or households who are not currently homeless but face conditions likely to lead to homelessness, such as extremely low income, poor housing conditions, histories of homelessness, or recent discharge from an institution. HUD programs may serve at-risk households for prevention purposes. Criteria vary by program and funding source.

Unaccompanied youth are people under 25 who are experiencing homelessness without a parent or guardian. They represent a distinct population from families with children, with different service needs and vulnerabilities. Unaccompanied youth are served by RHY-funded programs and may also be eligible for CoC-funded services when they meet HUD's definition of homelessness.

Parenting youth are young people under 25 who are experiencing homelessness and have dependent children in their care. They face compounded challenges including child welfare involvement, childcare needs, and age-based barriers to employment and housing. Programs serving parenting youth must address both the young parent's development and the children's safety and stability.

Transition-age youth refers to young people between the ages of 16 and 24 who are transitioning out of foster care, juvenile justice, or other systems and are at high risk of homelessness. TAY often face gaps in adult services and lack family support networks to fall back on. Many CoCs have specialized coordinated entry tracks and housing programs designed specifically for this population.

Runaway youth are people under 18 who have left home without parental or guardian permission. They are at high risk of trafficking, exploitation, and unsafe living situations, and they require specialized outreach and shelter that differs from adult programs. FYSB-funded Basic Center Programs provide emergency shelter and family reunification services specifically for runaway youth.

For HUD program purposes, a veteran is someone who served in the active military, naval, or air service for any length of time and was discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable. This definition is broader than some VA eligibility criteria and includes people with short service periods. Veterans experiencing homelessness may be eligible for VASH vouchers, SSVF services, and CoC-funded veterans-specific programs.

In the homelessness context, a domestic violence survivor is a person who is homeless or at risk of homelessness as a result of fleeing physical violence, sexual assault, or coercive control by an intimate partner or family member. DV survivors have specific VAWA-based protections in coordinated entry and housing programs. Many CoCs operate confidential CE pathways for DV survivors through comparable database-participating programs.

Human trafficking survivors are people who have experienced forced labor, sexual exploitation, or other forms of trafficking and coercion. The overlap between homelessness and trafficking has received growing recognition, particularly for youth. Some CoCs have developed trauma-informed protocols for identifying and serving trafficking survivors who present in shelter and outreach settings.

Fleeing DV is a HUD-recognized category of homelessness for people who are fleeing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, or human trafficking and have no other place to go. This status makes someone eligible for CoC and ESG-funded programs without the same documentation requirements as other homeless categories. VAWA confidentiality protections prevent disclosure of information about fleeing DV survivors.

LGBTQ+ youth experience homelessness at disproportionately high rates, often following family rejection after disclosure of sexual orientation or gender identity. LGBTQ+ young people face higher rates of violence and exploitation in shelters and on the street. CoCs are encouraged to create LGBTQ+-affirming shelter and services and to collect sexual orientation and gender identity data in HMIS.

Unsheltered homelessness describes people who sleep in places not meant for human habitation, such as outdoors, in vehicles, in abandoned buildings, or in encampments. Unsheltered individuals are the hardest to reach because they are outside the shelter system and may distrust service providers. Reducing unsheltered homelessness is a priority outcome in CoC system performance measurement.

Sheltered homelessness includes people sleeping in emergency shelters, transitional housing, or Safe Havens. Sheltered individuals are counted through HMIS in the PIT count and are generally easier to reach with coordinated entry than unsheltered people. While shelter is better than sleeping outside, it is not a stable long-term housing solution.

People experiencing homelessness is the preferred person-first terminology for individuals and families who lack stable housing. This language centers their humanity rather than defining them solely by their housing status. Many organizations and HUD have moved toward using PEH rather than "the homeless" in official communications and publications.

Persons with lived experience are people who have personally experienced homelessness, housing instability, or the service systems designed to address it. PWLE are increasingly recognized as essential contributors to policy design, program evaluation, and CoC governance. HUD and many local CoCs require representation of PWLE in planning bodies and on governance boards.

HUD defines a disabling condition as a diagnosable substance use disorder, serious mental illness, developmental disability, PTSD, cognitive impairment, chronic physical illness or disability, or HIV/AIDS. Having a disabling condition is a requirement for the chronic homelessness definition and for permanent supportive housing eligibility through CoC funding. The condition must be expected to be long-continuing or of indefinite duration.

Seriously mentally ill refers to people with severe, persistent mental health conditions such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or major depression that significantly impair their ability to function in daily life. SMI is one of the most common disabling conditions among people experiencing chronic homelessness. Assertive Community Treatment teams, Safe Havens, and permanent supportive housing are key interventions for this population.

Substance use disorder is a clinical diagnosis describing a pattern of harmful substance use that causes significant impairment in social, occupational, or other areas of functioning. It is a qualifying disabling condition for chronic homelessness eligibility and permanent supportive housing. Housing First programs serve people with active substance use disorders without requiring sobriety as a precondition for housing.

Co-occurring disorders, also called dual diagnosis, refers to the simultaneous presence of a mental health condition and a substance use disorder in the same person. Co-occurring disorders are extremely common among people experiencing chronic homelessness. Effective treatment integrates mental health and substance use services rather than addressing them separately or sequentially.

Aging out of foster care describes the process by which young people transition out of the child welfare system when they reach the age of majority, typically 18 to 21, without being adopted or reunified with family. Young people who age out are at very high risk of homelessness because they lose housing, services, and support simultaneously. Many states have extended foster care to age 21 or 23 to reduce this homelessness risk.

Returning citizen is a person-first term for someone recently released from incarceration in a jail, prison, or other correctional facility. Returning citizens face significant housing barriers, including background check policies that screen out people with criminal records. The period immediately following release is a high-risk time for homelessness, and many CoCs operate targeted programs to connect returning citizens to housing quickly.

Built for Zero is a national movement led by Community Solutions that supports communities in reaching functional zero for veteran and chronic homelessness. Participating communities use By-Name Lists, real-time data, and disciplined case conferencing to connect every person experiencing homelessness to housing. Built for Zero has demonstrated that measurable, lasting reductions in homelessness are achievable through system-level coordination.

Functional zero is a data-driven threshold at which a community consistently houses people faster than new people enter homelessness for a specific population. A community that reaches functional zero for veteran homelessness can demonstrate that no veteran remains homeless for longer than is necessary to complete the housing process. Functional zero is not a permanent elimination of homelessness but a sustained system performance standard.

A housing-led approach to addressing homelessness prioritizes permanent housing as the primary intervention, with services organized around supporting housing stability rather than preconditions for it. This approach contrasts with treatment-first or staircase models that require service readiness before housing access. Housing-led policy frameworks have been adopted by several countries and states as the organizing principle for their homelessness responses.

Housing stability refers to a person's ability to maintain their housing over time without risk of loss or disruption. Achieving housing stability requires not only securing a housing unit but also addressing the income, health, and social factors that can lead to eviction or loss. Housing stability is both an outcome measure for individual programs and a system-level goal for the homelessness response.

Affordable housing generally refers to housing for which a household pays no more than 30% of its gross income in rent and utilities. The term is used both as a policy standard and as a descriptor for housing specifically developed for lower-income households through subsidy or regulation. Insufficient affordable housing supply is the primary structural driver of homelessness in most communities.

Deeply affordable housing is housing restricted to households at or below 30% to 50% of the Area Median Income, typically requiring ongoing operating subsidy to remain financially viable. People experiencing homelessness almost always fall into the deeply affordable range, making this housing type essential to long-term homelessness reduction. Production and preservation of deeply affordable units is a central challenge in housing policy.

Extremely low income refers to households earning at or below 30% of the Area Median Income in their geographic area. ELI households face the most severe housing affordability challenges and are the primary target population for permanent supportive housing, VASH, and other deep subsidy programs. The supply of housing affordable to ELI households falls far short of demand in virtually every U.S. market.

Very low income refers to households earning at or below 50% of the Area Median Income. VLI is the standard eligibility threshold for Housing Choice Vouchers and many other federal rental assistance programs. Households in the 30% to 50% of AMI range often face severe housing cost burdens even though they do not qualify as extremely low income.

Low income refers to households earning at or below 80% of the Area Median Income, which is the standard eligibility ceiling for HOME-funded housing programs. Many state and local housing programs use the 80% AMI threshold as a baseline eligibility criterion. Low income households that earn above 50% of AMI generally do not qualify for the deepest federal rental subsidies.

A household is considered cost burdened when it spends more than 30% of its gross income on housing costs, including rent or mortgage and utilities. Cost burden is a widely used measure of housing affordability stress and a risk factor for homelessness. HUD's annual American Housing Survey tracks cost burden rates by income level, race, and geography.

A household is severely cost burdened when it spends more than 50% of its gross income on housing costs. Severely cost-burdened households have little money left for food, healthcare, transportation, and other necessities, placing them at high risk of homelessness. Extremely low income renters experience severe cost burden at far higher rates than any other income group.

Zoning is the local government process of regulating land use, including what types of housing can be built in different areas. Exclusionary zoning practices, such as single-family-only districts and minimum lot sizes, restrict the supply of multifamily and affordable housing and contribute to housing shortages. Zoning reform is increasingly recognized as a critical component of long-term homelessness reduction strategies.

NIMBYism, short for Not In My Back Yard, refers to community opposition to the siting of affordable housing, shelters, or supportive housing in residential neighborhoods. NIMBY opposition frequently delays or prevents the development of housing needed to serve people experiencing homelessness. Research consistently shows that well-managed supportive housing and shelters do not negatively affect neighborhood property values or safety.

Inclusionary zoning is a local policy that requires or incentivizes developers to include a percentage of affordable units in new market-rate residential developments. Mandatory inclusionary programs set binding requirements, while voluntary programs offer density bonuses or other incentives in exchange for affordable units. Inclusionary zoning helps produce affordable housing without direct public subsidy but typically does not produce units affordable to ELI households.

Opportunity zones are a federal tax incentive program created by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that provides capital gains tax benefits to investors who place funds in designated low-income census tracts. The program was intended to spur economic development in distressed communities. Results have been mixed, with significant investment concentrated in already-improving neighborhoods rather than the most disadvantaged areas.

An eviction moratorium is a temporary legal prohibition on evictions, often imposed during emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Eviction moratoriums can prevent a surge in homelessness by keeping people housed during periods of economic crisis. When moratoriums expire, communities often see increased shelter demand as households that accumulated rental debt face eviction.

Right to shelter is a legal or policy standard that requires a government to provide emergency shelter to any person who requests it. New York City and Washington, D.C. have enforceable right-to-shelter policies, while most jurisdictions do not. Right-to-shelter advocates argue it prevents people from sleeping outside; critics argue it can divert resources from permanent housing solutions.

Criminalization of homelessness refers to laws and practices that penalize people for engaging in life-sustaining activities in public spaces when they have no private alternative, such as sleeping, camping, or sitting in public. Anti-camping ordinances, sweeps of encampments, and trespassing laws disproportionately affect unsheltered people. Federal courts have repeatedly examined whether such laws violate constitutional protections.

Martin v. City of Boise was a 2019 Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision holding that cities cannot enforce anti-camping ordinances against people experiencing homelessness when there is no adequate shelter space available, as doing so constitutes cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment. The ruling shaped homeless encampment policy across the western United States for several years. The Supreme Court partially superseded it in 2024 with its ruling in Johnson v. City of Grants Pass.

Johnson v. City of Grants Pass is a 2024 U.S. Supreme Court decision holding that the Eighth Amendment does not prohibit cities from enforcing generally applicable anti-camping ordinances against people experiencing homelessness, even when no adequate shelter is available. The ruling reversed the Ninth Circuit's interpretation from Martin v. Boise and gave cities broader authority to regulate public camping. Advocates warn the decision increases risk of criminalization without reducing homelessness.

The 2023 HUD CoC Interim Final Rule updated the regulatory framework governing the Continuum of Care Program for the first time in more than a decade. Key changes included new low-barrier requirements for emergency shelters, updated Housing First provisions, new LGBTQ+ nondiscrimination protections, and expanded guidance on coordinated entry. The rule codified practices that many CoCs had already implemented voluntarily.

A Continuum of Care is a regional or local planning body that coordinates housing and services for people experiencing homelessness and applies for HUD CoC Program grants. CoCs are responsible for coordinated entry, HMIS administration, annual reporting, and the local competition for renewal and new grant funding. There are over 400 CoCs across the United States, ranging from large urban systems to statewide rural networks.

The Collaborative Applicant is the organization designated by a CoC to apply for the CoC Program grant on behalf of the entire CoC. The Collaborative Applicant submits the CoC's annual consolidated application to HUD and is responsible for distributing funds to subgrantees. It may also serve as the HMIS Lead, though these functions can be held by different organizations.

The CoC Board is the governing body of a Continuum of Care, responsible for approving policies, overseeing the annual funding competition, and ensuring accountability for CoC Program funds. Board composition must comply with HUD requirements, including representation from homeless service providers, mainstream system partners, and persons with lived experience. The Board approves the CoC's Governance Charter, which governs its structure and decision-making.

A Governing Board is the formal decision-making body of a CoC or collaborative organization, distinct from advisory or stakeholder committees. The Governing Board sets strategic direction, approves budgets, and holds the Collaborative Applicant accountable to HUD requirements. HUD requires CoC Governing Boards to include representation from people with lived experience of homelessness.

Lived experience representation refers to the meaningful participation of people who have personally experienced homelessness in CoC planning, governance, and decision-making. HUD requires CoC Governing Boards to include at least one member with lived experience of homelessness. Authentic lived experience inclusion goes beyond token representation to include leadership roles, paid positions, and structural power.

The CoC Program Competition is the annual HUD process through which CoCs apply for renewal and new CoC Program grants. HUD releases the NOFO each year, and CoCs compile a consolidated application that ranks their projects, requests renewal funding, and applies for new project funding. Scores from the competition determine how much funding each CoC and each project receives.

Annual Renewal Demand is the total amount of CoC Program funding a CoC has available for renewal grants in a given competition year, based on all existing grants approved for renewal. The ARD sets the baseline budget for the CoC's consolidated application. CoCs that reallocate funding away from low-performing projects can redirect ARD funds to higher-performing projects or new activities.

A new project application is a CoC Program grant application for a project that has not previously received CoC funding. New projects compete for bonus funding and reallocated funds within the CoC's annual consolidated application. HUD evaluates new project applications against threshold requirements and assigns scores based on project quality and community need.

A renewal application is a CoC Program grant application for a project that has previously received CoC funding and is seeking to continue receiving it. Renewals are not automatic; CoCs rank all renewal projects, and HUD can deny funding to poorly performing or ineligible projects. The renewal process is one of the primary accountability mechanisms in the CoC Program.

The Grant Inventory Worksheet is a HUD-provided document that lists all of a CoC's active CoC Program grants eligible for renewal in a given competition year. The GIW serves as the foundation for the CoC's consolidated application and determines the Annual Renewal Demand. CoCs review and certify the GIW as part of annual competition preparation.

Project ranking is the process by which a CoC orders its renewal applications by priority for funding within the annual competition. HUD uses the CoC's ranking to determine which projects receive funding if total requests exceed available funds. Ranking decisions must follow the CoC's approved selection criteria and are one of the most consequential governance decisions a CoC board makes each year.

Reallocation is the CoC Program process through which a CoC redirects funding from a lower-performing project to a higher-priority use, such as a new project or a different activity type. A CoC can reallocate by reducing or eliminating a renewal grant and creating a new grant application in its place. Reallocation is a strategic tool for improving system performance and aligning resources with community priorities.

Bonus funding is additional CoC Program funding that HUD makes available above a CoC's Annual Renewal Demand to support new projects. HUD determines bonus funding eligibility based on CoC performance scores. Bonus funds have typically been used to create new permanent supportive housing projects and are highly competitive.

A CoC Planning grant is a CoC Program grant that funds the administrative costs of operating the CoC planning body, including staff, coordinated entry oversight, and HMIS administration. Planning grants do not fund direct services or housing. Not all CoCs receive Planning grants; eligibility depends on CoC size, performance, and the annual NOFO requirements.

A Unified Funding Agency is a CoC-designated organization that has received HUD approval to serve as the sole recipient and administrator of all CoC Program grants in the CoC. UFAs have greater financial management responsibilities and are subject to additional HUD oversight. Not all CoCs apply for UFA designation, which requires demonstrating strong financial capacity and administrative systems.

Performance benchmarks are targets set by HUD or local CoCs for program and system-level outcomes such as housing retention rates, length of time homeless, and income growth. CoCs use benchmarks to evaluate projects during the annual competition and to monitor progress on system performance measures. Projects that consistently fall below benchmarks risk low ranking and non-renewal.

A CoC's geographic area is the specific jurisdiction, county, or region it covers, as defined in HUD's CoC registration. CoC geographic areas must cover all parts of the country, with no gaps or overlaps. Organizations within a CoC's geographic area that receive CoC funding must participate in the CoC's coordinated entry and HMIS systems.

A Balance of State CoC covers the parts of a state not included in any other CoC's geographic area, typically rural counties and small cities. Balance of State CoCs are large in geography but often have dispersed populations and limited resources. They must coordinate across multiple counties and often rely on state agencies to administer subgrants to local providers.

A Rural CoC is a CoC in which the majority of the population lives in rural areas as defined by HUD. Rural CoCs face distinct challenges including dispersed populations, limited transportation, fewer service providers, and seasonal homelessness patterns driven by agricultural employment. HUD has developed specific guidance and scoring criteria for rural CoCs to recognize these differences.

A Statewide CoC is a CoC whose geographic area covers an entire state rather than a specific city or county. Statewide CoCs typically cover small states or states without major urban centers that would support their own CoC. State-level coordination adds complexity to HMIS administration, coordinated entry, and project oversight.

PromisSE is a network of Continuums of Care in Alabama and the Florida Panhandle that coordinates training, data sharing, and peer learning across member CoCs. The network supports smaller and rural CoCs with technical assistance, shared best practices, and connection to resources. HomelessnessHQ serves as the learning platform for PromisSE network members.

Assertive Community Treatment is an evidence-based mental health service model that delivers multidisciplinary team-based treatment directly in the community, including at a person's home or in public spaces. ACT teams include psychiatry, nursing, substance use counseling, peer support, and vocational services and maintain small caseloads for intensive engagement. ACT is effective for people with serious mental illness who have not engaged with traditional outpatient services.

Critical Time Intervention is a time-limited evidence-based model that provides intensive support during transitions between institutional settings and community living, such as discharge from a hospital, prison, or shelter. CTI workers build community connections and transfer support responsibilities to natural and formal networks over nine months. CTI reduces the risk of homelessness and hospitalization following high-risk transitions.

Motivational Interviewing is a collaborative, person-centered communication style used to help people explore and resolve ambivalence about changing behavior. MI is widely used in homelessness and housing services to engage people in accepting help, pursuing housing, or reducing harmful substance use. Trained practitioners use open questions, reflective listening, and affirmations to build internal motivation rather than directing change.

Trauma-informed care is a service delivery approach that recognizes the pervasive impact of trauma on people's lives and behavior and integrates that knowledge into all aspects of practice. Trauma-informed organizations emphasize safety, trustworthiness, peer support, collaboration, empowerment, and sensitivity to cultural and gender issues. Applying trauma-informed principles in shelter and housing programs reduces retraumatization and improves engagement.

Person-centered planning is a process that puts the individual at the center of decisions about their housing, services, and goals rather than having staff make decisions on their behalf. Plans are developed through conversations that explore the person's strengths, preferences, and aspirations. Person-centered planning is associated with higher engagement, housing retention, and client satisfaction.

Case management in the homelessness context refers to ongoing support provided to individuals and families to help them navigate services, access benefits, stabilize in housing, and address barriers to long-term stability. Case managers coordinate between multiple providers, track progress toward goals, and advocate on behalf of clients. Case management intensity varies from light-touch follow-up in rapid rehousing programs to high-frequency visits in permanent supportive housing.

Benefits enrollment is the process of helping people experiencing homelessness apply for and obtain public benefits, including SSI, SSDI, Medicaid, SNAP, and veterans benefits. Many people experiencing homelessness are eligible for benefits but have not enrolled due to barriers such as lack of documentation, literacy challenges, or previous denials. Benefits enrollment increases income, reduces crisis service use, and supports housing stability.

SOAR is a federally funded training and technical assistance program that helps homeless service providers assist clients in applying for SSI and SSDI disability benefits. SOAR-trained case managers complete applications with medical documentation and follow cases through the approval process, achieving significantly higher approval rates than unassisted applications. Approved SSI or SSDI benefits provide a stable income source that supports permanent housing placements.

SSI is a federal income supplement program administered by the Social Security Administration for people with limited income and resources who are aged, blind, or have a qualifying disability. SSI provides a monthly cash benefit and, in most states, automatic Medicaid eligibility. Many people experiencing homelessness with disabling conditions qualify for SSI, making benefits enrollment a critical housing stability intervention.

SSDI is a federal program that provides monthly income to people who have a qualifying disability and sufficient prior work history to have paid into Social Security. SSDI benefits are generally higher than SSI and include Medicare coverage after a waiting period. Many people who have been homeless for a long time may qualify for SSDI if they worked earlier in their lives.

Mainstream benefits are government assistance programs available to the general low-income population, such as Medicaid, SNAP, TANF, unemployment insurance, and Social Security. CoC-funded programs actively help clients access mainstream benefits as part of rapid rehousing and permanent supportive housing service plans. Increasing mainstream benefit income reduces reliance on CoC resources and supports long-term housing stability.

Mental health services in the homelessness context include assessment, therapy, psychiatric medication management, crisis intervention, and peer support for people with mental health conditions. Services may be delivered on-site at housing programs, through community mental health centers, or by mobile teams. Integration of mental health services with housing programs significantly improves housing stability for people with serious mental illness.

Substance use treatment encompasses a range of interventions for people with alcohol or drug use disorders, including detoxification, medication-assisted treatment, residential treatment, and outpatient counseling. In Housing First programs, treatment is offered but not required as a condition of housing. Access to voluntary, effective substance use treatment significantly improves housing stability outcomes.

A peer support specialist is a paid professional who uses their own lived experience of homelessness, mental illness, or substance use recovery to support others in similar circumstances. Peer specialists build trust and credibility with clients in ways that professional staff often cannot. Growing evidence supports peer support as an effective strategy for engagement, retention, and recovery.

Lived experience refers to the direct personal knowledge that comes from having experienced homelessness, mental illness, substance use, or involvement in the social service system. Programs and systems that incorporate lived experience into staffing, design, and governance make more effective and equitable decisions. Centering lived experience is a core principle of trauma-informed, person-centered service delivery.

Secondary traumatic stress is the emotional distress that results from hearing about or being exposed to the traumatic experiences of the people a worker serves. Homelessness service workers are at elevated risk due to regular exposure to trauma, violence, and grief. Recognizing secondary traumatic stress as an occupational hazard and providing supervision, support, and training helps prevent worker impairment.

Compassion fatigue is a state of emotional exhaustion and reduced empathy that can develop in caregiving professionals over time as a result of chronic exposure to others' suffering. It is related to but distinct from secondary traumatic stress and burnout. Compassion fatigue reduces service quality and contributes to high staff turnover in homelessness and housing programs.

Burnout is a state of physical and emotional exhaustion caused by prolonged workplace stress, particularly in high-demand, low-resource environments. Homelessness service workers experience burnout at high rates due to caseload pressure, limited resources, and system barriers to helping clients. Organizational practices such as adequate caseload sizes, supervision, and recognition reduce burnout and improve staff retention.

A warm handoff is a care transition practice in which a provider personally introduces a client to the next provider rather than simply giving the client a referral. This approach is used when clients face barriers to following up on their own due to distrust, cognitive challenges, or housing instability. Warm handoffs significantly increase the rate at which clients actually connect with the next service.

Safety planning is a collaborative process in which a case manager or clinician works with a client to identify warning signs of crisis and create specific steps to reduce risk of harm. Safety plans address a range of risks including domestic violence, suicidal ideation, and substance use relapse. A written safety plan developed with the client is more effective than one completed without their active input.

Crisis intervention is the immediate response to a person experiencing a mental health, substance use, or safety crisis in a way that stabilizes the situation and connects the person to appropriate care. Effective crisis intervention in homelessness settings uses de-escalation techniques, trauma-informed communication, and low-barrier access to clinical support. Mobile crisis teams are increasingly used as an alternative to law enforcement response.

De-escalation is a set of verbal and nonverbal communication techniques used to reduce the intensity of a conflict or crisis situation without physical force. Homelessness service workers use de-escalation to respond to behavioral crises in shelter, housing, and outreach settings. Training in de-escalation reduces use of force and improves safety for both clients and staff.

Harm reduction is a public health approach that accepts that substance use and other risk behaviors exist and focuses on minimizing associated harms rather than requiring abstinence. Harm reduction strategies include needle exchange programs, naloxone distribution, medication-assisted treatment, and low-barrier shelter that does not require sobriety. Harm reduction is central to Housing First and has strong evidence for improving health outcomes.

A housing stability plan is a written document developed collaboratively between a case manager and a client that outlines goals, action steps, and supports needed to maintain housing. Plans typically address income, benefits, social connections, healthcare, and life skills. Regular review of the housing stability plan helps clients and workers track progress and adjust supports as circumstances change.

Self-sufficiency in the housing context refers to a client's ability to maintain housing and meet basic needs with little or no ongoing program support. Many programs measure self-sufficiency outcomes using tools like the Self-Sufficiency Matrix, which tracks progress across domains including income, housing, and health. Critics note that self-sufficiency as a program goal can create unrealistic expectations for people with chronic disabilities.

The empowerment model is a social work and case management approach that builds on a person's strengths, skills, and agency rather than focusing primarily on deficits and problems. Empowerment-oriented workers help clients identify their own goals, develop their capacity to advocate for themselves, and connect to community resources and networks. This model contrasts with paternalistic approaches in which workers make decisions on behalf of clients.