Program Spotlight: Civilian Rapid Re-Housing/HACA Program
Our Rapid Re-Housing/HACA Program provides short-term rental assistance and supportive case management services to people experiencing or at risk of homelessness. Unlike Permanent Supportive Housing, which provides long-term assistance, the goal of Rapid Re-Housing (RRH) is to help community members secure housing quickly, stabilize, and increase their ability to maintain housing independently. Homeward Bound can provide rental assistance for up to two years, but many clients successfully graduate from the program within 6 to 12 months of entry.
The main point of entry for our Civilian Rapid-Rehousing Program is the AHOPE Day Center. We also have a Rapid-Rehousing Program for Veterans through our Supportive Services for Veteran Families Program. Non-veterans experiencing homelessness meet with our Coordinated Entry team at AHOPE, who identify their situation and current needs. In other cases, individuals and families have entered the program through referrals from the Coordinated Assessment Meeting, where housing and shelter service providers in Buncombe County meet with Asheville’s Homelessness Strategy Division.
Together, they determine which program best fits a person’s needs and history of homelessness, such as RRH. This collaboration allows us to increase our level of outreach and house people currently supported by other non-profits, including Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministries (ABCCM), Salvation Army, Safe Shelter, and Eliada Homes.
“We’ve helped a lot of people through small and major circumstances that could evict them” and for individuals who were previously unhoused, “force them back to homelessness,” shares RRH/HACA Program Manager Amanda Thomas. “They have income or the potential to earn income; they just need that extra support. Having our folks prioritized is pretty critical.”
Currently, Amanda’s team includes one Civilian Rapid Re-Housing Case Manager and two HACA Case Managers. Together, the program supports 45 clients living in homes managed by private landlords or the Housing Authority of the City of Asheville (HACA). Case management often involves addressing barriers that might seem small but have a huge impact, such as helping clients struggling with literacy complete applications or rental assistance forms, or assisting a parent who works day labor jobs and isn’t able to show proof of regular income. Other times, the team collaborates with community partners like Pisgah Legal Services to prevent disastrous situations, such as an eviction order, which can impact and limit a person’s housing opportunities for more than seven years.
While meeting, the team shared two stories of clients they assisted in the last year. One client, who was already housed, received an eviction notice after missing the deadline to submit an important annual recertification form required by HACA. Facing homelessness again, she informed her Case Manager, Nicholas, who connected her with Pisgah Legal Services’ Homelessness Prevention team. Pisgah Legal, which is experienced in tenant rights and discrimination cases, resolved the eviction in court, enabling Nicholas’s client to remain housed. When the next annual recertification form was due, Nicholas’ client submitted it on time and was stable enough to continue paying her rent.
Another client had been living in her car while working full-time as a Certified Nurse Assistant. She regularly checked into AHOPE until she became eligible for the program. Our RRH Housing Specialist, Sara, found her a home, and six months later, she was stable, consistently paying her rent, and successfully graduated from the program.
Thanks to the dedication of our staff, partners, and supporters like you, Homeward Bound’s RRH/HACA Program continues to help people get back on their feet.
