Housing First as an Alternative to Criminalization

Housing First as an Alternative to Criminalization: Preliminary Findings from Interviews with Unhoused and Formerly Unhoused People in Miami-Dade County

Since the fall of 2023, federal funding to the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust has supported more housing vouchers that subsidize rents, increased street outreach and long-term case management, and provided technical assistance to address unsheltered homelessness. It has enabled social service providers to implement a coordinated housing-first approach that emphasizes rapid placement in housing and connection with supportive services. This contrasts with a status quo approach that, due to a scarcity of housing, relies on long shelter stays and exposes people to criminalization of unsheltered homelessness. Drawing on interviews with 20 individuals who have recently been unsheltered in Miami-Dade County, this report compares experiences of the two approaches. The findings call for more investment in the housing-first approach and less investment in policies that advance criminalization and coercing people into shelters with poor conditions.

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