Santa Clara Model Shapes Statewide Homeless Plans

Santa Clara County’s homelessness prevention system is moving from a local program to a template for other California communities. Reporting published in March and May said the model run with nonprofit Destination: Home is now being used to shape new pilots and state legislation focused on stopping housing loss before people enter shelters or street homelessness. Destination: Home said on Feb. 24 that it launched a national initiative called Right at Home, backed by $77 million in funding, based on the Santa Clara County model it developed with Sacred Heart Community Service. The group said the effort aims to keep more than 10,000 families stably housed and to test whether the approach can scale beyond one county. (calmatters.org) Santa Clara County’s own homelessness plan puts prevention at the center of its strategy. The county’s Office of Supportive Housing says expanding the Homelessness Prevention System is part of its 2020-2025 Community Plan to End Homelessness, which set a target of reducing annual inflow into homelessness by 30% and serving 2,500 people a year through prevention and early intervention. (destinationhomesv.org) ### What does the Santa Clara program actually do? The Santa Clara Homelessness Prevention System provides temporary financial assistance, legal support, case management and other services to low-income residents who are housed but at risk of losing that housing. The county says the program is aimed at people who would become homeless “but for” that assistance. A network of 19 nonprofit agencies administers the program across Santa Clara County, according to the prevention system website. (osh.santaclaracounty.gov) Eligibility materials say applicants must live in the county, meet income guidelines and face imminent housing loss, including unpaid rent or an eviction notice. ### Why are other places paying attention? CalMatters reported in March that Destination: Home, after building the Santa Clara model, was helping other communities design similar systems. (preventhomelessness.org) The report said the organization had raised nearly $80 million from private donors, with each participating community receiving $500,000 for planning and at least $5 million to operate a program for three years. Jennifer Loving, chief executive of Destination: Home, told the organization in its Feb. 24 announcement that “the single most obvious solution to homelessness is stopping it before it starts.” In the same release, Destination: Home said the local approach had helped nearly 44,000 people avoid homelessness and that more than 90% of participating households remained stably housed two years later. (calmatters.org) ### What evidence is behind the model? CalMatters and other outlets cited an evaluation by the University of Notre Dame’s Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Opportunities, or LEO, that found people who received Santa Clara County prevention funds were 78% less likely to become homeless than similar people who did not receive the aid. The same reporting said 0.9% of people who got help became homeless, compared with 4.1% of those who did not. (destinationhomesv.org) Destination: Home also said the randomized controlled trial found every $1 invested saved the community about $2.47. The organization attributed those savings to avoided shelter, emergency health care and other crisis-response costs. ### How is this reaching Sacramento? Assembly Bill 1924, introduced by Assembly Member Jesse Gabriel on Feb. 12, would require California to develop a statewide homelessness prevention strategy. (davisvanguard.org) Legislative summaries say the bill calls for the California Housing and Homelessness Agency, or related state housing officials, to create model prevention practices and a broader state framework. (destinationhomesv.org) Terner Center for Housing Innovation and Housing California both listed AB 1924 this spring as a live 2026 policy proposal tied to homelessness prevention. CalMatters reported that the bill drew momentum from local prevention efforts already underway in places such as Santa Clara County. ### What comes next for the Santa Clara model? (legiscan.com) Right at Home’s next phase is implementation in additional communities, with Destination: Home saying the new funding will support planning grants and three-year operating support for local pilots. The organization said the initiative is intended to show whether the Santa Clara model can work at larger scale. (ternercenter.berkeley.edu) In Sacramento, AB 1924 remains part of the 2025-2026 legislative session. If enacted as described in legislative summaries, California would be required to produce a statewide homelessness prevention strategy by July 1, 2027. (legilist.com) (calmatters.org)