Hurricane Harvey: #HousingForHarvey
Communications Admin • December 14, 2017
As waters began to recede and disaster shelters began to close and consolidate, those who had been displaced by the storm began to wonder where they would go to next. The answer for many of those households was the Housing For Harvey program. Families enrolled in Housing For Harvey would receive rental assistance for six months as well as case management support to help them transition either to self-sufficiency or another, longer-term rental assistance program.
On September 7, the call went out to area property managers from Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and the Houston Apartment Association, asking for any available units that might be earmarked for people still residing in disaster recovery shelters. In just a few days, more than 100 properties had offered up available units, and by the end of October, Housing For Harvey had secured more than 700 units for the program – an incredible feat in an increasingly tight rental market.
The first step for landlords was to attend a briefing where they could learn more about the program requirements and the process of dedicating units. Because many displaced families had lost employment in the aftermath of the storm, landlords were asked to offer an all-bills-paid rental rate and to waive income requirements.
As units began to come in, partners of The Way Home
began to assess individuals and families at disaster shelters. These assessments were used so families with minor children could be prioritized for housing, and to determine whether some individuals were able to live independently. Once the program was up and running, families were enrolled in the Housing For Harvey program, picked their apartment unit from a map of available properties, and then submitted their application for the unit. Landlords were incredibly understanding of the urgency, and were typically able to process applications and background checks in the same day.
Once a household was approved for the unit, the move-out process could begin! Families would begin to gather their personal belongings and begin the Red Cross’ exit interview process, making sure they received information about any and all assistance they may have been eligible for. When households were ready to physically leave the shelter, AmeriCorps volunteers arranged for transportation – typically with Lyft or Uber – and then they signed in, received their keys, and moved into their units.
Every time a household moved out of disaster shelter, an order was placed so furniture, a Welcome Basket
full of home goods, and a pantry box from the Houston Food Bank
could be delivered to the family within 24 hours. Exclusive Furniture
was an incredible partner in this part of the move-out/move-in process and ensured that items were delivered within the time frame.
By the time the last disaster recovery shelter closed on October 27, 2017, more than 350 people had moved into their own apartment unit through the Housing For Harvey program. After that would come the intensive case management and continued recovery.
Click here
to access a City of Houston after action report on the Housing For Harvey program.
Houston, Texas (February 24, 2026) – This week, the nonprofit Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County (CFTH) is leading the annual Point-in-Time Homeless Count & Survey (“PIT Count”) to determine the number of people experiencing homelessness across Houston and throughout Harris, Fort Bend, and Montgomery counties. “We may see a slight uptick in the number this year, but we have a plan,” said Kelly Young, President & CEO of CFTH. “With the support of the City of Houston, Harris County, and private funders, we have been piloting new interventions to shorten the length of time people in our region experience homelessness. With adequate funding, we look forward to expanding those interventions to help people regain lives of self-determination.” CFTH coordinates the Houston region’s public-private homeless response system, The Way Home . Through this collaboration, The Way Home partners have successfully housed over 36,000 people since 2012. CFTH will release the results of Houston’s 2026 PIT Count in the summer, following independent verification by an epidemiologist. These findings will provide insight into how factors such as increases in the cost of living and the end of federal pandemic relief funding have impacted homelessness in our region. More information about the 2026 Point-in-Time Homeless Count & Survey The PIT Count offers a snapshot of how many people are experiencing homelessness in our region on a single night. This year, the “night of record” is Monday, Feb. 23. CFTH determines the number of people staying in shelters on that night by pulling records electronically from the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) . The unsheltered count will be conducted on the following days, from Tuesday, Feb. 24 to Thursday, Feb. 26. More than 400 volunteers and staff of local nonprofit service provider partners will canvass the three-county region to survey people living unsheltered, using an app on their mobile devices. Results from the 2026 PIT Count will help gauge the progress of The Way Home’s ongoing collaborative efforts. It will also help CFTH and partner homeless outreach teams understand geographic shifts and target their outreach throughout the year. The PIT Count illuminates specific programmatic gaps and provides additional information needed to allocate resources most efficiently. The PIT Count is a requirement of the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) for the annual Continuum of Care (CoC) funding process. HUD furnishes the majority of funding for programs that provide housing and supportive services to people experiencing homelessness in the region. In 2024, HUD granted more than $71 million to the Houston area.
As lead agency to The Way Home Continuum of Care (CoC), CFTH is working with local governmental entities to advocate on behalf of people experiencing homelessness to ensure their needs are being considered as winter weather affects our region. We will make frequent updates as we receive information. Please check back often for the latest information. Last updated 02/01/2026 at 12:00 p.m.
While our system has helped thousands of people move from homelessness to housing, this year’s results highlight the need to broaden our approach.
