Home Sweet Home

Affordable housing and homelessness

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

In April 2019, the U.S. had a homeless population of over 630,000, with 67,000 being veterans of the armed forces. Studies show that common causes for homelessness among U.S. veterans are disabilities – physical injury or mental illness, substance abuse, family breakdown, joblessness, poverty, lack of low-cost housing, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Once released from service many veterans struggle with acquiring veteran benefits, adjusting to civilian life, finding, and sustaining a new career path, and adjusting to the social norms of society. Unfortunately, many of our veterans do not have the support that is needed to sustain a positive life.
The key ingredient to living a healthy life is having a place to call home. However, many veterans that have called us for assistance need immediate assistance. The majority of veterans are not aware of the resources available to them. The goal of Senior Veteran Home Solutions is to help with solutions depending on their specific need.

Home Sweet Home's goal is to eliminate homelessness for all senior veterans currently living in Los Angeles County. Home Sweet Home believes that safe, affordable, and long-term housing is a basic human right. Home Sweet Home focuses on the unique needs of the senior veteran communities we serve in Los Angeles County. The program is available to veterans and their surviving spouses to help cover the cost of long-term housing in an assisted living facility or even at home. In an ideal world, every veteran would be appropriately cared for so they can reach their fullest potential. Home Sweet Home has created the space that makes this idea a reality. The upfront cost for a 2 to 3-month deposit for moving into an assisted living facility can range from $2,000-$3,000 monthly for each client. At times, assisted living facilities allow senior veterans to pay back the upfront costs associated with their move once they receive their VA benefits. However, on average Home Sweet Home will incur a fee of $5,000 per client. Home Sweet Home will recruit additional staff and volunteers to be able to facilitate and oversee the operations of the program. Home Sweet Home will assist with filling out VA benefits applications. Whether you are a veteran or the surviving spouse of a veteran, we will use our knowledge and expertise to expedite the approval process and get you the money that you deserve.

Objectives for FY2025 · Place 25% more senior veterans in long-term housing. This objective will result in an outcome of more senior veterans in Los Angeles County being placed in long-term housing and reduce current economic and sociopolitical crises such as homelessness, mental health issues, and poverty. · Assist with the application assistance of 25% more VA applications than were completed in 2023. The approval of VA benefits will ensure that veterans can stay in their homes long-term without the fear and stress of having to be evicted. Utilize the partnership of 2 additional Moving Companies that can regularly assist with discounted-rated moves. Partnering with moving companies will lessen the overhead cost for Home Sweet Home and will help the business demonstrate its commitment to the values embodied by Home Sweet Home. Once community members see the business's involvement they will surely think highly of those businesses and patronize them in the future.

The evaluation plan will determine whether Home Sweet Home was effective in placing 25% more senior veterans in long-term homes as well as determining the overall satisfaction of the senior veterans we serve. The evaluation plan will consist of Qualitative and Quantitative data retrieved from both statistical data and the “check-in” interviews that will be conducted post-move. Home Sweet Home will compare the number of senior veterans that were housed from 2024 in comparison to 2025 to see if the objective was met. The “Check-in” will be conducted by Home Sweet Home staff/volunteers. The purpose of the “check-in” is to evaluate the satisfaction of each client and to determine how we can improve in the future.