Bringing Families Home

Affordable housing and homelessness

County of Los Angeles (select only if your project has a countywide benefit) City of Los Angeles (select only if your project has a citywide benefit)

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

In Los Angeles County, a lack of affordable housing is one of the biggest barriers to family reunification. Parents working to regain custody of their children face impossible odds if they can’t secure stable housing. This disproportionately affects low-income families and communities of color—especially Black families—who already face structural barriers to housing access. Without support, many are forced to choose between homelessness or family separation. Governor Newsom’s proposed budget eliminates funding for Bringing Families Home, a program that directly addresses this crisis. Without urgent support, more children will be unnecessarily placed in foster care simply because their parents cannot afford a home.

Inner City Law Center’s (ICLC) Bringing Families Home provides holistic legal services that help low-income parents secure and maintain housing so they can keep or be reunited with their children. We provide eviction defense, resolve landlord/tenant disputes, help families access rental assistance like Section 8, and support income stability through public benefits advocacy. We also help parents obtain vital documents, clear tickets, and resolve credit and debt issues—all of which can block access to housing or employment.

We work closely with the Department of Children and Family Services and homeless services providers to help families involved in the child welfare system or at risk of homelessness. Every client receives individualized support tailored to their housing needs. Our legal team asks, “What is the pathway to long-term housing stability for this family?”—and takes action to get them there.

With the elimination of state funding, philanthropic support is critical to continuing this life-saving, family-preserving work.

ICLC’s Bringing Families Home has been a tremendous success in its pilot phase. With the continuation of this program, more families in Los Angeles will stay together—no longer forced apart because of poverty or housing instability. Fewer children will enter foster care and more will return home to parents who have worked hard to meet reunification goals. Homelessness among families in the child welfare system will decline. Our legal services will remove systemic barriers, giving families a fair chance to thrive. Black and brown families, who are overrepresented in both homelessness and foster care, will see greater equity in outcomes. The ripple effects will extend across generations: children who grow up in safe, stable homes are healthier, more successful in school, and less likely to experience homelessness as adults.