Navigating the Post-Subsidy Cliff: Considerations for Families Approaching the End of Rapid Rehousing

Authors:  
Tessa Nápoles, Postdoctoral Researcher, Terner Center
Christina Economy, Research Associate, Terner Center
Carolina Reid, Faculty Research Advisor, Terner Center

Rapid Rehousing (RRH) programs, which provide time-limited rental subsidies and case management, have emerged as a powerful policy intervention that can help end homelessness. 

Between 2014 and 2024, the number of people receiving a RRH subsidy on a given night in California increased by over 600 percent—from 3,621 to over 28,000 people.

RRH programs are designed to allow families to stabilize their finances and secure permanent housing. However, the end of RRH assistance—often referred to as a “cliff”—can increase the risk of returning to homelessness. Understanding what happens to households when they face this cliff is critical to designing interventions that work to support long-term housing stability. In addition, understanding programs’ benefits and limits can inform policy conversations about introducing time limits for rental assistance programs.

Interviews with participating families reveal that many have benefited significantly from the RRH program, but that they also continue to face a set of interrelated challenges that could increase the risk of future housing instability. High housing costs, long commutes, unstable employment, and the loss of program supports all combine to make it difficult for people to improve their economic circumstances. However, researchers also find that there are specific factors that can improve a household’s housing and financial security, including steady work, reliable transportation, ongoing case management, and strong social or family networks. The research points to the need for ongoing case management as families leave RRH, as well as policy changes that reduce the structural barriers to long-term housing stability. 

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This research is part of the longer-term, collaborative Bay Area Thriving Families (BATF) study, designed to shed light on whether flexible income support post-RRH leads to better outcomes, with the goal of generating new evidence on what kinds of financial, service, and policy supports help promote long-term housing and economic stability for families exiting homelessness.

BATF is a partnership between the Terner Center, NYU Furman Center’s Housing Solutions Lab, and Bay Area homeless service providers Hamilton Families and Compass Family Services. Catholic Charities (based in San Francisco) and the Bill Wilson Center (based in Santa Clara County, including San Jose) are referral agencies for the BATF study.