Author: Elaine MacPherson

The University of Arizona Southwest Institute for Research on Women has released its thirty-seventh update to its report on Housing Insecurity Indicators and Potential Homelessness Estimates for Arizona and Pima County. This report measures current housing insecurity with newer census data. Without further analysis the causes of this locally are unclear, but the prime suspects are rising rents and the lingering aftermaths of the pandemic for the household budgets of lower-income households (via death, illness, and changes in employment and caretaking responsibilities).

Download the report here.

Since the last census wave, there have been considerable improvements. Those include:

• Consistent with national trends, Tucson rent prices appear to be slowing their rate of increase substantially in recent months.
• Mortgage holders in Arizona continue to be in the best financial position we have seen in this survey to date. Only 2.8% reported being not current on mortgage payments and of those that are not current 79% see a foreclosure in the next two months as either “not very likely” or “not likely at all”.

The most recent update to the report also includes many indicators of concern worth noting.

• Most renters are being directly impacted by rising rent prices in Arizona.
  • Renters have experienced 34-39% increases in average and median rents over the past two years.
  • Statewide, 69% of Arizona renters reported an increase in their monthly rent in the last year and 53% reported an increase of $100 or more. This indicates that most renters are being directly impacted by recent increases in rent prices in Arizona.
  • Measures of households not being current on rental payments and those experiencing great difficulty meeting spending needs indicate that low income households in Arizona are slipping behind (again).
  • In the previous survey the vast majority of Arizona renters who are behind on their rent, 94%, were only 1 or 2 months behind on their payments. This fell to 52% of non-current renters only 1 or 2 months behind on their rent this wave. This suggests noteworthy erosion in financial position of renter households in Arizona in recent months.
  • Eviction filings have been rising since April, and September had the largest monthly count of eviction filings observed since the onset of the pandemic.
• Racial/ethnic disparities in financial strain have increased in measures of households not being current on rental payments and experiencing difficulty meeting spending needs.
  • Individuals (nationwide) reporting either a lot of difficulty or no ability to see or concentrate are disproportionately likely to report being behind on rent payments.
  • It appears that members of historically marginalized groups (especially people living with disabilities) are not benefiting from the improving economy as quickly on average as other demographic groups.
  • Generally, a falling unemployment rate is usually associated with reductions in eviction filings, but here we observe rising eviction filings in the context of very low and stable unemployment.

Download the report here.

August 29, 2022 Update: the training advertised here is the fourth session of the Critical Time Intervention Series, started in April of 2022. This session is intended for supervisors and managers who completed the Basic CTI training and would like to learn additional skills for training project staff in CTI practices and managing fidelity to the evidence-based model. For supervisors who could not attend the live sessions, please see instructions below for how to access the TPCH Online Training Center. Register here for the training. Training Overview Our three-part Basic CTI training was held on April 6, 13, and 20.  Participants who successfully completed the three-part Basic CTI training received a certificate of training endorsed by the Center for the Advancement of Critical Time Intervention, Hunter College/Silberman School of Social Work.     We strongly encourage supervisors and managers to attend the fourth session of this series in order to meaningfully incorporate CTI into agency programs.  Didn’t Attend the initial CTI sessions? Don’t worry – if you couldn’t attend the live sessions, the recorded session are posted on the TPCH Online Training Center for you to be able to view.   Register here for the training. About Critical Time Intervention Critical Time Intervention (CTI) is a time-limited evidence-based practice that mobilizes support for vulnerable individuals during periods of transition. The CTI model facilitates housing stability, community integration, and continuity of care, and has been successful in supporting the return to housing for people with serious mental illness, people experiencing homelessness, veterans, and many other groups.  CTI is especially well-suited as a case management model in support of housing problem-solving with individuals and families. Key characteristics of the model include: CTI is time-limited; its explicit aim is to provide intensive, targeted support during a critical period and then withdraw. It is compatible with efforts to intervene with people in crisis, especially during periods of housing instability. CTI is not intended to become a primary source of ongoing support for vulnerable people. CTI workers aim to engage clients, locate effective services and supports in the community, and effectively link them together to promote long-term stability. CTI is highly focused: CTI workers do not try to address all needs that vulnerable individuals and families may have. Rather, CTI focuses only on the key areas that place the client at risk of future housing instability.  Meet Our Trainer – Carolyn Hanesworth, LCSW, PhD Dr. Hanesworth is a Critical Time Intervention Trainer, Researcher, and Consultant.  In addition to her work with CACTI, Dr. Hanesworth is an Assistant Professor of Social Work at Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry, NY. She has worked as a service provider, leader, and consultant for organizations serving homeless children and families in Texas and New York City for the past 25 years.  Recently, she served as the Project Director for the CTI for Rapid Rehousing Pilot Study in Connecticut, where she assisted in adapting and implementing CTI for Rapid Rehousing recipients.

The University of Arizona Southwest Institute for Research on Women has released its thirty-sixth update to its report on Housing Insecurity Indicators and Potential Homelessness Estimates for Arizona and Pima County. This report measures current housing insecurity with newer census data. Without further analysis the causes of this locally are unclear, but the prime suspects are rising rents and the lingering aftermaths of the pandemic for the household budgets of lower-income households (via death, illness, and changes in employment and caretaking responsibilities.

Download the report here.

Since the last census wave, there have been considerable improvements. Those include:

• the proportion of non-current renters fell from 13.3% to to 9.2%;
• of the non-current Arizona renters who see eviction in the next two months as somewhat or very likely, 94%, are only 1 or 2 months behind on their payments. This is up from 66% in the previous wave, suggesting substantial improvement in financial position of renter households in recent months;
• a substantial proportion of non-current renters reporting having both applied for and received rental assistance;
• mortgage holders in Arizona appearing to be in the best financial position in this survey to date. Only 2.9% reported being not current on mortgage payments and of those that are not current 71% see a foreclosure in the next two months as “not likely at all”.

The most recent update to the report also includes many indicators of concern worth noting.

• Most renters are being directly impacted by rising rent prices in Arizona.
  • Rents continue to rise in Tucson with measures of average and median rent increasing 34-39% over the past two years.
  • 65% of Arizona renters reported an increase in their monthly rent in the last year.
  • 49% of Arizona renters reported an increase of $100 or more.
• Racial/ethnic disparities in financial strain have increased in measures of households not being current on rental payments and experiencing difficulty meeting spending needs.
  • Individuals (nationwide) reporting either a lot of difficulty or no ability to see or concentrate are disproportionately likely to report being behind on rent payments.
  • It appears that members of historically marginalized groups (especially people living with disabilities) are not benefiting from the improving economy as quickly on average as other demographic groups.
  • Eviction filings have been rising since April, and June had the largest monthly count of eviction filings observed since January of 2021. An estimate of the number of eviction filings in July suggests that the levels reach in June will be observed in July.
  • Generally, a falling unemployment rate is usually associated with reductions in eviction filings, but here we observe rising eviction filings in the context of very low and stable unemployment.

Download the report here.

The Tucson Pima Collaboration to End Homelessness (TPCH) is committed to reducing and ultimately eliminating homelessness in our region. Ending homelessness in Pima County – which covers more than 9,000 square miles including urban, suburban, rural, and Tribal area – means ensuring that those who are experiencing a crisis of homelessness obtain safe and stable housing as quickly as possible and do not return to the homeless system. In 2020, CoC leadership and staff created the TPCH Strategic Plan, which articulated a strategic path to guide efforts as a CoC to achieve these goals. Shortly afterward, the world changed with the onset of COVID-19. COVID-19 drastically altered how TPCH and its partners interacted with each other and with the people the CoC serves. This document, the 2022 Progress Report on the 2020 TPCH Strategic Plan, gives the CoC, its TPCH board and the community a look at our progress 18 months through the plan’s timeline.

Download the progress report here.

The TPCH Strategic Plan advanced many goals from prior planning efforts to expand the permanent housing inventory, identify and lower barriers to system entry and housing, refine Coordinated Entry processes, increase systemwide data capacity, and incorporate a racial equity lens into system evaluation and improvement strategies. The Plan endeavors to ensure that all programs and interventions employed to address homelessness function together with a common set of objectives and performance measures targeted at achieving measurable change in Pima County communities – and that the system’s resources are being used to maximize impact the yield the greatest possible results. This document, the 2022 Progress Report on the 2020 TPCH Strategic Plan revisits these goals and summarizes progress toward their fulfillment.

We recognize that our coalition cannot end homelessness alone. The TPCH Strategic Plan centers the need for on-going and deeply embedded multi-sector partnerships to produce transformational change in our communities’ response to homelessness. It is founded on evidence-based practices and strategies in the field, focused on efforts that will yield the greatest possible results, and designed to provide the Continuum of Care and community leadership a framework for ending the crisis of homelessness in Pima County. As such, TPCH regularly monitors progress toward its goals and objectives, as it has done with the 2022 Progress Report on the TPCH Strategic Plan.

The University of Arizona Southwest Institute for Research on Women has released its thirty-fifth update to its report on Housing Insecurity Indicators and Potential Homelessness Estimates for Arizona and Pima County. This report measures current housing insecurity with newer census data.

Download the report here.

The most recent update to the report includes many indicators of concern worth noting. Without further analysis the causes of this locally are unclear, but the prime suspects are rising rents and the lingering aftermaths of the pandemic for the household budgets of lower-income households (via death, illness, and changes in employment and caretaking responsibilities).

• A substantial erosion in financial position of renter households in recent months
  • In the most recent wave, collected June 29th – July 11th, the proportion of non-current renters rose to 13.3%. Over half, 54%, of these non-current Arizona renters see eviction in the next two months as somewhat or very likely.
  • This survey indicates that the majority of Arizona renters who are behind on their rent, 66%, are only 1 or 2 months behind on their payments. This is substantially worse relative to the previous survey wave where this proportion was 93% of non-current AZ renters.
• Rents continue to rise in Tucson with measures of average and median rent increasing 31-41% over the past two years:
  • And the average rents of studio and 1-bedroom apartments have been increasing faster than larger units, contributing to the declining stock of affordable housing.
  • 73% of Arizona renters reported an increase in their monthly rent in the last year and 59% reported an increase of $100 or more. This indicates that most renters are being directly impacted by rising rent prices in Arizona.
  • Eviction filings have been rising since April, and June had the largest monthly count of eviction filings observed since January of 2021. Generally, a falling unemployment rate is usually associated with reductions in eviction filings, but here we observe rising eviction filings in the context of very low and stable unemployment.
• Racial/ethnic disparities in financial strain have increased in measures of households not being current on rental payments and experiencing difficulty meeting spending needs:
  • Individuals (nationwide) reporting either a lot of difficulty or no ability to walk, see, hear, or concentrate also are disproportionately likely to report being behind on rent payments. It appears that members of historically marginalized groups (especially people living with disabilities) are not benefiting from the improving economy as quickly on average as other demographic groups.

Download the report here.

TPCH Quarterly Membership Meeting Thursday, August 11

3pm-5pm (Zoom) 

Join us for the third quarterly General Council meeting of the TPCH membership on Thursday, August11.  This meeting will be held virtually and pre-registration is required.

For a list of members eligible to vote in this meeting, see the TPCH Voting Member Roster linked below. 

Click here to register for the August 11 General Council Meeting.

After registering, you will receive an automated email with details to access the meeting.

Summary Meeting Agenda

Community Celebrations
Facilitated by Jocelyn Muzzin, CoC Board Chairperson

Special Notice of Funding Opportunity, Regular Notice of Funding Opportunity

Karen Fogas, CoC Lead Staff

Quarterly Update on TPCH Activities and Financials
Presented by Karen Fogas, CoC Lead Agency (City of Tucson)

TPCH Committee and Coalition Updates
Presented by Committee and Coalition Leaders

Download August 11 Meeting Materials

TPCH General Council Meeting Agenda (August 11, 2022)

TPCH Voting Member Roster as of August 11, 2022

TPCH General Council Meeting Minutes (May 12, 2022)