Building a Better Response to Homelessness

What Cities Are Learning—and Why It Matters for Every Community

Across the country, cities are rethinking how they respond to homelessness. The old model—fragmented services, emergency-only responses, and siloed agencies—simply isn’t enough for the scale and complexity of today’s housing crisis. A recent article from the National League of Cities (NLC) highlights a powerful shift underway: cities are building coordinated, data-driven, human-centered homelessness response systems that actually work.

This isn’t just a big-city issue. Small towns, rural counties, and mid-sized communities are facing the same pressures: rising housing costs, aging housing stock, mental health gaps, and a growing number of residents who fall into homelessness after a job loss, medical emergency, or family crisis. The question is no longer whether communities need a better system—it’s how fast they can build one.

What NLC Found: Cities Are Moving From Reaction to Coordination

The NLC article emphasizes that cities are shifting from “managing homelessness” to preventing and reducing it. Their research shows that the most successful communities share several traits:

1. A unified, citywide strategy

Instead of scattered nonprofits and agencies working independently, cities are creating coordinated systems with shared goals and shared data.

NLC notes that this shift dramatically improves outcomes because everyone is rowing in the same direction.

2. Strong partnerships with county and state agencies

Homelessness doesn’t respect jurisdictional lines. Cities that collaborate with counties, health departments, and state agencies see faster rehousing and better long-term stability.

3. Investments in prevention—not just crisis response

This includes rental assistance, eviction diversion, landlord mediation, and targeted support for people exiting hospitals, jails, or foster care.

4. Data systems that track real-time needs

Cities like Houston and Bakersfield have shown that coordinated data is the backbone of reducing homelessness at scale.

These findings align with national research from the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH), which stresses that communities with coordinated entry systems and shared data see the fastest reductions in homelessness.

What Other States Are Doing: Lessons From Across the Country ---The NLC article is part of a broader national conversation. Here’s how other states and cities are building stronger systems:

Houston, Texas: A National Model

Houston has reduced homelessness by more than 60% over the past decade by creating a single, unified system that coordinates more than 100 agencies.

(Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development)

Their approach proves that homelessness is solvable when cities align around a shared strategy.

Burlington, Vermont: Housing First Success

Vermont has embraced Housing First principles—providing housing without preconditions—and has seen significant reductions in chronic homelessness.

(Source: Vermont Agency of Human Services)

Columbus, Ohio: Coordinated Entry and Prevention

The Community Shelter Board in Columbus is recognized nationally for its coordinated entry system, which ensures people are matched to the right resources quickly.

(Source: Community Shelter Board Annual Report)

California: Statewide Data Integration

California is investing in a statewide homelessness data system to help cities and counties share information and track outcomes.

(Source: California Interagency Council on Homelessness)

These examples echo the NLC’s message: cities that treat homelessness as a system-wide challenge—not a series of isolated crises—see real progress.

Why This Matters for Small and Mid-Sized Communities

While homelessness is often portrayed as a big-city issue, rural and small-town homelessness is rising faster than many realize. According to HUD’s 2024 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, rural homelessness increased by more than 20% over the past five years, driven by:

• Limited affordable housing

• Fewer mental health and addiction services

• Higher poverty rates

• Transportation barriers

• Fewer emergency shelters

Small towns often feel these impacts more acutely because they have fewer resources to begin with.

That’s why the NLC’s findings are so important: any community—large or small—can build a better homelessness response system.

What Communities Can Do Right Now

Based on NLC’s research and national best practices, here are steps communities can take immediately:

1. Build a coordinated local team

Bring together city officials, nonprofits, faith groups, law enforcement, hospitals, and schools.

2. Create a shared data system

Even a simple shared dashboard can transform how quickly people get help.

3. Invest in prevention

Eviction diversion programs are among the most cost-effective tools available.

4. Expand partnerships with landlords

Landlord engagement programs have helped cities like Denver and Minneapolis rapidly rehouse families.

5. Focus on housing solutions—not just emergency response

Shelters are necessary, but housing ends homelessness.

A Better System Is Possible

The NLC article makes one thing clear: cities are not powerless in the face of homelessness. Communities that embrace coordination, data, prevention, and housing-first strategies are seeing measurable, life-changing results.

Whether you’re a small-town leader, a nonprofit partner, or a resident who cares about your community’s future, the path forward is the same: build a system that treats homelessness as a solvable problem—not an inevitable one.