CONCORD, NH ― In its 2023 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report to Congress, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recognized New Hampshire as one of just six states to report an overall decrease in Veteran homelessness between 2022 and 2023 (21% decline), following a period of increasing overall homelessness and Veteran homelessness in New Hampshire and across the country.
The decline was attributed in part to the state’s concerted effort to place Veterans into rapid rehousing programs (RRH), thereby diverting entry into emergency shelter, safe haven, and transitional housing programs and creating additional system capacity in these types of housing programs.
“Although there was an increase in people experiencing homelessness across the country, New Hampshire has made great strides in reducing Veteran homelessness by working with key stakeholders from across the Granite State to find permanent housing for Veterans,” said Director Brenton K. Fraser, N.H. State Department of Military Affairs and Veteran Service’s Division of Community Based Military Programs. “Given the challenges associated with affordable and available housing and the tight rental market, the team of teams approach by the N.H. Veterans Steering Committee in collaboration with federal, regional, and local agencies, supported by Veteran service organizations and numerous non-profits, all worked tirelessly with landlords and property managers who increasingly opened their doors to offer safe affordable units to Veterans to get after ending Veteran homelessness in N.H.”
Behind this effort were many federal, state, and local partners working together to meet the N.H. Veterans Steering Committee “50 Veterans in 5 Months” challenge, issued at the annual Ending Veteran Homelessness in New Hampshire Summit on June 28, 2023, hosted by Harbor Care Veterans FIRST at the New England College Simon Center and sponsored by Bank of America. The N.H. Veterans Steering Committee included representatives from the N.H. State Department of Military Affairs and Veterans Services (DMAVS), N.H. State Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Harbor Care, Easterseals New Hampshire, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Manchester Healthcare System.
The annual Ending Veteran Homelessness in New Hampshire summit convened local, state, and federal stakeholders; service providers; Veterans with lived experiences; real estate developers; rental property owners; and policy makers, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Regional Administrator Juana Maties and U.S. Representatives Annie Kuster and Chris Pappas.
The collaboration assessed the state of Veteran homelessness; the impact of the end of the federal public health emergency; the latest in resources and safety nets; landlord engagement; related efforts to address Veteran suicide; and other barriers to success, such as rental market supply and demand. According to the N.H. 2023 Residential Rental Cost Survey Report, the residential rental market shows strong demand and tight inventory challenging the State’s ability to meeting affordable housing needs.
Following the June summit, representatives from the team of federal, state, and local organizations met every other week to review the individual cases of New Hampshire’s homeless Veterans, resolve housing instability challenges and match Veterans with support resources based on their needs. By November 2023, New Hampshire exceeded the 50 in 5 challenge, having successfully placed 70 Veterans into permanent housing.
Additionally, the Veterans Steering Committee developed a project charter for the state seeking to create a system that engages Veterans within 24 hours of being entered into Coordinated Entry (CE), thus providing Veterans simpler, quicker, and more efficient access to permanent housing within 90 days. In addition to housing Veterans and their families, the output of the project also includes sustainable data for submission to U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) consistent with a state that has met USICH metrics for Ending Veteran Homelessness.
Looking forward, the Veterans Steering Committee is expanding and integrating additional partners to create a more holistic problem-solving approach and expand the reach across the state as it works toward building upon the methodology used in the “50 in 5” challenge, raising awareness across the community of practice on resources available to Veterans and their families, improving lines of communication to the community of practice – particularly maturing collaboration with Veteran friendly landlords, and transitioning the efforts into a sustainable process for regional approaches that enable community-based solutions for enduring support to Granite State Veterans and their families.
The Veterans Steering Committee is engaged in planning the 2024 Ending Veteran Homelessness summit in New Hampshire and is excited about the initial discussions addressing landlord incentive initiatives, the nexus with New Hampshire’s “Ask the Question Campaign,” and linkages with access to Mental Health care and other wrap-around services. Initial planning efforts are focused toward conducting the summit in early to mid-June, with details to follow.
About N.H. Department of Military Affairs and Veterans Services
The Department of Military Affairs and Veterans Services was established legislatively in New Hampshire in 2019. The Department is led by Major General David Mikolaities, the NH Adjutant General and Warren Perry, Deputy Adjutant General. The Department of Military Affairs and Veterans Services consolidated Veterans services from across the state including the Division of Veterans Services, the Division of Community-Based Military Programs and the State Veterans Cemetery. The Department of Military Affairs and Veterans Services shares a mission triad with the New Hampshire National Guard—fight and win our nation’s wars, secure the homeland, and build enduring partnerships. To learn more about the NH Department of Military Affairs and Veterans Services, visit https://www.dmavs.nh.gov/.
