Ending homelessness isn’t just possible — it’s already happening!
Cities and counties just like yours are changing how local housing systems work to ensure an end to homelessness that lasts and leaves no one behind.
Built for Zero is movement of more than 80 communities working to measurably end homelessness, starting with veteran and chronic homelessness.
All communities at functional zero will be reviewed annually to ensure they are sustaining this dynamic end state for ending homelessness.
12 communities have ended veteran homelessness
- Gulf Coast region, MS
- Arlington, VA
- Montgomery County, MD
- Rockford, IL
- Bergen County, NJ
- Abilene, TX
- Lake County, IL
- Norman, OK
- Chattanooga, TN
- Lynchburg, VA
- Crater Region, VA
- Fremont County, CO
5 communities have ended chronic homelessness
Three have ended both.
What is Functional Zero?
A community has ended veteran homelessness when the number of veterans experiencing homelessness is
less than the number of veterans a community has proven it can house in a routine month. It has ended chronic homelessness when the number of people experiencing chronic homelessness is zero, or if not zero, then either 3 or .1% of the total number of individuals reported in the most recent point-in-time count, whichever is greater.
Stories of Success
Case Study: Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Reduction
Since 2019, this community of 1.11 million has reduced veteran homelessness by 20%.
Sub-Regionalizing with Built for Zero
Many large communities with a high number of people experiencing homelessness across vast regions face challenges in achieving quality data and establishing coordinated systems that can drive measurable reductions in homelessness. One specific community — Metro Denver — demonstrated the effectiveness and efficiency of Built for Zero’s strategy through a sub-regional approach. Built for Zero […]
Colorado implements statewide model with Built for Zero
In its efforts to measurably and equitably end homelessness, Built for Zero communities have been facing a significant challenge that has dominated homelessness response efforts: fragmentation. Continuums of Care — the regional or local planning bodies that coordinate housing and services funding for homeless families and individuals — often have inconsistent geographies that cut across […]
“People think ending homelessness is not achievable, because the system wasn’t designed to end it: it was designed to manage it. But if you redesign it with zero in mind, it can be ended.”
Brenda O’Connell and her community of Lake County, Illinois, ended veteran homelessness with the help of Built for Zero.
