Cash for Housing Security
With all that's facing Connecticut families, our cash for housing security program aims to intervene at a moment of acute housing instability. We’re partnering with Yale Law School Basic Income Lab and community-based organizations to connect with families on the shelter waitlist who can benefit immediately from direct cash.
We know that the Housing First model works. Stabilizing housing has a profound impact on people’s lives.
New Haven, Connecticut
Nov 2025 - June 2026
Twenty-five families without housing or available shelter beds received $6,000 over 6 months. The program, designed with students at the Yale Law School Basic Income Lab, partnered with New Reach to help 4-CT connect with parents of children under the age of 18 on the shelter waitlist.
Nearly 30% of individuals entering Connecticut shelters reported that the primary cause of losing housing was “expenses exceeded their income.”
25% of people entering emergency shelters in Connecticut reported that they became homeless after exhausting their option to stay with other people.
48% of renter households in Connecticut are rent-cost burdened (they spend more than 30% of their monthly income on rent). 25% are severely cost-burdened (they spend more than 50% of their income on rent).
Nationally, fewer than 1 in 4 eligible households received Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rental subsidies that would reduce rent to 30% of a tenant’s income. In Connecticut, tens of thousands are waiting for subsidies. Wait times can stretch more than 5 years. When individuals fall into homelessness, as many as 1 in 4 are turned away from services due to capacity constraints.
Pilot Overview
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Number of participants: 25
Population focus: Parents of children under the age of 18 without housing or available shelter beds.
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Participants are selected by New Reach from the New Haven shelter waitlist.
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Demonstrate the benefits of a guaranteed income for families on the brink of/experiencing homelessness.
Improve systems for delivering support to individuals at moments of acute housing instability.
Better understand the impact of cash on the well-being, educational, employment and housing outcomes of housing-insecure families.
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Each participant receives $6,000 of unconditional, direct cash transfers over the course of 6 months. Participants were given the option of receiving $3,000 for the first month followed by $600/month for 5 months OR $1,000/month. Participants were also give the option of receiving funds via reloadable, prepaid card month OR direct deposit.
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4-CT provides the cash assistance, which is funded entirely through philanthropy.
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Through interviews and surveys, 4-CT is evaluating the impact of the cash on the housing security, employment status, children, health and wellness and financial well-being of recipients.