By Margaret Desmules

Note from the author: In 2015, Mayor Murray declared a “state of emergency over homelessness” in Seattle. In the most recent count, there are more than 7,000 kids experiencing homelessness in King County. Multiple funders and organizations came together to form All Home, a coalition to end homelessness. A “homelessness consultant”, Barbara Poppe, was hired last year to provide recommendations to the city.

She made more than $100,000 from this contract and advised to close almost all transitional housing programs and fund a program called Rapid Rehousing, which pays for move-in costs and a few months rent for families experiencing homelessness. Rapid Rehousing has been successful in other cities, but with Seattle’s housing market, families are often set up to fail with Rapid Rehousing as it is difficult to pay such high rents after the assistance stops. The following is a single mom’s first-hand experience with Rapid Rehousing and navigating through Seattle’s homeless assistance services. Continue reading There’s No “Rapid” Solution To Long-term Issues →