Authored by U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Homeless Program Office’s Principal Advisor, Intra/Inter-Agency Collaboration and Director of Community Engagement Anthony Love
No veteran should be homeless in the country they swore an oath to defend. The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) is committed to ending homelessness among veterans because it is our nation’s duty to ensure all veterans have a place to call home. Although significant progress has been made to reduce and ultimately end veteran homelessness, our work is far from over.
The Right Tools for the Job
The VA offers a wide array of services to address the full range of housing needs veterans may have:
- Outreach services such as Health Care for Homeless Veterans and the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans are the front doors to both VA homeless programs and the broader VA health care system.
- Residential services such as the Health Care for Homeless Veterans Contracted Residential Services or Grant and Per Diem programs provide temporary placement, in the form of emergency or transitional housing, for veterans who need a place to stay right now.
- Permanent housing services such as the Supportive Services for Veteran Families and HUD-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) programs connect Veterans to affordable housing in their communities. These services come with either short or long-term rental subsidies, case management and varying levels of wrap-around supportive services to ensure that veterans have all the necessary resources to stay housed.
VA also has programs to assist veterans in the criminal justice system with accessing VA services, help veterans gain meaningful employment or take care of their health needs through primary care tailored to the unique access barriers that veterans experiencing homelessness face. However, the success of our tools is entirely dependent on a critical resource that landlords provide — affordable rental units.
A Pledge to House Homeless Veterans
Mayors can use their leadership and vision for solving veteran homelessness in their communities to partner with landlords or property managers who will commit rental units that veterans can call home.
That’s why in December 2024, VA launched its Mayor’s Pledge to House Homeless Veterans — a national initiative encouraging mayors to engage landlords within their communities to pledge their available rental units to veterans participating in VA’s homeless programs. This is critical because VA’s permanent housing programs — which help veterans exit homelessness — depend on access to affordable rental units.
How Does it Work?
The Mayor’s Pledge encourages mayors to engage landlords with available units to commit to housing veterans. There is no minimum and no maximum pledge requirement. If you serve a smaller community, one landlord with one vacant unit will make a difference for a veteran and their family experiencing homelessness in your city. If you serve a large community, aim high. Encourage as many landlords as possible through apartment associations and other community business networks to pledge multiple units to house veterans.
The Mayor’s Pledge does not require mayors to submit a proposal or undergo a new strategic planning process to address homelessness. This pledge leverages all of the work mayors have already led and are currently involved in and takes the final step toward permanently housing veterans by asking landlords to pledge available housing units to homeless veterans.
The initiative runs until Sept. 30, 2025. Mayors who take the pledge will engage landlords, multifamily property owners and property managers to submit information about their available rental units through an online web portal. Local VA homelessness teams will then reach out to these landlords to work to connect veterans to the available units.
Ready to Take the Pledge?
To learn more about the Mayor’s Pledge to House Homeless Veterans and to take the pledge yourself, visit the frequently asked questions page. Together, we can make sure that every veteran has a safe, stable, accessible and affordable place to call home.
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