SPECIAL SECTION: POLICYAND LEGISLATION
VETERANS
Changes Needed in Supportive Housing Services forVeterans [IndustryOpinion] IMPROVING FINANCIAL EDUCATION FOR VETERANS IS IMPERATIVE.
by Ken Lacy
The U.S. Veterans Administration (VA) has a gap in its process, and that gap is a big one. Although the VA has a huge budget and uses a great deal of it for “sup- portive services” organizations dedicated to helping veterans and their families access housing, many of these programs are not successful in the long-term. These programs revolve around the goals of helping veterans find affordable housing situations and then providing some set number of months’ worth of rent, usually between one and six. The idea is that by the end of six months, the veteran and their family should have a plan in place to pay for that housing. Unfortunately, with- out the associated financial education, a disturbingly large number of veterans end up evicted and homeless again when the program stops funding their rent. They are often in worse shape than before having been homeless, had a home, then returned to homelessness.
Veterans supportive services’ difficulties in enacting long-term, lasting solutions is directly tied to a lack of a financial educa- tion component in their programs. It is imperative that the VA and its supportive services incorporate a financial education component into their veteran housing programs. Without effective, rele- vant, veteran-specific financial education on credit, budgeting, and the costs asso- ciated with being part of an independent household, our veterans will continue to struggle in the area of homeownership when they return to civilian life. •
T here is a deadly cycle in the United States revolving around veterans and their housing. Many honorably discharged veterans do not qualify for long-term sup- port from any government agency, nor do they seek it. However, as our country’s vet- erans return to civilian life after an honor- able discharge, they frequently struggle with their finances. This is one of the contribut- ing factors the country’s ongoing issues with veteran homelessness, although it certainly is not the only one. The opinions stated in this piece are solely those of the author, who is an active investor in the Southeast, retired 26- year Navy Diver Chief Petty Officer, and executive director of Veterans Path Up, a 501(c)3 dedicated to helping honorably discharged veterans access affordable, stable housing. Make your voice heard on this topic on the Think Realty forums at ThinkRealty.com/tr-forums.
Ken Lacy is an active investor in the Southeast, a retired 26-year Navy Diver Chief Petty Officer, and executive director of Veterans Path Up, a 501(c)3 dedicated
to helping honorably discharged veterans access affordable, stable housing. He is also Think Realty’s 2018 Humanitarian of the Year. Learn more about his organization at VeteransPathUp.org.
40 | think realty magazine :: november 2018
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