Research and Resources

Here you will find relevant news articles, publications, and opinions about issues that affect the women we serve and the work we do.

Research on Homelessness and Housing

Out of Reach 2010: a study by the National Low Income Housing Coalition that calculates the household income needed to afford a Fair Market Rent apartment in the Chicagoland area. For a two-bedroom household, this figure is $19.52 per hour, 52% higher than the average median income in the area.

A research review entitled “Some Facts on Homelessness, Housing, and Violence Against Women” from the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty

Homeless in Chicago: Calling a Patch of Grass Home– a story that aired on Chicago Public Radio on September 1, 2009. The article covers homelessness in Chicago through an interview with Ed Laster, a homeless man living in Uptown in 2009.

“Are Housing First Models Effective?” from the Corporation for Supportive Housing. This publication discusses the Housing First Model– the housing model Deborah’s Place uses, and an integral part of the city of Chicago’s 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness.

Million Dollar Murray: An article from the New Yorker in 2006 centering around a homeless man named Murray, and discussing the costs of homelessness in Denver.

Invisible People Blog: A blog with pictures and videos of homeless individuals’ stories across the country.

“State of the Nation’s Housing 2009″ from the Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, published 6/22/09. The report includes chapters on housing markets, demographic drivers, homeownership, rental housing, and housing challenges.

A May 2009 Chicago Tribune blog post about a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association showing that homeless people with chronic health problems who received supportive services remained healthier than those who received a regular discharge from a hospital.

Out of Reach 2009: From the National Low Income Housing Coalition, a comparison of wages and rents in every county, Metropolitan Area, combined nonmetropolitan area and state in the United States, and a discussion of the Housing Wage that a worker in each location must make in order to have their housing be affordable (less than 30% of their income).

Frequently Asked Questions about Homelessness from the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, including a fact sheet from Spring, 2008.

An article from Chicago Life Magazine interviewing Stephanie Hooker, a resident of Deborah’s Place.

A 2008 Chicago Public Radio story discussing Chicago’s progress in the 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness with the executive director of the Chicago Alliance to End Homelessness and the director of policy for the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless.

Priced Out in 2008: a study by the Technical Assistance Collaborative that finds that rents for modest studio and 1-bedroom housing units exceed monthly income benefits for disabled people.

A chart book from 2004 which presents estimates of the costs of serving homeless individuals in six alternative settings in nine cities. Daily costs in Chicago for a homeless person in supportive housing were about three times less than for a jail or prison, more than twenty times less than a mental hospital, and fifty-eight times less than a hospital.