“New Lease staff have been instrumental in assuring that the process was a smooth one. The families are thrilled and we are excited to be working closely with property managers to make sure this is a successful initiative.”– Participating New Lease Shelter Provider

New Lease is a non-profit based in Boston, Massachusetts. We work with property owners to target affordable homes to families in shelters or state-assisted motels to reduce the homeless family population in Massachusetts. New Lease works with a variety of stakeholders to approach housing placement and stabilization of families through the lens of systemic change, with the goals of swift housing placement and healthy tenancies. A heavy focus is applied to creating systems that work for all stakeholders: families, housing owners, social service providers, and regulatory agencies. Below are some of the key components of the New Lease program.

Systems Change: Standardization of the Housing Admissions Process

• Structured timelines and communication plans between all parties quickens the admissions process
• Preemptive collection of eligibility and suitability documents prior to the housing interview enhances efficiency
• The creation of Universal Forms reduces inefficient, duplicate work

Systems Change: Supportive Services to Foster Healthy Tenancies

• In-home case management is standardized across social service providers to encourage healthy tenancies
• Best practices are shared across all partners to provide families with a variety of self-sufficiency tools
• Centralized Communication across all parties ensures tenancies issues are identified and addressed promptly
• An emphasis on real-time data informs new approaches to service delivery

Systems Change: Key Stakeholders Collaborating to Create and Improve Program Design

The creation of New Lease, its goals and mission was a result of affordable housing staff, social service provider staff, and family focus groups coming together to build a model that benefits all parties involved. Stakeholders work together on an ongoing basis to evaluate and improve the model, while simultaneously incorporating innovative practices at every opportunity.