Bill Wilson Center, which provides services and support for youth and families experiencing homelessness, purchased a single-family home in Santa Clara County to support the expansion of the Transitional Housing Placement Program.
The Transitional Housing Placement Program provides foster youth and dependents of the court system – between the ages of 16 and 18 – independent living opportunities in a safe environment. According to the 2017 Santa Clara County Homeless Census and Survey Report, 45% of the county’s homeless population have been in foster care at some point in their lives.
The home was being leased by Bill Wilson Center for the program when the owner decided to sell. There was nothing preventing the seller from seeking a market rate sale, which would have placed the residents at risk of being displaced. Housing Trust provided a term loan for acquisition from our CDFI Bond Guarantee Program allocation, helping BWC preserve the home for this vulnerable population.
Bill Wilson Center had been a champion of AB 1235, a California bill that, among other important achievements, expanded the number of nights youth can stay at youth homelessness prevention centers – which would give them more time to find stable housing.