Homeless or About to Be: Finding Shelter and Keeping Food, Income and School

1Step 1: Find somewhere safe tonight

If you are in danger, call 911. Otherwise, the fastest route in most places is to dial 211, a free line that connects callers to local shelters, food and other services. HUD's Find Shelter tool, at hud.gov/findshelter, lists shelters, food pantries, health clinics and clothing programs by city or ZIP code.

Shelters fill up and have their own rules about who they take and when, so call ahead if you can. Families with children, young people, veterans and survivors of domestic violence often have shelters set aside for them; say which applies to you when you call. Survivors can reach the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, and our guide for survivors of domestic violence covers the benefits rules written for them.

2Step 2: Get into the system for housing

Most communities run homeless housing programs through a Continuum of Care, a local group of agencies funded partly by HUD. They usually share one front door, called coordinated entry: a single place, phone line or outreach worker that assesses your situation and refers you to the programs that fit.

• Rapid rehousing helps people move quickly into rented housing with short-term help paying rent and finding a place.
• Permanent supportive housing pairs long-term rental help with services for people with disabilities who have been homeless a long time.
• Transitional housing offers a place to stay for up to about two years while you work toward permanent housing.
• Housing vouchers, including some set aside for people who are homeless, help pay rent in the private market; our guide to Section 8 explains how they work.

Ask the shelter, 211 or HUD's resource locator for the coordinated entry contact in your area. Programs are short of space nearly everywhere, so getting assessed early matters, and so does keeping your contact information up to date with them.

Veterans have an additional route. The Department of Veterans Affairs runs a national call center for homeless veterans at 1-877-424-3838, and HUD and the VA jointly fund HUD-VASH vouchers, which combine rental help with VA case management. Call even if you are unsure whether you qualify; the center can check your eligibility and connect you with the nearest VA medical center's homeless program.

3Step 3: Apply for SNAP, even with no address

You do not need a fixed address or a place to cook to get SNAP. You can use a shelter's address, a friend's, or the SNAP office itself to receive mail, and benefits are loaded on an EBT card you can use at authorized stores. If you have little or no income and very little money, you can usually get expedited SNAP within seven days; see our guide to expedited SNAP.

SNAP has a deduction written for this situation. In fiscal year 2027, a household that is homeless and has some shelter costs, such as paying for a motel room or a place on someone's floor, can deduct $205.66 a month from its income, which raises the benefit. A few states also let people who are homeless use SNAP at participating restaurants. Our SNAP guide explains the rest of the rules.

4Step 4: Keep your income coming

Social Security and SSI do not require a permanent address. Social Security can send mail to a shelter, a trusted friend or relative, or a social service agency, and payments can go by direct deposit or to a Direct Express debit card, so you do not need a mailbox for checks; our guide to electronic payments explains the options.

SSI has a rule for shelters: a person living in a public emergency shelter can receive SSI for up to six months in any nine-month period. If you are not yet on benefits but have a disability that keeps you from working, it is worth applying; our guides to SSI and applying for SSDI explain how. Unemployment benefits can be claimed online or by phone with a mailing address you can check.

5Step 5: Protect your children's schooling

Under the federal McKinney-Vento Act, children and young people who lose their housing, including those staying with others because of hardship, living in motels or shelters, or sleeping in cars, have specific rights at school:

• Immediate enrollment, even without the records schools normally ask for, such as proof of address, birth certificates or immunization records.
• The right to stay in their school of origin, the school they attended before losing housing, when that is in their best interest, with transportation provided.
• Free school meals, since children identified as homeless qualify automatically; see our guide to school meals.
• A homeless liaison in every school district, whose job is to identify these students and make sure they get these rights.

If the school disputes where a child should enroll, the child must be enrolled in the school you ask for while the dispute is settled. Young people without a parent or guardian have the same rights, and the liaison can help them apply for financial aid as independent students.

6Step 6: Health care, a phone and documents

Medicaid can be applied for without a permanent address, and in states that expanded it, most adults with very low income qualify; our guide to Medicaid eligibility explains the limits. Health centers funded for people experiencing homelessness serve patients regardless of ability to pay, and the Find Shelter tool lists them.

A phone is often the link to every other program. If you receive SNAP or Medicaid, you likely qualify for Lifeline, which discounts phone or internet service; see our guide to Lifeline. For mail, many post offices hold mail through General Delivery for people with no address. Replace lost documents as you go: a Social Security card is free to replace, and state ID cards and birth certificates come from your state's offices. Keep the papers you do have in one waterproof folder, and give copies to a caseworker or someone you trust in case the originals are lost or stolen.

7If you are about to lose housing

Prevention is easier than rehousing. If you have an eviction notice, act before the court date: our guide to facing eviction explains the first steps, and 211 can point you to emergency rental assistance where it exists. A utility shutoff can sometimes be stopped or delayed with energy assistance; see our guide to utility shutoffs. Many coordinated entry systems also serve people at imminent risk, so ask to be assessed before the last day.