HomeStart, Inc.

HomeStart, Inc.
Name	HomeStart, Inc.
Type	Nonprofit organization
Founded	1979
Headquarters	Boston, Massachusetts
Area served	Greater Boston metropolitan area
Mission	Provide housing stabilization, homelessness prevention, and support services for families and individuals at risk of homelessness
Key people	Jacqueline Mulligan (former Executive Director)
Revenue	$16 million (approx.; 2020)

HomeStart, Inc. is a nonprofit housing and homelessness prevention organization based in the Boston metropolitan area. Founded in 1979, the agency provides rental assistance, case management, eviction prevention, and supportive services to individuals and families experiencing or at risk of homelessness. It operates within a network of municipal, statewide, and national partners to coordinate housing interventions, emergency services, and long-term stabilization programs.

History

HomeStart, Inc. was founded in 1979 during a period of rising housing insecurity in urban centers following the postwar suburbanization trends that affected cities such as Boston, Massachusetts, New York City, and Detroit. Early activity drew on best practices from organizations like Catholic Charities USA, United Way, and Neighborhood Legal Services to build outreach and eviction-prevention models. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s the agency expanded services in response to policy shifts including the federal McKinney–Vento Homeless Assistance Act and state-level housing initiatives led by the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development.

In the 2000s HomeStart, Inc. adapted to the aftermath of the housing crisis that affected municipalities such as Chelsea, Massachusetts and Revere, Massachusetts, integrating rapid rehousing models recommended by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and collaborating with regional coalitions including the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless and Boston’s Community Action Agencies. Leadership changes in the 2010s saw partnerships with academic institutions like Harvard University and Boston University to evaluate program outcomes, and with philanthropic entities such as the Boston Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to expand supportive housing and prevention pilot programs.

Services and Programs

HomeStart, Inc. delivers a portfolio of interventions widely used in the homelessness sector, including rapid rehousing, permanent supportive housing, eviction diversion, and prevention services. Rapid rehousing programs align with models advanced by Corporation for Supportive Housing and HUD technical assistance initiatives, offering short-term rental subsidies, landlord mediation, and housing search assistance targeted to households exiting shelters or living doubled up. Permanent supportive housing projects are implemented in coordination with developers and owners involved with MassHousing and local housing authorities like the Boston Housing Authority.

Eviction diversion and prevention services combine legal referrals with rental assistance and linkages to benefits administered by agencies such as the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance and MassHealth. HomeStart also operates specialized programs for veterans, partnering with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and regional continuums like the Balance of State Continuum of Care, and youth-focused services that coordinate with organizations like YouthBuild USA and municipal school systems. Workforce and financial counseling offerings draw on curricula used by NeighborWorks America and financial capability initiatives supported by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

Organizational Structure

The organization is structured with an executive leadership team, a program operations division, development and fundraising, and administrative functions including finance and compliance. The board of directors typically includes representatives from local philanthropies such as the Lemelson Foundation, financial institutions, legal aid networks like Greater Boston Legal Services, and hospital systems including Massachusetts General Hospital. Program staff collaborate with municipal partners in cities such as Cambridge, Massachusetts and Somerville, Massachusetts as well as with state agencies like the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (Massachusetts).

Data and evaluation units work with academic partners and research centers such as the Harvard Kennedy School and the Suffolk University Department of Social Work to track outcomes using tools recommended by HUD and by research funders such as the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

Funding and Financials

Funding sources for HomeStart, Inc. mirror common nonprofit revenue mixes and include government grants, private philanthropy, fee-for-service contracts, and fundraising events. Major federal funding has come through programs administered by HUD and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. State and local grants are awarded through bodies like the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development and municipal human services departments. Private support has been provided by local foundations including the Boston Foundation, national funders such as the JPMorgan Chase Foundation, and individual donors.

Financial management follows accounting standards promoted by organizations such as the National Council of Nonprofits and audit practices akin to those of statewide associations. The organization has periodically reported operating budgets in the mid-seven-figure range, allocating the majority of expenditures to program services while maintaining administrative and fundraising reserves in line with best practices advised by philanthropy advisors like GuideStar and the Independent Sector.

Impact and Recognition

HomeStart, Inc. has been recognized regionally for its contributions to homelessness prevention and housing stabilization. Evaluations and program outcomes have been cited in policy discussions involving the Massachusetts Interagency Council on Housing and Homelessness and featured in reports from research partners at Boston University School of Social Work and the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies. The organization has received awards and acknowledgments from local municipalities and coalitions such as the Metropolitan Mayors Coalition and has contributed to statewide strategies to reduce family homelessness alongside entities such as Crittenton Women’s Union and Family Promise.

Advocacy and collaborative work with legislators and municipal officials have influenced local ordinances and initiatives modeled after best practices found in cities like Minneapolis and Portland, Oregon, helping to shape eviction-prevention protocols and coordinated entry systems promoted by HUD and state partners.

Category:Nonprofit organizations based in Massachusetts