In response to Section 606 of the 2022 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published a report on the Housing Needs of Survivors of Human Trafficking Study. HUD gathered information through a literature review and 23 listening sessions with community and government partners with lived and professional expertise including the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking, the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, and offices throughout the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The report explores the availability of housing and services for individuals who have experienced human trafficking, barriers to accessing housing, best practices such as trauma-informed care and culturally specific services, and recommendations like investing in flexible funding practices.
The report’s principal findings include:
- It is essential for housing and service providers to build trust to understand survivors’ needs and connect them with appropriate services when conducting outreach and engagement. Housing providers can improve access by partnering with local organizations that have built trust within their communities.
- The demand for most forms of housing assistance, including those specifically meant for survivors, is far greater than the resources available. Other policies, like prioritization of specific groups and age limits, or lack of necessary services can further limit survivors’ access to these resources.
- The systems and programs providing housing assistance and services are often complex and disconnected from each other. This makes them difficult for survivors to navigate and creates the risk of retraumatizing survivors through repeated screening and intake processes.
- Documentation requirements, criminal records, credit issues, lack of or poor rental history, or immigration status requirements can present barriers for survivors seeking to rent housing on the private market using a rental subsidy.
- Survivors face discrimination in numerous ways, including based on being members of a protected class. Discrimination and exploitative behavior by housing providers create barriers to accessing and maintaining safe housing, even when housing assistance is available.
- Program models that most successfully serve survivors are those that are trauma-informed and survivor-centered. Survivors have diverse backgrounds, experiences, and needs, and programs are more successful when they have the flexibility to serve these individual needs.
For more information, see HUD’s VAWA site , fact sheet (PDF), and the full report (PDF).