Shallow Rent Subsidies Pilot

Launched in November 2021, Oakland’s innovative “shallow subsidy” pilot program provides households a portion of their monthly rent to stop their displacement from the city and prevent them from experiencing homelessness. The program focuses on families who live in Oakland’s most vulnerable communities and are at the highest risk for being displaced or becoming homeless. A “shallow subsidy” is a smaller portion of a household’s rent, compared to a larger subsidy — such as the federal “Section 8” Housing Choice Vouchers, which often covers the majority or all of a household’s monthly housing payment. To date, 215 households have been enrolled in the program for 18 months. The program, which was evaluated by researchers at the UCSF Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative (BHHI) provided households with an average subsidy of $635 per month and has resulted in 92% of participants remaining stably housed after one year, averaging 1 month behind on rent rather than the 2 months seen by the non-subsidiary group, and decreased depression and anxiety symptoms among subsidiary recipients.