Rooms Wanted For Sacramento Veterans

Sacramento homeless advocates say they have found housing for about 400 homeless veterans, but need help to find rooms for the remaining 250 by the end of the year.

Ryan Loofbourrow is the executive director of Sacramento Steps Forward. He says the organization has the money to pay market rate rents for rooms and has safeguards in place to protect landlords.

"We have implemented a 24-hour hotline so that landlords can call if ever there is an issue that needs to be dealt. We have also set aside funds for any damages that may have occurred while a resident is at one of their properties."

Sacramento Steps Forward has hired a landlord liasion to work with building owners in the city and county of Sacramento.

Don Harper runs the Sacramento Stand Down For Homeless Veterans and supports the effort.

"A lot of veterans have mental health issues, have physical issues. We can plug them into a lot of services, which is what I've done over the years. But, the big missing piece has been housing. That's a huge piece."

Sacramento Steps Forward's Loofbourrow says the money it spends for rent reduces the need for government expenditures.

"The experts on this housing model estimate it's about $2800 a month impact on local systems from a person that's homeless. Once housed, it's reduced to $604 a-month.

The organization receives about $20 million in local, state, and federal grants to deal with homelessness.

It has been working with Sacramento Stand Down and the Veterans Resource Center since the beginning of the year with the goal of housing all homeless veterans by the end of the year.

It costs about $10,000 per year, per person for housing.