New Report on Skid Row Housing Trust Holds Lessons for Permanent Supportive Housing

“Redesign Required” Shares In-Depth Analysis of PSH Building Economics to Inform Progress

LOS ANGELES, CA, UNITED STATES, May 21, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- A new report details how to make permanent supportive housing more economically viable. “Redesign Required: Lessons for Permanent Supportive Housing from Skid Row Housing Trust Buildings” examines the economic forces that contributed to the closure of the Skid Row Housing Trust and continue to challenge permanent supportive housing providers.

The report was funded by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation as part of its longtime commitment to addressing homelessness in Los Angeles County. Research was led by Claire Knowlton Consulting. Claire Knowlton and Joanne Cordero, former Chief of Staff and Interim CEO at Skid Row Housing Trust, authored the report with advisory and content support from dozens of experts and stakeholders. The report is now available for free download.

“There is extensive evidence that permanent supportive housing (PSH) works to address homelessness, but current funding practices undermine the economic viability of PSH providers,” said Claire Knowlton, lead researcher and report author. “Our report reveals bold and concrete actions that would substantially improve PSH’s ability to deliver on its promise.”

The Skid Row Housing Trust (SRHT) ceased operations in 2023 after decades as a Los Angeles PSH mainstay. Redesign Required’s deep analysis of the economics of 29 SRHT buildings reveals structural financial hurdles and informs recommendations for change. Findings include:

• Rental subsidies don’t cover the cost of permanent supportive housing. More than any other financial factor, including building age and maintenance costs, rent subsidy rates determined the viability or failure of the Trust’s properties.
• The calculation of subsidy rates is cryptic and its variability is indefensible. There is not a transparent process for setting or appealing subsidy rates. Similar PSH buildings receive rental subsidies with a difference of up to $600 per unit per month, and rental subsidies fall below fair market value by up to $1,058 per unit per month.
• There was no plan for the long-term financial viability of PSH buildings and services. The Trust did not have adequate financial resources to fund core, ongoing needs including reserves, maintenance, depreciation, and costs related to serving a high-acuity population.

Recommendations span big-picture mental-model changes to specific process recommendations, such as updates to accounting practices to understand PSH building financial viability.

“This report is part of the Trust’s legacy, written for the sector on behalf of the people of Los Angeles,” said Joanne Cordero, report co-author who led the wind-down of SRHT. “The data illustrates how we can do better for housing providers to benefit our most vulnerable neighbors and our whole community.”

About Claire Knowlton Consulting
Claire Knowlton is the founder and principal consultant at Claire Knowlton Consulting, LLC, where she provides financial consulting to nonprofits and foundations. Her work focuses on helping her clients align their financial strategy to their organizational values. Learn more at: https://www.claireconsulting.org/.

Claire Knowlton
Claire Knowlton Consulting
ck@claireconsulting.org