Project Summary
The Family Housing Opportunities for Purposeful Empowerment Project (Family HOPE Project) is a cash-based housing assistance pilot program for families with children experiencing or at risk of homelessness in Delaware. The program is housed in New Castle County Delaware’s Hope Center, a referral-based emergency shelter.
The award includes:
- $9.6 million project grant.
- $1.4 million for independent evaluation.
The Family HOPE Project expects to see a 26-percentage-point increase in proportion of families living in their own rental home as well as a 30-percentage-point increase in the proportion of families without any nights in an emergency shelter.
Outcome Goals:
- Decrease homelessness
- Long-term housing retention
- Enhance family self-sufficiency
- Improve long-term health for families
- Strengthen long-term educational attainment for children
The Family HOPE Project will decrease family homelessness in Delaware and enhance families’ self-sufficiency by offering three key services. First, families will receive an emergency shelter stay up to a maximum of 90 days, extended from the current 24 days that the Hope Center provides. During this time, families will access onsite services at the Hope Center, and the Hope Center will help families secure a permanent housing placement. Second, after families exit the Hope Center and move into their new rental home, families will receive two years of rental assistance, disbursed as cash and valued at 90% of fair market rent, to subsidize their housing. Third, families will receive case management, financial counseling, and other services to ensure housing stability.
The Family HOPE Project will serve 120 families experiencing homelessness who present themselves at the Hope Center for a non-congregate emergency shelter stay. There are no requirements that families need to be residents of New Castle County, as approximately 15% of the Hope Center’s clients are from the other two counties in Delaware: Kent County and Sussex County. Eligibility criteria will be assessed as part of the Hope Center’s comprehensive client assessment process.
- Long-term subsidies, whether paid to landlords or directly to families, improve outcomes such as housing stability and financial security for families experiencing homelessness
- Families will likely experience a decrease in risk factors associated with homelessness, such as higher mortality risk, exposure to infectious disease, experience of gun violence or sexual violence, likelihood of drug overdose, prevalence of mental and physical health concerns, family separations, and school disruptions
- A reduction in emergency shelter stays, emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and incarceration
| Role | Entity | Responsibilities |
| Local government | County of New Castle, DE | Repay investors with SIPPRA funds if performance benchmarks are met. |
| Intermediary | Social Finance | Serve as financial intermediary, leading project design and contracting activities. Provide performance management services and facilitate governance committees. |
| Service providers | New Castle County HOPE Center | Lead service provisions through providing emergency shelter stay to eligible families, coordination of rental assistance, and on-going case management. Lead outreach and enrollment of families. Report data and coordinate with the Evaluator and Intermediary as needed. |
| Independent evaluator | Tech Impact, Data Innovation Lab | Conduct a rigorous evaluation to estimate the impact and cost effectiveness of the intervention. Provide evaluation progress reports. |
| Investors | Social Impact Investing of the Delaware Community Foundation, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Blueprints for the Community Fund, Laffey-McHugh Foundation, Longwood Foundation, M&T Charitable Foundation, Welfare Foundation, WSFS CARES Foundation | Provide upfront capital to fund the delivery of services. |
Treasury is scheduled to make four payments (after years 2, 3, 4, and 5) for a total payment of up to $9.6 million.
Treasury will pay $21,184 for each family living in their own rental home and $40,940 for families staying in an emergency shelter. This difference must be found to be statistically significant at the 80 percent level according to the independent evaluator.
| Service Delivery | $ 6,454,852 |
| Evaluation | $ 1,440,000 |
| Total Project Costs | $ 7,894,852 |
- Project Period of Performance Start Date: March 2026
- Project Period of Performance End Date: August 2032
- Evaluation Start Date: March 2026
- Evaluation End Date: August 2032
Eligibility criteria are families who have: 1) at least one adult aged 19 and older, plus one or more children aged 15 and under (inclusive of pregnant caregivers); 2) household income less than 50% of AMI in New Castle County; and 3) not currently receiving a rental subsidy, housing voucher, or other form of public housing.
The study is a quasi-experimental design that compares the housing security outcomes of two groups: 1) a program group who receives a two-year 90% fair market rent (FMR) monthly cash assistance following a temporary maximum 90-day stay at the Hope Center and 2) a household socio-demographic matched control group, which is composed of families on any waitlist for the Delaware State Housing Authority (DSHA)—or local-level housing authorities in New Castle County—Public Housing and Housing Choice Voucher Program as well as with start and exit dates to any housing program (e.g., emergency shelters, temporary housing, rapid re-rehousing) that match the study inclusion period.
Overall, there are two independent matched groups of 60, totaling 120 controls and 120 families receiving cash rental assistance. Cohort 1 begins in Q1 of 2026, with cohort 2 following a year later.
The project expects to achieve success by realizing a 26-percentage-point increase in the proportion of families living in their own rental home. The project also expects to realize an almost 30-percentage-point increase in the proportion of families without any nights in emergency shelters.
| Entity | Estimated Savings | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Federal government | $7.1 million | This is the federal portion of savings due to permanent housing retention and avoidance of shelter stays. |
| State government | $14.4 million | This is the state portion of savings due to permanent housing retention and avoidance of shelter stays. |
Further information is available through the official press release and federal register notice. These documents provide detailed background on the SIPPRA award and program expectations.