Housing Specialist - Housing Services

Housing Specialist

The Housing Specialist provides housing-related assistance to clients entering into housing. This position works directly with clients to guide them through rental application, resource identification, and lease signing processes. The position helps to coordinate and track housing inspections, ensure documentation is obtained, and safety standards are met. The position also provides tenancy-based education, conflict resolution and landlord mediation assistance to promote housing retention.

Central to this position is ensuring clients move seamlessly from temporary housing placements into permanent supportive housing.

Key Role Responsibilities

• Helps clients identify, secure, and retain housing placements. Assists with the inspection process to ensure that housing units meet established safety standards.
• Provides housing-based counseling and education regarding tenant rights and responsibilities. Reviews past housing history and identifies possible barriers to obtaining and retaining housing
• In partnership with clients, develop and implement individualized housing plans to promote housing success. Promotes successful implementation of housing plans by providing information and referrals to community resources. Assesses and responds to tenancy problems such as late payments, damage or lease violations, inadequate income and financial assistance needs.
• Partners with interdisciplinary team members and external partners to ensure clients are able to rapidly exit homelessness.
• Develops new landlord relationships and cultivates existing partnerships to create a robust pool of safe and affordable housing options for clients exiting homelessness and relocating. Networks with property managers and provides mediation services when needed.
• Prepares and maintains client records, documentation, and up-to-date files required for the leasing process. Conducts annual review of files to ensure grant compliance and provides statistical information for reports.
• Completes and updates HMIS documentation to include program entry, monthly and annual client assessments in accordance with grant requirements. Accesses and collects data from HMIS database to promote care coordination activities
• Completes documentation within the client's electronic health record in a manner that is easy to understand and in accordance with established formats and required time frames.

Knowledge, Experience and Skills

Formal Education and Training

• Associate's degree in human services or related field preferred
• Personal vehicle with current automobile insurance and valid Maryland driver's license required

Experience

• Two years of experience in connecting individuals to essential services including healthcare, mental health, and addiction services
• Experience working with permanent supportive housing programs that utilize rental assistance, tenant-based vouchers and project-based vouchers strongly preferred
• Experience working in a health care setting preferred

Skills

• Knowledge of Baltimore City community resources for addiction, social services and mental health
• Willingness to adopt Harm Reduction and Housing First principles and apply them to work with clients
• Approaches change with a positive, open-minded attitude
• Demonstrates personal integrity and has well-developed interpersonal skills necessary to engage clients and promote positive relationships with other community agencies and providers
• Displays strong attention to detail and notices discrepancies easily
• Able to be flexible and work as part of an interdisciplinary team
• Able to take initiative and problem solve
• Able to work with ill, disabled, emotionally upset, and sometimes hostile clients

Key Agency Responsibilities

• Models and reinforces the core values of dignity, authenticity, hope, justice, passion, and balance
• Actively participates in performance improvement and advocacy activities that support the mission
• Protects clients' personal health information by maintaining compliance with HIPAA and other relevant health care-related IT security regulations
• Performs other duties on an as-needed basis

• Be part of a mission-driven team committed to racial equity, social justice, and community wellness.

• Work in a dynamic, people-first organization that centers compassion, authenticity, and hope.

• Receive training and support to grow in your advocacy and peer work.

• Help shape the future of housing and recovery services in Baltimore.