Floating Housing Navigator

At New Narrative, we believe mental health care is community care. As a nonprofit organization, we partner with individuals to promote healing, housing stability, and long-term wellness through compassionate, equitable support. If you’re passionate about community impact, we invite you to join our team.

Starts at $27/hr and can go up DOE

This role connects highly vulnerable community members experiencing homelessness to community services, employment and income growth with an emphasis around helping transition from experiencing homelessness to housing. The Housing Navigator utilizes crisis response/intervention, harm-reduction and trauma-informed care principles to build trusting relationships and deliver wrap-around housing stability services. The role conducts individual assessments, housing search and connection to community resources with a focus on supporting community connections.

This role works outside the office to meet program participants in their homes, in the community and at New Narrative program locations.

This position will float between multiple SHS programs, particularly during times of increased need due to staffing availability. Programs span both Multnomah County and Washington County. This position may be assigned to a program permanently at the discretion of the SHS Department leadership.

• Provide support to participants as they transition from street to shelter to housing.
• Intervene in crisis situations, promote positive solutions and re-establish stability while providing support and mediation to foster housing stability.
• Conduct thorough assessment to identify the individual’s unique story, risk factors, and strengths to build upon for a successful outcome.
• Develop strength-based/solution-focused individualized action plans that promote income growth, housing stability and self-sufficiency.
• Coordinate wrap around services including mental health, legal assistance, entitlement benefits, health care, substance abuse treatment, job training and housing assistance.
• Practice assertive engagement to motivate and encourage participation to support follow-through.
• Maintain professional boundaries and a strict level of confidentiality.

• Assist participants with accessing resources and services to increase housing stability, e.g., linkage to primary care physicians, health insurance, food banks, credit repair, legal aid, money management, tenant rights and responsibilities, mental health, benefits enrollment.
• Support participants through each step in the housing process, including income growth and attainment, on-time rent payment, budgeting, roommate mediation, neighbor mediation, and successful tenancy.
• Assist participants in locating and securing housing of their choice and to create and maintain consistent communication channels between the participant and landlords, referral sources, creditors, and collaborating agencies.
• Provide advocacy and mediation on the client’s behalf with landlords, property managers and housing agencies to obtain and maintain housing.
• Serve as an ongoing liaison with property managers, resource and service providers and neighbors, as needed, to maintain stable housing.
• Conduct home visits and accompany participants as needed to appointments related to housing.
• Provide independent living skills coaching, instruction, and assistance to participants.
• Independent living skills include paying bills and rent, household management, cleaning, personal hygiene, cooking, nutrition and personal care.
• Participate in case conferences, tenant meetings, staff meetings and community meetings as required.

• Maintain thorough, accurate, and…