Since 2009, Home Start has worked to provide affordable, supportive housing and individualized future planning to women who are pregnant or have small children and find themselves in unstable living environments. MHP offers these mothers a safe home and educational programs to give them the tools to become self-sufficient and develop healthy relationships with their children.
Housing
In the face of an affordable housing crisis across California, San Diego has one of the highest rates of unsheltered youth below the age of 25. With the rent of a studio apartment averaging $1,413, securing housing is difficult for all of us, but especially trying for a single mother with childcare responsibilities.
Home Start currently offers more than twenty apartments which have saved over 265 families since they opened and we are working hard toward opening another five units in 2020.
Support
Home Start’s Maternity Housing Program offers more than a roof over their heads. This is a 360º support system providing evidence-based parental education, Child Development Specialists, counseling, financial literacy training, higher education and employment resources, and so much more. Our goal is to provide affordable, supportive housing and the services needed to build secure, loving, and self-sufficient families.
“I exited the foster system after ten years. I bounced around from home to home and eventually, I came into Home Start and they have been such a huge help for me. It’s really important that they were here to help me be a better mom for my son.”
Security
True security comes from our clients being able to provide a sustainable standard of living for their own families. Our Case Managers and facility staff create individualized plans to reach their goals and achieve independence. In addition, our social enterprise Home Start Thrift Boutique offers on-the-job training opportunities within walking distance from each housing facility.
This program not only helps mothers who want to provide a better future for their family but creates a generation of young San Diegans who will grow up in secure and loving homes with a bright outlook.
You Can Help
It’s so easy to help by donating much-needed supplies from our Amazon Wish List. Our families are always in need of diapers, bedding, bath supplies and other goods that make these apartments a home.
For more information about the Maternity Housing Program, please contact: housing@home-start.org
If you are in need of housing support, please email housing@home-start.org summarizing your current situation including city, number of children, birthdates of all family members, monthly income, and valid contact information. Prospective clients can also self-refer via our Housing Intake Line: (619) 430-0032.
Drop in Hours at 333 East Main Street in El Cajon:
Youth Age 18-24: Mondays 12:30-4PM
Adults Age 25+: Thursdays 12:30-4PM
**Home Start, Inc. collects and stores data in Regional Task Force on Homelesness’s (RTFH) Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) and has adopted RTFH’s HMIS Policies and Procedures. To view related policies, including privacy practices, from RTFH and Home Start, Inc. please see the linked documents below.
HMIS-Policies-and-Procedures-Manual-Final-12312019
