The site of the first of the “First Place” houses
Kids Belong is building a stronger future for West Michigan teens who age out of foster care by helping provide aged out youth with their First Place.
First Place, by Kids Belong, is a new initiative to help youth achieve stable housing in Muskegon. Most kids who age out of foster care at age 18 have no credit and no rental history, which means their prospects for getting an apartment are very slim. Without a stable place to live, youth are left to try to find whatever accommodations they can, which could mean with friends on couches, staying in unhealthy living situations, or in homeless shelters. In the US, 1 in 5 youth who age out of foster care become immediately homeless.
There are programs to provide extra help for these youth, including the Young Adult Voluntary Foster Care program, which lets youth stay in the system longer and receive the help and support that DHHS can continue to offer. Youth who stay in foster care longer tend to see better outcomes than their peers who age out without those additional supports.
But even for teens in the YAVC program, finding stable housing can be a challenge. Without much of the previously mentioned history, their options for apartments are limited. Beyond that, housing that is affordable for youth who are just getting started is hard to come by. Many youth see the burden of paying their rent taking priority over education, which may lock them into lower income jobs longer term, delaying their ability to afford rent or purchase a home in adulthood.
First Place will give these youth a significant boost toward adulthood by securing stable and safe housing right away, and in the process we will help them establish their budgets and rental history which will be so crucial to renting an apartment and becoming self sufficient. Rent payment will adjust based on the income of the youth, and life skills for sustaining rent long term will be developed along the way.
We have the perfect property, and we have the support pieces in place. The only thing left is to build the houses and fill them with youth who need a fresh start after foster care.
We have an immediate fundraising need to help pay for some of the initial infrastructure that will greatly help us in making this dream a reality. We are going to build at least one house this year, that house is funded and it is going to happen. We will build a second as soon as we raise enough money for it. What we would like to do now is to set up some of the infrastructure like water, sewer, driveway, etc with the long term plan in mind. Spending a little bit more on that now will save us time and money later.
We are asking for your help to make this happen! You can donate online, via mobile, or by mail. Visit the program page for more details and donation information at kidsbelong.org/firstplace