Housing and Homelessness
Building Up Neighbors and Neighborhoods
120,000 people sleep each night in NYC shelters and 1 in 4 New Yorkers have slipped into poverty, with housing costs as a leading cause. A lack of affordable housing paired with historically low vacancy rates have pushed many New Yorkers toward a vicious cycle of eviction and homelessness.
As more of our neighbors struggle to maintain or find housing, Trinity’s Housing & Homelessness initiative funds nonprofits who are committed to breaking the cycle of mass homelessness. We direct our funding to organizations that advocate for long-term upstream solutions, help increase the availability of affordable housing units, and provide direct support to people facing housing instability. To complement this grantmaking, Trinity partners with local officials, advocates, and organizers to implement Trinity’s housing priorities and uses mission investing levers to expand access to affordable housing capital.
Where We Work
We work with nonprofit organizations who support communities throughout all five boroughs of New York City.
2024 Impact
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Our Strategies
Prevent Pathways to Homelessness: The best way to address homelessness is to prevent it from happening. We fund emergency resources, mediation, and support that connects people to government funds or services before, during, and after crisis.
Develop and Preserve Housing: Homelessness is a housing problem. Increasing housing options for low-income households is a critical part of addressing the crisis. We fund groups that advocate for the development of more affordable housing and voucher access.
House Justice-Involved People: Obtaining housing poses a major obstacle for justice-involved and formerly incarcerated individuals transitioning back into their communities. We fund groups that provide temporary housing and support during reentry.
Impact Stories
Easing Reentry After Incarceration: Osborne Association
Osborne Association serves individuals, families, and communities impacted by the criminal legal system—at court, in jails and prisons, at community sites, and through housing programs. In April 2024, Osborne opened the Fulton Reentry Center, a converted state prison that now serves as a 140-bed transitional housing facility and comprehensive reentry support center for men over 50 who are returning home from long-term incarceration. Trinity’s investment of $2 million in PRI and grant funding enabled the completion of the center.
Learn more about how the Osborne Association is giving formerly incarcerated men a place to call home.
New Technology to Fight Housing Discrimination: Unlock NYC
Unlock NYC equips voucher holders with the paper trail, voice, and connections to create accountability when they are facing housing discrimination. Led by advocates and those with lived experience, Unlock NYC’s mobile app, Rights Recorder, offers applicants an opportunity to immediately report landlords who discriminate based on source of income. Trinity’s ongoing grantmaking ensures the housing rights of New Yorkers in every borough. Additional communications support through a collaboration with F.Y. Eye educates the public on housing justice and provides “Know Your Rights” materials for all New Yorkers.
A Safe Space for LGBTQ+ Youth: Ali Forney Center
Ali Forney Center (AFC) protects homeless LGBTQ+ youth from the harms of homelessness and empowers them with the tools needed to be independent. Beyond housing, AFC provides comprehensive services including health care, proactive outreach, education, and job readiness. Since 2023, Trinity has provided funding to ensure that young adults in AFC’s programming also receive mental health care. With Trinity’s grant dollars, AFC provides consistent individual and group therapy for its residents.