New York's Right to Shelter

Preserving the fundamental right

A photo of an adult with black and blond hair and a black jacket leaning over the shoulder of a smiling child wearing a green jacket with patches and a black hood.

State of the Homeless 2023

Compounding Crisis, Failed Responses

Every New Yorker Deserves a Home.

We can not only reduce, but eliminate, homelessness in New York City.

I need help finding shelter or meeting other critical needs.

Crisis Intervention Hotline:

1-888-358-2384

3 adults outside, two of them holding signs.

Callahan Under Attack

For over 42 years the Coalition for the Homeless, with our partners at The Legal Aid Society, has zealously defended and successfully expanded the legal Right to Shelter for anyone experiencing homelessness in New York.

The Latest

Updates from the Coalition for the Homeless. To see our recent statements, visit our Press Room.

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Legal Aid, Coalition for the Homeless announce settlement in Callahan v. Carey, preserving NYC’s Right to Shelter settlement protects the right to shelter for anyone in need.

(NEW YORK, NY) – The Legal Aid Society and the Coalition for the Homeless, following a court-supervised mediation led by New York State Supreme Court Judge Gerald Lebovits, announced a settlement with the City to end the government’s legal challenge to New York’s long-standing Right to Shelter for single adults, established under Callahan v. Carey in 1981.

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The Coalition for the Homeless reached a settlement with the City of New York Friday, adding new emergency terms to the 1981 decree that paved the way for the city’s unique right to a shelter bed.

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NYC Narrows Re-Sheltering Rights for Recently-Arrived Immigrants

NEW YORK (WABC) — The legal agreement between New York City and homeless advocates scales back the decades-old ‘Right to Shelter’ law as the city tries to find housing for thousands of migrant adults.

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Settlement reached over 'Right to Shelter' law in New York City

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The Coalition for the Homeless and Legal Aid Society testified before the New York City Council’s Committee on General Welfare. As the independent monitor of the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) shelter system and counsel in cases that established the right to shelter in NYC, we offered insights into the impact of proposed funding for the shelter system and programs aiding unhoused New Yorkers…

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The Preliminary Budget for Fiscal Year 2025, and other future fiscal reports: the Coalition for the Homeless and Legal Aid Society submit testimony

Lazaro Sanchez was living on the A train when an outreach worker in an orange jacket offered him a chance. After a slow, steady slide into homelessness, Sanchez had spent around five years sleeping on the subway…

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NYC subway safety plan targeting the homeless shows hints of promise but significant problems

March is Women’s History Month, a celebration dedicated to commemorating and uplifting the contributions of women throughout our Nation’s history. Few have left such an enduring legacy on New York City as Shirley Chisholm…

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Unbossed and Unbought: Shirley Chisholm and her enduring influence in New York City

The Coalition for the Homeless and The Legal Aid Society submitted testimony to the New York City Council’s Committee on General Welfare in response to findings by the Department of Investigation regarding manipulation of monthly eligibility rate data by DSS and Intros. 210-2024 and 349-2024.

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The Oversight Hearing on DSS manipulation of monthly eligibility rate reporting and intros: the Coalition for the Homeless and Legal Aid Society submit testimony

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Last week, a damning piece in The New York Times exposed the inexplicably poor results of Governor Hochul’s Migrant Resettlement Assistance Program (MRAP) which, after eight months, has managed to resettle only a tiny fraction of the families it was supposed to resettle throughout the state…

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Why a $25 Million Plan to Relocate N.Y.C. Migrant Families is Struggling

The city’s housing vacancy rate plunged to 1.41 percent in 2023, the lowest it has been since 1968, officials announced Thursday. Options were particularly scarce for low-income New Yorkers: just 0.39 percent of units renting for under $1,100 were available last year.

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‘Profound Scarcity’: Apartments Available to NYC Renters Hit Historic Low Last Year

This year, the Coalition for the Homeless remembers Philip A. Payton Jr., a real estate entrepreneur, who was committed to breaking down racial barriers in the New York housing sector.

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Remembering Philip A. Payton Jr. – the “Father of Harlem” and his lasting legacy in New York City

It’s a tough pill for Adama Bah to swallow. She’s meeting a family from Senegal that is about to be evicted from their shelter. They’ve hit the city’s 60-day limit…

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Adama Bah: Showing compassion for immigrants

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On January 31, 2024, Columbia University Professor and Coalition co-founder Kim Hopper PhD delivered a keynote speech at the January 31, 2024 UPSTREAM: Frontline Solutions to Homelessness symposium. These are his remarks.

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“A muddle that works…” Remarks About the Legacy of Callahan

The United States experienced a dramatic 12% increase in homelessness to its highest reported level as soaring rents and a decline in coronavirus pandemic assistance combined to put housing out of reach for more Americans, according to federal officials…

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End of Pandemic aid and soaring rent prices drive homelessness up to a record 12% nationwide

After four decades, New York City’s right to shelter law faced a policy shift in October under Mayor Eric Adams. Known as a 60-day rule, the new policy imposes a limit on the amount of time an asylum seeker could stay in City shelter facilities.

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What the 60-Day Eviction Rule Means for Migrants in NYC Shelters

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It’s the dead of winter in New York City and shelter evictions for asylum seekers and other new arrivals are well and truly underway. After 30 days, single adults are expected to pack up their few precious things and get going…

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With beds scarce and winter bearing down, a tent camp grows outside NYC’s largest migrant shelter

The Coalition for the Homeless has launched a new ad campaign showing the tent cities that may soon appear in New York City public spaces if Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul succeed in gutting the legal Right to Shelter…

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New Ad Narrated by Richard Gere Warns of Tent Cities in New York City if Right to Shelter Dismantled

The NY SANE coalition, representing hundreds of housing and tenant organizations, labor unions, faith groups, advocates, service providers, and other organizations throughout New York State – today joined in action to hold two major rallies in New York City and Albany in support of the legal Right to Shelter.

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NY SANE, Coalition for the Homeless, The Legal Aid Society, Win, Housing Justice for All, Host Rallies in NYC and Albany to Save Legal Right to Shelter

Behind Acts of Violence, Years of Mistakes” (front page, Nov. 21) effectively underscores the decades of neglect, underfunding and mismanagement that have made New York’s mental health system such a resounding failure for so many people in our city…

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Helping Homeless People Who Are Mentally Ill