Dismantling the Foster Care to Homelessness Pipeline in Austin
Learn about the ten bold steps the Austin community is taking to ensure every youth aging out of foster care has a safe and stable place to call home. This report reveals key strategies for leveraging Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) vouchers, local resources, and community partnerships to dismantle the foster care to homelessness pipeline.
This report was developed by the City of Austin Homeless Strategies & Operations and LifeWorks, in partnership with Travis County, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, community representatives, philanthropic partners, affordable housing developers, public housing authorities, advocacy organizations, and researchers, with support from HR&A Advisors and Good River Partners.
about the report
key takeawaysAs of August 2025, over half of the 1,171 young people experiencing homelessness in Austin have touched the child welfare system.
Federal Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) vouchers, which provide three years of housing assistance for former foster youth, provide a critical resource to support these young people’s housing needs.
Austin is creating a more streamlined and youth-friendly system to build more pathways to long-term housing stability, including leveraging FYI vouchers to prevent youth homelessness as well as to house youth actively experiencing homelessness.
A regional strategy bringing together public and private partners is needed to expand funding for supportive services so our community can unlock more FYI vouchers.
“The FYI program is a critical homelessness intervention and prevention strategy for foster youth. Having more service dollars means we can bring more of these vouchers online and house more youth, ideally before they ever have to experience homelessness.”