- New Jersey says its Bringing Veterans Home initiative has permanently housed more than 2,500 veterans since launching in November 2024, and the state now moves more veterans into housing each month than into homelessness.
- The program runs on more than $30 million in combined state and federal funding, coordinated through six regional hubs that aim to contact any referred veteran within 24 hours and house them within 30 days.
- Governor Mikie Sherrill’s office says the results position New Jersey as a model other states could follow on veteran homelessness.
New Jersey says it has effectively ended veteran homelessness statewide, permanently housing more than 2,500 former service members since a single initiative launched in November 2024.
Governor Mikie Sherrill announced that New Jersey has reached what officials call “functional zero” on veteran homelessness – meaning the state now has enough housing capacity and support in place that any veteran who loses housing can be moved into a stable home faster than new cases occur.
“I am incredibly honored to announce that, because of the quick and effective response of our Bringing Veterans Home initiative, every veteran in New Jersey can now access stable housing,” Sherrill said. “No veteran in our state should endure the hardship of homelessness.”
The Bringing Veterans Home initiative launched in November 2024 with more than $30 million in combined state and federal funding. Since then, the state’s Department of Community Affairs says it has permanently housed more than 2,500 veterans, and New Jersey now moves more veterans into housing each month than into homelessness.
Six regional hubs, each run by a local social services organization selected through a competitive process, coordinate the effort alongside the Department of Veteran Affairs, federal agencies and veterans service organizations – the first time those groups have formally partnered with the state on the issue.
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The program aims to contact any referred veteran within 24 hours, with a goal of placing them in stable housing within 30 days, using resources including federal housing vouchers, rapid rehousing funds and emergency shelter.
“The phrase ‘homeless veteran’ should not be a thing,” said state Senator Raj Mukherji, chairman of the Senate Military and Veterans’ Affairs Committee. “Those who served our nation in uniform deserve, at a minimum, to never go without a roof over their heads.”
Rosanne Haggerty, president and CEO of the national nonprofit Community Solutions, said the approach – sustained funding paired with shared data and accountability – is one other states could replicate.
“New Jersey veterans get fast, effective help in exiting homelessness, with few returning,” Haggerty said. “This disciplined, outcomes-focused approach is the way to make veteran homelessness rare and brief across the country.”
Veterans can refer themselves through the Bringing Veterans Home website, by calling NJ Vet2Vet or NJ 211, or by visiting an affiliated housing provider.
“This achievement shows what’s possible with coordinated commitment and provides a framework we can replicate for other vulnerable populations in New Jersey,” said Tina McGill, director of the Department of Community Affairs’ Office of Homelessness Prevention.
