The Homeless Problem in Dallas is a REAL Real Estate Problem

City Council members B. Adam McGough, Jennifer Staubach Gates, and Lee Kleinman organized this meeting on attacking homelessness in Dallas at Churchill Recreation Center in North Dallas Monday night

We have showcased the generosity of one of the city’s most progressive and elite real estate networking groups, the Pacesetters, and how they have made a commitment to eradicate homelessness in Dallas. 35 dynamic top-producing agents from a myriad of brokerages created a selective networking group back in 2003. It is by invitation only, and very difficult to break into: top selling innovative agents need only apply.

An innovative, tech-minded group with an eye on the future of real estate, The Pacesetters approach marketing real estate from a fresh, modern perspective — not always continuing what’s been done in the past. And yeah, you should hire them to sell your homes.

Now they are trying to shake up the problem of homelessness in Dallas one step at a time, by making a contribution to the wonderful work being done at Incarnation House, a highly successful “drop-in home” for homeless students at North Dallas High School.

But there is more to be done in Dallas on the homeless issue. In fact, experts on this problem will tell you that there is a very real danger that we are raising a second generation of homeless in our town. While the homeless issue impacts all areas of Dallas, downtown seems to be hit the hardest: The Cedars, Deep Ellum, and the West End. All areas where developers are grabbing and building as fast as they can.

Tanya Ragan and the “drop-in” kids

North Dallas Community Meeting on Homelessness

I have been skimming the surface of homelessness in Dallas for several reasons. One is highly personal, because I know first hand how one tragic event, a split second decision, can potentially render someone without support systems and homeless.

In fact, the fastest-growing population of the homeless is single women with children.

The other is real estate interests.

The homeless problem affects real estate in a huge way. Developers can build the snazziest apartment buildings, hire the world’s top architects for a statement condominium, but buyers are not going to pay $3 a square foot for rent when they are hassled by the homeless every night on their way home.

In fact, at one of the meetings I attended earlier this summer at Dallas City Hall, a complaint made by a downtown resident in the Q&A session was that the homeless were negatively affecting his life: it’s not fair, he said, that the homeless are concentrated in downtown Dallas, where he lives. The Cedars, for example, is well known for vomit and human feces found on sidewalks, making it difficult to sell homes.

Homelessness is a complex, layered problem, and there are as many solutions as there are experts. (And we do not want to emulate San Francisco.) But it will take money to solve, funds that are hard to come by at City Hall right now where so many have their hands out. For almost certain, DPD will increase officer’s salaries.  DISD wants more.

Last May, one week after closing Tent City, Mayor Mike Rawlings created the Dallas Commission on Homelessness, a commission whose goal is to examine the problem of homelessness in Dallas and find solutions, short, interim and long term. Tanya Ragan, president of Wildcat Management, was appointed by Dallas City Councilman Scott Griggs to serve on the Commission (Griggs is also chair of the Housing Committee). Ragan was also chair of the community engagement committee that organized the public meetings.

• One third of the homeless in Tent City had been in housing and lost it
• There are vouchers to cover rent for homeless people, but not enough landlords who will take the vouchers.
• 50 to 60% of the homeless know they cannot keep their own homes
• There are 2500 shelter beds across the city
• 10,000 clients were seen by Parkland last year who were classified as homeless
• DISD estimates there are 3600 homeless children in the district
• There are 25 drop in centers at the high school level, 2 at middle school level, but they need immediate money to stay open.
• There is a huge need for transitional housing or families, as the shelter model does not work well for homeless teens or families
• Transitional housing can help shepherd teens through a high school education and possible job training.
• The fastest growing segment of homeless are single mothers

Monday evening, about 75 people showed up at Churchill Recreation Center (thanks to the City Council members above) on a hot night to learn more about the homelessness problem in Dallas.

“The turnout was pretty impressive,” says Tanya. “And I didn’t even hear NIMBY!”

Instead, she heard people say this is a city-wide issue, one that would require money and the commitment of the entire city to solve. It was pretty much the same as what she heard in at the Lakewood area meeting, where 100 showed up. In fact, at every well-attended meeting, the commission tracked where people came from: all 14 council districts and a couple from Flower Mound and McKinney.

The top concern for most is panhandling and encampment, questions like ‘what do I do when they come to my church’. But one attendee said outright: poverty isn’t just an isolated problem of the poor, it affects all of us.

Today at noon, the Commission met at 1800 North Lamar to finalize recommendations they will bring to the Dallas City Council Wednesday (tomorrow) morning, an update on what has been done over the past eight weeks.

And they did something a little unconventional: they brought in six teenagers to talk, kiddos benefitting from drop-in centers like Incarnation House, these kids the true victims of homelessness.

“It’s pretty hard to say no to those faces,” says Tanya.

“Real Estate groups need to be part of the solution,” says Tanya, “to help place people throughout the city. We have more vouchers than we can place.”