Housing and Homelessness Crisis in Chatham County, NC

As Chatham County grows, rising housing costs have made it harder for many residents to find and keep a home they can afford. In response, community partners came together to form the Chatham Housing Collective (CHC) in 2022 – a collaborative network focused on ensuring families have access to both immediate housing support and long-term solutions. 

Facilitated by United Way of Chatham County, the Collective brings together nonprofits, county agencies, and other partners to coordinate services, share data, and strengthen the community’s housing response. Through this collaboration, organizations are building stronger connections, improving referrals, and helping more residents move from instability to stability. 

As migration into Chatham County increased, so did housing costs, and our community had to rise to meet new challenges. The Chatham Housing Collective was formed in 2022, and the Chatham County Government formally adopted an Affordable Housing Plan in 2023. 

The CHC measures impact not in terms of agency level outputs, but instead in terms of community-level outcomes that focus on a specific change for a targeted group of people. The CHC has defined Chatham’s community-level outcomes as follows:

• Households experiencing homelessness increase their access to case management services.
• Households who are unsheltered find safe, temporary shelter.
• Homeless service providers coordinate services and housing for households in need.
• The number of available units for those experiencing a housing crisis increases.
• The Chatham Housing Collective has the diverse resources needed to accomplish community improvements in housing/homeless services.