Shelters will offer budget aid to clients

Residents of city homeless shelters will soon be able to get financial counseling directly from their case workers to help them transition to better housing.

The Department of Homeless Services is launching a program called Financial Independence Now, which will train 471 shelter workers to help clients with everything from setting up low-cost or no-cost bank accounts to checking their credit scores.

The initiative is part of an effort to increase services for homeless New Yorkers at their shelters, Social Services Commissioner Steven Banks told The News.

“As New Yorkers experiencing homelessness get back on their feet, effective economic plans are a key, to remaining independently housed,” he said.

The city is partnering with the CUNY School of Professional Studies and the Financial Clinic to train the shelter in two-day sessions over the next three years.

This summer the city ran a pilot in six shelters, Banks said, where trained staff helped clients manage their finances.

“We saw the benefits of training front-line staff and managers to help clients,”Banks said, noting many in shelters work but cannot afford rent. “Homelessness now is really driven by that gap between rents and income.”