Nashville’s program to reduce housing barriers has made some gains. Here’s why it’s not a clear win.

Nashville’s low barrier housing collective program is all about creating more access for people experiencing homelessness.

Since last year, landlords have agreed to overlook criminal background, employment history and the income requirement for three times the rent.

The collective has 7,048 units available in its portfolio as of the morning of Oct. 3. City employees say some landlords and property owners still need to specify how many units they have.

In February of this year, Metro said it had 2,045 units. But the jump in the city’s portfolio isn’t a clear win of getting people into homes.

Think of it as a landlord saying, “Hey, I have 300 units. When something becomes available, we’re willing to consider you.” This means you’re competing against every other renter applying.

“Doesn’t mean that they were vacant,” says April Calvin, the interim director of the homeless impact division. “Just meant that that was in their portfolio total. That was in their portfolio for units that they were willing to reduce barriers for.”

The city is currently working to get landlords to dedicate between 5-10% of their units to the program. Right now, the city doesn’t have data on how many of the units from this program are set aside for people experiencing homelessness.

Metro Council will vote on whether to spend $7 million on the program Tuesday night.