States’ housing assistance sites get a ‘human-centered’ makeover
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Based on feedback from homeless shelter residents, federal officials have worked to improve housing webpages for all 50 states over the past year. The site updates launched late last month.
Homelessness in the U.S. hit record numbers last year, according to recent federal data that shows more than 770,000 people were unhoused last January. The figure represents an 18% increase in homelessness from 2023 and comes amid rising housing and renting costs that continue to make affordable housing an “unattainable dream” for some.
To help people better find housing assistance to mitigate the risk of homelessness, the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department has worked to improve the usability and accessibility of states’ HUD webpages over the last year.
The site updates were made to all 50 states and the District of Columbia to make it easier for users to find and access housing resources, such as affordable housing services, homeownership support, housing counseling, disaster recovery assistance and other information, HUD officials said in a statement late last month.
HUD’s webpage transformation project comes as customer and user experience of federal, state and local governments’ digital services have become a growing priority, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic pushed governments to spruce up their online resources.
Improvements included consolidating more than 2,500 HUD webpages to 100 to streamline site navigation and reduce cognitive load for users, HUD officials said. Each page now features a “Need More Help” button, which enables people to submit a form to request additional assistance from HUD, and the sites were redesigned to be optimized for mobile browsing.
Human-centered and trauma-informed designs drove the updates to ensure the site interfaces were “warm and soothing,” HUD officials said. The webpages also include, for instance, content warnings and contact information to supportive services, including the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Helpline, National Domestic Violence Hotline and others.
To inform webpage redesigns, HUD conducted feedback sessions with people at the Salvation Army Center for Hope to better understand common obstacles and barriers to using housing assistance sites, said Helen Savoye Minor, acting web management officer for HUD, in an email to Route Fifty. Challenges included, for instance, difficulty finding information on how to contact local HUD offices, learn about tenant rights and seek homebuying assistance.
“[S]helter residents shared firsthand the barriers they faced navigating HUD’s previous webpages,” Minor said.
“By listening to users, including shelter residents, and working collaboratively across programs, we’ve created a more accessible and compassionate digital experience,” she added. “We will continue to refine these tools by monitoring site analytics and feedback to ensure they meet the needs of the people we serve.”
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