Where this sits: Benefits › Programs › Housing Support. Related: General Assistance, MSA.
Ask first
Is the person on SSI or applying for it? Their income. Does the county have an approved Housing Support setting with an opening?
Also: are they 65 or older, blind or disabled, or do they have a condition that limits work?
What it pays for
Housing Support is a state-funded income supplement that pays for room and board, and sometimes supplementary services, for eligible people who live in an eligible group or community setting and work with an authorized Housing Support provider. It was called Group Residential Housing (GRH) until 2017-07-01; it was renamed because some people live in their own home with a lease. Its aim is to help people at risk of institutional placement or homelessness.
Rates from 2026-07-01: room and board up to $1,221 a month in group settings (adult foster care, boarding care, board and lodge, supervised living, assisted living and similar) and up to $1,271 in community settings (general and long-term homeless supportive housing). Counties may agree to a lower rate. Some settings add a supplementary service or difficulty-of-care rate of up to $494.91. Housing Support pays the rate minus the person's net income.
Who qualifies
One of:
- On SSI, or SSI-eligible except for income, and 65 or older, blind, or 18 or older and disabled;
- a verified condition that limits work, in a GA-type category: permanent or temporary illness, needing services where one lives, unemployable, a developmental disability or mental illness, a pending SSI or Social Security disability claim, advanced age, a learning disability, or drug or alcohol addiction;
- leaving residential behavioral health treatment without stable housing.
Assets: Social Security decides for SSI recipients; others follow GA's $10,000 limit.
How to get it
Apply through the county on the Combined Application Form (CAF, DHS-5223), or online at MNbenefits. The person also needs a place in a setting run by an authorized Housing Support provider. How placements are found and approved is not covered on this site yet; ask the county about placement.
How it fits with other programs
- GA: a GA recipient in Housing Support gets the personal needs allowance instead of the full GA grant.
- MSA: people in Housing Support get no MSA special needs payments other than representative payee services.
- SSI pending: Housing Support paid while SSI is pending is repaid from SSI back pay under the interim assistance authorization; it may be paid straight to the provider.
- Not Housing Stabilization Services (HSS): HSS was a separate, services-only Medical Assistance benefit. DHS ended it on 2025-10-31 after finding large-scale fraud. Housing Support continues.
Not covered here
Setting types and county agreements, supplementary services, the personal needs allowance amount, and Housing Support with disability waivers.