Approximately 1,600 men, women, and children are homeless in Baltimore City on any given night. Lack of affordable housing, low incomes, and limited access to comprehensive services are primary causes of homelessness. Disabilities and chronic illnesses, including substance use disorders and mental illness, create additional challenges in resolving homelessness.

Our Mission

The mission of the Mayor’s Office of Homeless Services (MOHS) is to make homelessness rare, brief, and nonrecurring in Baltimore City through a trauma-informed, data-driven, and person-centered approach. Through strategic public-private partnerships, we will meet the immediate needs of our neighbors experiencing homelessness while creating a more efficient homeless response system in Baltimore City.

The Journey Home

The Journey Home, Baltimore City’s plan to make homelessness rare and brief, focuses on four major goal areas that address the root causes of homelessness: affordable housing, comprehensive health care, sufficient incomes, and preventive and emergency services.

The plan is overseen by the Continuum of Care (CoC), which is a coalition of service providers, funders, advocates, government agencies, and community stakeholders working together to make homelessness rare and brief. The CoC Board acts as a catalyst for strategic planning, collaborating with other systems of care, recruiting philanthropic support, allocating homeless services funds, and coordinating CoC activities and committees.

 More information about The Journey Home and CoC board activities can be found on the board's website. Interested community members are encouraged to become a member of the CoC, join a committee or workgroup, or attend public meetings. 

Full List of Ways to Get Involved 

The Mayor's Office of Homeless Services (MOHS) is the designated lead agency for the Continuum of Care and works to implement federal, state, and local policy and best practices in addition to administering and monitoring homeless services grants. MOHS administers approximately $48 million annually for programs that include street outreach, emergency shelter, transitional housing, rapid rehousing, permanent supportive housing, Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA), and meal programs. Each year, through a network of partner providers, we deliver housing and supportive services to over 25,000 individuals and families.