Homeless Management
Information System

Homelessness is not limited to any single county or city, and neither is our approach. The Los Angeles Continuum of Care, also referred to as the LACoC, is part of a larger collaborative composed of three Continuums of Care (CoC): Los Angeles, Glendale, and Pasadena. Coordinating efforts across broader regions allows for a more complete snapshot of the entire system at any given time.

Taking a regional approach offers a multitude of benefits for everyone involved, including:

• Seamless transfer of information for service providers operating in multiple continuums of care.
• Those experiencing homelessness can travel between CoCs and receive the services they need without delays due to loss of information.
• Enables the LACoC to analyze and adapt strategies to meet the needs of people experiencing homelessness.
• Provides Los Angeles County with a greater understanding of the current state of homelessness across the entire system.
• Improves communication between agencies across LA County, reducing delay in services and ensuring resources are provided to those with the greatest need.

New to HMIS? Watch this overview to see how the system works and how it supports your organization.

LAHSA provides set-up, training, and help desk support. We want to collect information from all homeless service providers throughout the LACoC. If you receive U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding, you are required to use HMIS. If you are not, we encourage you to participate whether you have or will ever receive government funding.

Increased participation in HMIS will help all of us gain an understanding of homelessness, evaluate programs, garner more funding, and strengthen our collective efforts to prevent and end homelessness.

Participating agencies collect and input standardized client-level and demographic data into the system. Services and target achievements are entered to capture client-level activities depending on the agency, program, or program type. The data is compiled into reports that allow us to understand the demographic, geographic, or cultural scope of homelessness and the needs.

The LACoC HMIS includes:

• Client demographic data collection
• Real-time data collection and reporting
• Comprehensive client case management
• Group activities management
• Employment, education, and housing history tracking
• Group case note management
• Savings tracking
• Information and referral capabilities
• Bed maintenance, tracking and assignment module
• Advanced security features
• Customized assessment capability
• Outcome management
• Customized reporting capability