Rachel Mulbry and Vincent Reina, PHLHousing+ Pilot
PHLHousing+ is a five-year randomized controlled trial run by the Philadelphia Housing Development Corporation (PHDC) and the University of Pennsylvania testing direct cash assistance as an alternative to Housing Choice Vouchers for very low-income households with children in Philadelphia. The pilot was motivated by evidence that landlord rejection rates for voucher holders exceeded 80% in higher-income Philadelphia neighborhoods, effectively making the voucher inaccessible for many families who needed it most. Rachel Mulbry (PHDC) and Vincent Reina (Housing Initiative at UPenn) presented early findings from the trial, which compares outcomes for households receiving monthly cash, those offered a voucher, and a control group still on the PHA waitlist — with results strongly favoring cash on access, housing stability, and housing quality.
