Housing Specialist I

Vincentian CARES•Fort Myers, FL

1d•$0 - $19

About The Position

The Housing Specialist I provides direct services to help eligible clients locate affordable, safe, and sanitary housing. The role develops and maintains relationships with property owners and housing managers, builds a list of landlords able to assist veterans, and helps expand affordable housing options for the Rapid Re-Housing program. The Housing Specialist assists families with finding and renting suitable housing, coordinates housing inspections, and maintains communication among the agency, landlords, and clients. The position also makes referrals, investigates tenant and owner complaints, completes follow-up visits, and maintains required client, legal, administrative, and statistical records, including records in HMIS. The Housing Specialist collaborates with other agencies and represents the agency at community functions, including public speaking and presentations when directed. The role requires a commitment to serving people with respect, compassion, and cooperation. The position requires a bachelor’s degree in social work or a related field and at least two years of experience serving homeless or at-risk families and/or individuals in crisis. Work may involve evenings, nights, weekends, holidays, and occasional hours outside the established schedule. The work environment may be noisy and may involve exposure to communicable disease or verbal abuse. Physical duties include prolonged computer work, standing, bending, reaching, lifting up to 20 pounds, walking, and some driving.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in social work or a related field; comparable training, education, or experience may be substituted if approved by the Chief Executive Officer before hire.
At least two years of experience serving homeless or at-risk families and/or individuals in crisis.
Able to speak, write, and understand English.
Basic computer skills; additional office software skills are required for current software.
Knowledge of business English, spelling, punctuation, office practices and procedures, and general math involving percentages, allocations, and discounts.
Strong oral and written communication and listening skills.
Ability to work with diverse racial, ethnic, and economic groups with cultural sensitivity and respect.
Ability to set appropriate limits, work under deadlines, multitask, organize and prioritize work, self-motivate, and deliver results.
Ability to work as a team member and establish effective working relationships with staff, supervisors, outside organizations, service providers, and professionals.
Commitment to empowering others to solve their own problems and to helping clients gain skills and confidence.
Ability to maintain an appropriate helping role and intervene appropriately to meet service goals.
Mission-driven attitude, integrity, passion, strong work ethic, and adherence to high ethical standards.
Openness to feedback and willingness to learn new skills to improve job performance.
Evidence of alignment with St. Vincent de Paul CARES’ mission and values.
Successfully pass the required Level 2 law enforcement background screening through the Florida Background Screening Clearinghouse.
Valid Florida driver’s license if driving an agency or personal vehicle for company business, and reliable transportation.
Flexible work schedule that may include evenings, nights, weekends, and holidays.
Ability to handle diverse work problems, resolve problems and conflict, make effective decisions under pressure, listen objectively, and assist in bringing issues to a successful conclusion.
Ability to relate and interact with volunteers, clients, contractors, visitors, and employees at all levels.

Responsibilities

Identify and engage landlords through a variety of methods to develop affordable housing stock for the Rapid Re-Housing program.
Assist eligible families in locating and renting suitable housing, prepare financing arrangements, and monitor owner and tenant compliance with standards.
Maintain communication and linkage among the agency, landlords, and clients.
Develop and maintain an updated database or listing of available housing stock for clients.
Coordinate and/or perform housing inspections.
Refer applicants to agencies and departments to resolve housing issues.
Investigate tenant and owner complaints and conduct follow-up visits.
Make appropriate referrals when client needs cannot be met.
Maintain required client, legal, administrative, and statistical records for the agency and program funders, including use of HMIS.
Collect all necessary documentation for client files.
Network and collaborate with other agencies and represent the agency at community functions, including public speaking and presentations as directed by the Program Manager.
Comply with applicable training requirements and company safety, personnel, and operational policies and procedures.
Comply with the work schedule to support effective agency operations.
Contribute positively as a cooperative team member and perform other duties as necessary or assigned.
Participate in the Agency Performance Quality Improvement program and the accreditation/reaccreditation process.
Serve all people with respect and compassion and cooperate with internal and external stakeholders.