Weak oversight and administrative lapses have marred a New York City program that is designed to prevent homelessness, provide subsidies for safe housing, and aid individuals faced with eviction, according to a performance audit by the Office of the New York State Comptroller. 

In a highlights section, the audit offers a number of solid reasons that the program, dubbed the “City Fighting Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement” (CityFHEPS) was started in a city with a very low vacancy rate and expanding need for housing assistance.

Since launching in October 2018 and through March 2025, it has helped 123,762 individuals find permanent housing, with cost growing from $176 million to $834 million between FY2019 and FY2024. In FY2025, projected costs were $1.2 billion.

Need continues to be acute. According to the Coalition for the Homeless, in June 2025, there were more than 105,000 individuals sleeping in homeless shelters; thousands unsheltered and 200,000 in other people’s homes.

“The intent certainly is laudable,” State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said about the program, which is overseen by the New York City Department of Social Services. “As often happens with laudable programs, the implementation becomes key.”

The audit cites many of those implementation issues. According to a press release from the Office of the New York State Comptroller, these include: 

Missing Documentation. “Nearly half of the case files reviewed were missing required proof of income or eligibility, undermining the integrity of the program’s qualification process.”

Weak oversight of Landlords. The audit found that some landlords who received rent payments were on the Public Advocate’s Worst Landlord Watchlist. It also criticized the NYC department for not implementing a system “to disqualify landlords with repeated building code violations or poor performance.”

Payment of above market rental rates. According to the press release, “In multiple cases, DSS approved rents above market rates by an average of $525 per month without documentation of required rent-reasonableness assessments.”

The audit, which follows another one that was issued about this program in October 2024, recommends more thorough documentation (a common audit concern), “pre-clearance inspections” of apartments before the approval of government subsidies, and the creation of a landlord disqualification list.

In its response to the audit, Department of Social Services was critical of what it saw as inaccuracies but also noted that the audit contained useful information and that some of the issues mentioned had already been dealt with or were planned. According to the Comptroller’s press release, “DSS said it has updated its case management systems to better track cases and plans to launch new teams focused on monitoring landlords and improving oversight of housing safety and conditions by mid-2026.”

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