Every question HEAT asks
Public beta in development. Not for production decision making.
Published so anyone, including practitioners, researchers, and people who have lived this, can review the questions themselves: the wording, the choices, and what is deliberately not asked. Instrument version 0.25.0-pilot (placeholder wording, before cognitive testing).
How answers are used: every determination on a result page explains itself, answer by answer; the Evidence Register states why each question exists; and prioritization always belongs to your CoC's written policy, never to HEAT.
Every question accepts “I do not know” and “I prefer not to answer,” with no penalty. HEAT never asks for diagnoses, criminal history details, or anything self-incriminating, and collects no names or identifying information.
See something confusing, missing, or wrong? Use the Feedback button, bottom left. That is exactly what this page is for.
Not everyone answers all of them. 23 questions are asked of everyone; the rest are grouped, and each group below says who is asked it and why. The most anyone is ever asked is 36.
Questions everyone gets 24 questions
Everyone is asked these, in the order they appear here, with one exception noted on the question itself: 23 of the 24 are asked of every single person. Safety comes first, then whether there is somewhere safe you could stay tonight, then who you are and who is with you, then where you stayed last night and how long this has been going on, and finally what has worked before and what would help. Four of these questions are worded differently for someone who has a place tonight, in the past tense, because wording written for a current street or shelter period describes a situation they are not in; both wordings are printed below. The answers in this group are what decide whether any of the groups below get asked at all.
Are you in danger right now, or is someone hurting or threatening you?
When answering for someone not present: “Is the person in danger right now, or is someone hurting or threatening them?”
Do you have a medical emergency right now? This means something that needs care within minutes.
For example trouble breathing, chest pain, heavy bleeding, or an injury that cannot wait. This means an emergency at this moment. It does not mean a health problem you want care for in general.
When answering for someone not present: “Do they have a medical emergency right now? This means something that needs care within minutes.”
For example trouble breathing, chest pain, heavy bleeding, or an injury that cannot wait. This means an emergency at this moment. It does not mean a health problem they want care for in general.
Is someone hurting you, scaring you, or making you do things you do not want to do?
This includes violence from a partner, a family member, or anyone you stay with, no matter where you are staying. It also includes threats, or being forced or tricked into anything. You never have to give details.
When answering for someone not present: “Is someone hurting them, scaring them, or making them do things they do not want to do?”
This includes violence from a partner, a family member, or anyone they stay with, no matter where they are staying. It also includes threats, or being forced or tricked into anything. They never have to give details.
Is there someone you could safely stay with tonight, if you could get there?
The assessor can help figure out what it would take, like a ride or a phone call. This never closes any other option.
When nobody is helping: Getting there can be part of the help, like a ride or a phone call. This never closes any other option.
When answering for someone not present: “Is there someone they could safely stay with tonight, if they could get there?”
About you: which age group are you in?
This asks about the age of the person this assessment is about. The questions after this one count everyone else in the household, including children.
When answering for someone not present: “About them: which age group are they in?”
How many adults, including you, are in your household right now?
Adults means anyone 18 or older. Count grown children who are staying with you, and anyone else 18 or older who would move with you.
When answering for someone not present: “How many adults, including them, are in their household right now?”
Adults means anyone 18 or older. Count grown children who are staying with them, and anyone else 18 or older who would move with them.
When the person is under 18: “How many adults are in your household right now?”
When answering for someone under 18 who is not present: “How many adults are in their household right now?”
Adults means anyone 18 or older, so you are not counted here. Count anyone 18 or older who is with you now or who would move with you. If you are on your own, 0 is the right answer.
Adults means anyone 18 or older, so they are not counted here. Count anyone 18 or older who is with them now or who would move with them. If they are on their own, 0 is the right answer.
Under 18, the smallest answer allowed is 0.
How many children under 18 will live with you once you have housing?
Count children who are staying with family, friends, or in foster care right now. Count them if they would come back to live with you when you have a place.
When answering for someone not present: “How many children under 18 will live with them once they have housing?”
Count children who are staying with family, friends, or in foster care right now. Count them if they would come back to live with them when they have a place.
Count children who are staying with family, friends, or in foster care right now. Count them if they would come back to live with you when you have a place. Some people under 18 are parents. If you are, enter your children here. If you are not, enter 0. Both are ordinary answers, and neither changes anything about your result.
Count children who are staying with family, friends, or in foster care right now. Count them if they would come back to live with them when they have a place. Some people under 18 are parents. If they are, enter their children here. If they are not, enter 0. Both are ordinary answers, and neither changes anything about their result.
Do you have children under 18 who are not staying with you right now?
Count every child under 18 who is not staying with you right now. That means children who would come back to live with you once you have housing, and children who would not. It is asked only so help with family connection can be offered if you want it. It is never required, and it never affects who gets housing first.
When answering for someone not present: “Do they have children under 18 who are not staying with them right now?”
Count every child under 18 who is not staying with them right now. That means children who would come back to live with them once they have housing, and children who would not. It is asked only so help with family connection can be offered if they want it. It is never required, and it never affects who gets housing first.
Where did you stay last night?
Last night, not tonight. Programs write down where a person really stayed the night before. It is also easier to answer about something that already happened. A place not meant for people to live in means a car, a van, a shed, or a garage. It also means a storage unit, an abandoned building, a park, or a bus or train station.
When answering for someone not present: “Where did they stay last night?”
Where were you staying just before this time without housing began?
That means the place you lost or left right before staying where you are now. An earlier shelter or street stay can be the right answer here. A time without housing can end and start again after a break. Where you were just before this one began is what the next plan is built on.
When answering for someone not present: “Where were they staying just before this time without housing began?”
That means the place they lost or left right before staying where they are now. An earlier shelter or street stay can be the right answer here. A time without housing can end and start again after a break. Where they were just before this one began is what the next plan is built on.
When the person has a place tonight (staying with family or friends, or in their own housing): “Where were you staying just before you came to where you are staying now?”
When answering for someone who has a place tonight and is not present: “Where were they staying just before they came to where they are staying now?”
That means the place you left right before this one, however long ago that was. A shelter, a car, or a place of your own that you lost can all be the right answer here. It helps plan your next steps and your support. Naming a shelter or the street here is never counted as time without housing.
That means the place they left right before this one, however long ago that was. A shelter, a car, or a place of their own that they lost can all be the right answer here. It helps plan their next steps and their support. Naming a shelter or the street here is never counted as time without housing.
About how many months has it been since you had a permanent place to stay?
Permanent means a place you could stay as long as you wanted, with or without your name on a lease. Any settled place counts, even if it was not your own. If you have never had a permanent place, choose “I do not know” and tell the assessor.
When nobody is helping: Permanent means a place you could stay as long as you wanted, with or without your name on a lease. Any settled place counts, even if it was not your own. If you have never had a permanent place, choose “I do not know”.
When answering for someone not present: “About how many months has it been since they had a permanent place to stay?”
Permanent means a place they could stay as long as they wanted, with or without their name on a lease. Any settled place counts, even if it was not their own. If they have never had a permanent place, choose “I do not know”.
About when did you start staying outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in? This means the time you are in now.
An estimate is fine. Short stays housed (under 7 nights) or in a facility (under 90 days) do not restart this period. A place not meant for people to live in means a car, a van, a shed, or a garage. It also means a storage unit, an abandoned building, a park, or a bus or train station.
When answering for someone not present: “About when did they start staying outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in? This means the time they are in now.”
When the person has a place tonight (staying with family or friends, or in their own housing): “Think back to the most recent time. About when did you start staying outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in?”
When answering for someone who has a place tonight and is not present: “Think back to the most recent time. About when did they start staying outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in?”
An estimate is fine. This is about the most recent of those times, not the first one. Short stays housed (under 7 nights) or in a facility (under 90 days) did not start a new period. A place not meant for people to live in means a car, a van, a shed, or a garage. It also means a storage unit, an abandoned building, a park, or a bus or train station. The chronic homelessness rule reads where someone is staying now. So this answer is history for the plan, not part of that math.
Not asked of everyone: someone who stayed with family or friends, or in their own housing, last night and reports no time on the streets or in a shelter in the past three years is not asked this at all. There is no such period to date, and a question that cannot apply is skipped rather than answered with a guess. Skipped counts as not asked, never as a missing answer.
Think about the past three years. How many separate times have you stayed outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in? Count now as one of them.
Time staying with family or friends does not count here. Two times count as separate when 7 or more nights housed came between them. A place not meant for people to live in means a car, a van, a shed, or a garage. It also means a storage unit, an abandoned building, a park, or a bus or train station.
When answering for someone not present: “Think about the past three years. How many separate times have they stayed outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in? Count now as one of them.”
When the person has a place tonight (staying with family or friends, or in their own housing): “Think about the past three years. How many separate times did you stay outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in, if any? 0 is an ordinary answer.”
When answering for someone who has a place tonight and is not present: “Think about the past three years. How many separate times did they stay outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in, if any? 0 is an ordinary answer.”
Where you are staying now does not count. Time staying with family or friends, or in your own place, is not counted here. Two times count as separate when 7 or more nights housed came between them. A place not meant for people to live in means a car, a van, a shed, or a garage. It also means a storage unit, an abandoned building, a park, or a bus or train station.
Where they are staying now does not count. Time staying with family or friends, or in their own place, is not counted here. Two times count as separate when 7 or more nights housed came between them. A place not meant for people to live in means a car, a van, a shed, or a garage. It also means a storage unit, an abandoned building, a park, or a bus or train station.
Think about the past three years. About how many months in all have you stayed outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in?
The three time questions do overlap, and each one is needed. HUD's rule for chronic homelessness (24 CFR 578.3) is math over three things: when this period started, how many separate times there have been, and how many months they add up to. Part of a month counts as a whole month. Time staying with family or friends does not count here. A place not meant for people to live in means a car, a van, a shed, or a garage. It also means a storage unit, an abandoned building, a park, or a bus or train station.
When answering for someone not present: “Think about the past three years. About how many months in all have they stayed outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in?”
When the person has a place tonight (staying with family or friends, or in their own housing): “Think about the past three years. About how many months in all did you stay outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in? 0 is an ordinary answer.”
When answering for someone who has a place tonight and is not present: “Think about the past three years. About how many months in all did they stay outside, in an emergency shelter, or in a place not meant for people to live in? 0 is an ordinary answer.”
These questions overlap, and each one is needed. HUD's rule for chronic homelessness (24 CFR 578.3) is math over how many separate times there have been, and how many months they add up to. Part of a month counts as a whole month. Time staying with family or friends, or in your own place, does not count here. A place not meant for people to live in means a car, a van, a shed, or a garage. It also means a storage unit, an abandoned building, a park, or a bus or train station.
These questions overlap, and each one is needed. HUD's rule for chronic homelessness (24 CFR 578.3) is math over how many separate times there have been, and how many months they add up to. Part of a month counts as a whole month. Time staying with family or friends, or in their own place, does not count here. A place not meant for people to live in means a car, a van, a shed, or a garage. It also means a storage unit, an abandoned building, a park, or a bus or train station.
Do you have any money coming in each month?
Any way at all counts: aid, a job, recycling cans, family, or people helping you out.
When answering for someone not present: “Do they have any money coming in each month?”
Any way at all counts: aid, a job, recycling cans, family, or people helping them out.
Have you ever had a place to stay that was stable for six months or longer?
Any place counts, even if it was not your own. This is about what has worked, not what went wrong. It helps plan support and never affects priority.
When answering for someone not present: “Have they ever had a place to stay that was stable for six months or longer?”
Any place counts, even if it was not their own. This is about what has worked, not what went wrong. It helps plan support and never affects priority.
Say you had housing tomorrow. Would you need regular help from another person to keep it?
Help with anything at all counts. That could be money and bills, medicine, appointments, cleaning, or anything else.
When answering for someone not present: “Say they had housing tomorrow. Would they need regular help from another person to keep it?”
In the past 12 months, about how many times have you been to an emergency room?
Any reason counts. An estimate is fine.
When answering for someone not present: “In the past 12 months, about how many times have they been to an emergency room?”
Have you ever needed medical care because you could not get warm? Frostbite or hypothermia would count.
Cold injuries are one of the strongest warning signs that being without housing is a danger to a person's life. Answering helps match the right level of support. If you prefer not to answer, choose “I prefer not to answer.”
When answering for someone not present: “Have they ever needed medical care because they could not get warm? Frostbite or hypothermia would count.”
Cold injuries are one of the strongest warning signs that being without housing is a danger to a person's life. Answering helps match the right level of support. It is always fine to choose “I do not know” or “I prefer not to answer.”
Have you ever needed medical care because you could not get out of the heat? Heat stroke, heat exhaustion, or dehydration would count.
Heat illness, like cold injury, is a strong warning sign that being without housing is a danger to a person's life. Answering helps match the right level of support. If you prefer not to answer, choose “I prefer not to answer.”
When answering for someone not present: “Have they ever needed medical care because they could not get out of the heat? Heat stroke, heat exhaustion, or dehydration would count.”
Heat illness, like cold injury, is a strong warning sign that being without housing is a danger to a person's life. Answering helps match the right level of support. It is always fine to choose “I do not know” or “I prefer not to answer.”
In the past 12 months, did you overdose? Or did anyone use Narcan on you, or dial 911 because of your drinking or drug use?
This is only about getting the right support. It never blocks any housing option, and treatment is never required. If you prefer not to answer, choose “I prefer not to answer.”
When answering for someone not present: “In the past 12 months, did they overdose? Or did anyone use Narcan on them, or dial 911 because of their drinking or drug use?”
This is only about getting the right support. It never blocks any housing option, and treatment is never required. It is always fine to choose “I do not know” or “I prefer not to answer.”
In the past 12 months, have you tried to end your life?
If any of this is close to you right now, you can dial or text 988 any hour to reach someone who will listen. Your answer helps match support and never counts against you. If you prefer not to answer, choose “I prefer not to answer.”
When answering for someone not present: “In the past 12 months, have they tried to end their life, as far as you know?”
If any of this is close to them right now, they can dial or text 988 any hour to reach someone who will listen. Their answer helps match support and never counts against them. It is always fine to choose “I do not know” or “I prefer not to answer.”
Do you have your ID or identity documents with you, or could you get them within a few days?
ID means things like a state ID or driver license, birth certificate, or Social Security card. If getting them would take money, travel, or ordering records from far away, answer no. Help recovering documents can be offered; it is never required.
When answering for someone not present: “Do they have their ID or identity documents with them, or could they get them within a few days?”
Do you have any pets or other animals that stay with you?
One or more, any kind. Pets never affect your place in line or any result here. Knowing helps find housing that works for you and your animals.
When answering for someone not present: “Do they have any pets or other animals that stay with them?”
One or more, any kind. Pets never affect their place in line or any result here. Knowing helps find housing that works for them and their animals.
About your pets 1 question
Asked only when the core question about a pet or animal that stays with you was answered yes. A pet changes which options actually work, because many programs and shelters cannot take animals and people turn down help rather than give up a pet. Asking it here means help getting a support-animal letter is offered only where it would be useful, and the answer changes no determination.
Do you have a letter for your animals?
It can be a letter for a service animal, or one for an emotional support animal. If not, help getting a letter can be offered. It is never required, and there is no wrong answer. A service animal is trained to do a specific task. An emotional support animal does not have to be trained. Any licensed health professional who treats you can write that letter. Tell the assessor what kind of animals you have, and how many. That helps with the housing search.
When nobody is helping: It can be a letter for a service animal, or one for an emotional support animal. If not, help getting a letter can be offered. It is never required, and there is no wrong answer. A service animal is trained to do a specific task. An emotional support animal does not have to be trained. Any licensed health professional who treats you can write that letter. It is worth saying what kind of animals you have, and how many, at the housing help office. That helps with the search.
When answering for someone not present: “Do they have a letter for their animals?”
It can be a letter for a service animal, or one for an emotional support animal. If not, help getting a letter can be offered. It is never required, and there is no wrong answer. A service animal is trained to do a specific task. An emotional support animal does not have to be trained. Any licensed health professional who treats them can write that letter. Noting what kind of animals they have, and how many, helps with the housing search.
Adult context 2 questions
Asked of adults only. Anyone who gives their age as under 18 skips both of these, on military service and on an eviction case in court, because neither one applies to them. HUD's own coordinated entry guidance uses this exact skip as its worked example. A question that is skipped counts as not asked, never as a no, so no one loses a veteran pathway by not being asked about it.
Have you, or anyone in your household, ever been in the United States military? Going to boot camp or basic training counts too.
When answering for someone not present: “Have they, or anyone in their household, ever been in the United States military? Going to boot camp or basic training counts too.”
Is there an eviction case against you in court right now?
When answering for someone not present: “Is there an eviction case against them in court right now?”
Chronicity documentation 1 question
Asked only when the housing-history answers already point to a long or repeated time without housing: twelve months or more in the past three years, four or more separate times in those three years, or twelve months or more since the last permanent place. In that situation one more fact decides what paperwork a community has to gather, and the question is yes or no only. It never asks what the condition is.
Do you have a condition that is expected to be long-lasting and makes it harder to live on your own? You do not need to say what it is.
When answering for someone not present: “Do they have a condition that is expected to be long-lasting and makes it harder to live on their own? There is no need to say what it is.”
About the facility stay 3 questions
Asked only of people who answered that last night was spent in a hospital, jail, or treatment facility. How long the stay has run, where the person was staying just before it, and whether they expect to leave within days all change what has to be arranged before the discharge date, so that nobody leaves a facility to the street.
How long have you been in the facility so far?
When answering for someone not present: “How long have they been in the facility so far?”
Just before you went in, were you staying outside or in an emergency shelter? A place not meant for people to live in counts too.
A place not meant for people to live in means a car, a van, a shed, or a garage. It also means a storage unit, an abandoned building, a park, or a bus or train station.
When answering for someone not present: “Just before they went in, were they staying outside or in an emergency shelter? A place not meant for people to live in counts too.”
Do you expect to leave this facility within the next few days?
If leaving is close, planning starts now, before discharge, so nobody leaves to the street.
When answering for someone not present: “Are they expected to leave the facility within the next few days?”
Support preferences 2 questions
Asked only of people who answered yes to the core question about someone hurting them, scaring them, or making them do things they do not want to do. Both questions are about what the person wants rather than about eligibility: whether help leaving is wanted, and whether working with an advocate would feel better. Every housing option stays open either way, and either answer can be changed later.
Do you want help leaving this situation?
There is no wrong answer and nothing is required. Housing help continues either way.
When answering for someone not present: “Do they want help leaving this situation?”
Would you rather work with an advocate? An advocate helps people who are leaving an unsafe situation.
This choice closes no doors: every housing option in the process stays open either way. It only changes who helps, and you can change your mind at any time.
When answering for someone not present: “Would they rather work with an advocate? An advocate helps people who are leaving an unsafe situation.”
This choice closes no doors: every housing option in the process stays open either way. It only changes who helps, and they can change their mind at any time.
What worked before 2 questions
Asked only of people who answered yes to the core question about ever having had a stable place for six months or longer. If something worked once, naming it, and roughly when it was, gives the next plan somewhere to start. Anyone without that experience is never asked to produce one, and neither answer changes any determination: both are printed on the result for the people doing the planning. The question about when that stable time was exists so “ever” can stay open to everyone: a stable place in childhood still counts, and a worker can see which kind of stability the plan is being built on.
Looking back, what made it possible for you to stay housed?
Pick the biggest one. There are no wrong answers.
When answering for someone not present: “Looking back, what made it possible for them to stay housed?”
About when was that stable place, and were you an adult then?
An estimate is fine. It is asked so the next plan can build on what actually worked, and no answer here changes any result.
When answering for someone not present: “About when was that stable place, and were they an adult then?”
About the place you are staying 1 question
Asked only of people who still have a place tonight: staying with family or friends, in their own housing, or somewhere else they described. The one question is whether that place is about to end within two weeks, which is what opens a prevention and diversion conversation rather than a shelter one. People who answered that they stayed outside, in a shelter, or in a facility are not asked it.
Are you about to lose the place you are staying within the next two weeks?
When answering for someone not present: “Are they about to lose the place they are staying within the next two weeks?”
What kind of help 1 question
Asked only of people who answered yes to the core question about needing regular help from another person to keep housing, and asked directly after it. It is the one question in the assessment where more than one answer can be chosen, because more than one kind of help is usually the truth. Nothing here is scored: no rule reads it, no result moves, and it is not a disability assessment. It exists so the list of what would actually help reaches the person doing the planning instead of being reconstructed later from a yes.
What kinds of help would make it easier to keep housing? Choose as many as fit.
Nothing here is scored and nothing on this list is required. It is a starting point for a conversation about support, and any of it can change later.
When answering for someone not present: “What kinds of help would make it easier for them to keep housing? Choose as many as fit.”