These services can be very beneficial for people who are recovering from addiction or other mental health issues. For example, individual and group counseling can help people to understand their addiction and develop coping mechanisms to stay sober. The history of halfway houses can be traced back to the 18th century in England, where they initially served as facilities for children arrested for petty crimes. In the United States, the concept of transitional housing and assistance for individuals in need began in the 19th century, primarily halfway house targeting the homeless and impoverished populations.

What Are Halfway Houses Used For?

The halfway house residents must comply with the program’s rules and standards, be part of the treatment programs, seek out job and educational opportunities, and achieve their personal goals as part of the program’s functions. In general, day-to-day life in a halfway alcohol rehab house is marked by structure, support, and personal responsibility. It targets recovery and a healthy lifestyle rather than a strict rehabilitation process.

Your Addiction Doesn’t Have To Define Who You Are.

This means that you’ve already completed detoxing from whatever your addiction was and are now in the early stages of sobriety. The purpose of a halfway house is to provide transitional housing for people who need it most. The focus was to separate the user from their previous substance-abusing environment so that they could recover in a sober, supportive environment. In the late 1990s, the estimated cost of constructing a new cell was approximately $100,000. Once occupied, a cell was in the range of $20,000 to $25,000 annually to operate. At that time, residential beds in the community for individuals exiting prison were, on average, about $12,000 annually.

Family and Children’s Programs

Some transitional housing facilities accept credit card payments or offer in-house financing. In Canada, halfway houses are often called Community-Based Residential Facilities.8 The Correctional Service of Canada definition of a halfway house is similar to the general American definition of one. Halfway houses have a maximum residency of 12 months, which is different from the time limit for sober homes. If you meet these criteria, you may be eligible to live in a halfway house. Tough days might come, but with our supportive sober community, you’re never alone.

• Most houses encourage a minimum stay of at least two to three months and may have a maximum stay between six months to one year to promote progress.
• By the 1980s, independent of the early (pre-parole) release or postrelease (parole) function of the halfway house, they remained community-based residential programs that provided structure and services to offenders.
• Recovery houses offer more independence, catering to those ready to take on more personal responsibility.

My Loved One Needs Help

• The key purposes of halfway houses are to help people remain sober, develop the required living skills, find stable accommodation and jobs, and ultimately get back into society as productive members.
• Even basic statistics, such as the number of halfway houses in the country or the number of people living in them, are difficult to impossible to find.
• Instead, they serve as a safe, drug-free environment where recovering addicts can continue to work on their early sobriety.
• In contrast, they are involved in attending activities or counseling sessions.
• These developments might have been expected to be the death knell for the halfway house movement.
• People who have detoxed and spent some time sober are most likely to succeed in this environment.

Once an individual has been deemed ready to leave the hallway house, it is time to reintegrate fully back into the community and live independently. At Ocean Recovery, we ensure that those in our programs have access to follow-up services or aftercare to help maintain sobriety and stay strong in recovery once they leave sober living homes. The cost varies by the type of sober-living environment and length of stay. Some sober-living homes have a base rate with additional costs for added services.