Miracle Money (Proof-of-Concept)
Miracle Money was a proof-of-concept guaranteed income pilot run by Miracle Messages, a San Francisco Bay Area nonprofit best known for reconnecting unhoused people with lost family and for its Miracle Friends phone-buddy program. From December 2020 to May 2021, 14 unhoused participants of the Miracle Friends program received $500 a month in direct cash transfers for six months, paired with continued phone-buddy social support. It was funded entirely through individual donors and online crowdfunding (roughly $50,000 raised via GoFundMe/social media). The pilot was one of the earliest guaranteed income programs in the US designed specifically for people experiencing homelessness and led to a much larger, philanthropically- and Google.org-funded follow-on RCT called "Miracle Money: California."
Unhoused-targeted, One of the first US guaranteed income pilots for people experiencing homelessness, Cash-plus social support, Phone buddy program, Proof-of-Concept
Headquarters
- Organization Name
- Miracle Messages
- City
- San Francisco
- State / Province
- California
- Country
- United States
Contact
- Phone
- +1 800-647-7968
- Social media links
Status & Funding
- Organization status
- Active
- Program status
- Inactive
- Application status
- Timed
- Number of recipients
- 14
- Funding type
- Philanthropic
Benefits
- Currency Type
- Fiat
- Currency
- USD
- Total Amount
- 3,000 USD
- Avg. Per Month
- 500 USD
- Payment frequency
- Monthly
- How long the program lasts
- 6 months
- Distribution Type
- Direct Deposit
- Benefit details
Recipients received $500 transferred directly into their bank accounts on the first of each month for six consecutive months (total $3,000 per participant), with no restrictions on use. 15 recipients were originally selected; one dropped out due to hospitalization and one lacked a bank account, leaving 14 who received funds and 13 who completed the full program. Participants also had to maintain their relationship with their matched Miracle Friends volunteer phone buddy throughout the pilot and take part in monthly and offboarding survey calls. Funds were most commonly spent on food (30.6%) and rent (29.9%), though some used the money for individualized needs like a service dog or a translator-friendly item.
Eligibility
Overview
- Eligibility details
Eligible participants had to already be active in the Miracle Friends phone-buddy program, having maintained a relationship with a matched volunteer for at least three months, and be nominated by that volunteer. A Miracle Messages selection committee then screened nominees for diversity (age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability), housing status, location (Bay Area), and readiness for change, and selected a gender-balanced group (top 8 female and top 7 male candidates by committee vote). All recipients had previously experienced homelessness, and 9 of the 14 were currently unhoused at the time of entry; participants also needed an existing or newly opened bank account to receive direct-deposit payments.
Demographics
- Minimum age
- 18
- Gender
- Male, Female
Housing
- Housing status
- Homeless
Financial
- Banked status
- Banked
Geography
- US states covered
- California
- Countries covered
- United States
- Residency of Target Geography
- Yes
Participation
- Research / data sharing
- Required
- Complementary program enrollment required
- Miracle Friends Phone Buddy Program
- Research / participation requirements
Miracle Messages' internal Program Evaluation team (led by a Program Evaluation Lead, with storywriters and survey administrators, advised by Dr. Benjamin Henwood and others) conducted baseline, monthly, and offboarding phone surveys with recipients. Key published findings: 66% (6 of 9) of recipients unhoused at pilot entry secured housing by the end; 85% reported improved social connections; 77% reported lower psychological distress; and 100% said the program made them feel more financially secure. The evaluation directly informed the larger 2023 'Miracle Money: California' randomized controlled trial with USC.
Application Process
- How to apply
There was no public/self application process. Unhoused individuals already enrolled in the Miracle Friends phone-buddy program were nominated for Miracle Money by their matched volunteer after maintaining the friendship for at least three months; interested nominees then completed a verbal-acceptance onboarding call with their Miracle Friend and Miracle Messages staff.
- Selection process
A Miracle Messages selection committee (staff and program mentors) reviewed dozens of volunteer nominations and screened candidates against eligibility criteria including diversity (age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability), housing status, and location, then voted; the top 8 female and top 7 male candidates by vote count were selected to keep the recipient pool gender-balanced, yielding 15 initial selections (14 ultimately received funds after attrition).
