Research has indicated that traditional office-based family therapy services are not always effective with at-risk families and that there is an increasing trend toward home-based delivered services (W. Snyder & E. McCollum, 1999). In this qualitative study, the author explored experienced home-based family therapists' perceptions of the competencies most salient to the provision of family-based therapy. Several themes emerged from this study. The author presents 2 central themes: joining--including joining with the family, the family's community, and school personnel--and bridging the gap between academia and current community-based programs.