1. How many Americans live in poverty? - USAFacts | The number of people experiencing homelessness increased by 12,751 or 2.2% from 2019 to 2020. That's the fourth year in a row with a rise in ...
How many people are homeless in the US?
Many people in poverty also face challenges with housing. More than
580,466 people —18 out of every 100,000 people in the US — were homeless
as of January 2020, according to an annual Department of Housing and
Urban Development report. The data comes from a national survey done
over 10 days at the end of January. The timing of the 2020 survey means
the data from the survey doesn’t include how the COVID-19 pandemic
affected homelessness or homeless population statistics.
The number of people experiencing homelessness increased by 12,751 or
2.2% from 2019 to 2020. That’s the fourth year in a row with a rise in
homelessness. Despite the recent increases, the homeless population is
10% lower than in 2007 when the data was first collected.
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The homeless population is more likely to be male and Black compared to
the US overall. In 2020, about 61% of people experiencing homelessness
were male compared to 49.2% of the total population and 39% Black
compared to 14.2% of the total population. In 2020, close to one in five
homeless Americans were children, or 106,364 children in total.
This is a small sample of how poverty can be measured with government
data. USAFacts also collects other data on poverty. Keep track of how
the pandemic continues to affect poverty measures at the COVID-19 Impact
and Recovery Hub.
2. How many homeless people are in the US? What does the data miss? | More than half a million people experienced homelessness in America last year. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) counted around 582,000 ...
More than half a million people experienced homelessness in America last
year. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) counted
around 582,000 Americans experiencing homelessness in 2022. That’s about
18 per 10,000 people in the US, up about 2,000 people from 2020.
Who is considered homeless?
The HUD’s definition of homelessness includes both sheltered and
unsheltered people. Sheltered people are living in domestic violence
shelters, transitional shelters, safe havens that serve homeless
individuals with severe mental illness, or hotels/motels. Unsheltered
people live outdoors, in cars, in abandoned buildings, or in other
places not meant for human habitation.
People staying with friends are only considered homeless if they cannot
stay there longer than 14 days.
Who is homeless in America?
Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islanders are 1.8% of the homeless
population despite being just 0.26% of the US population. They have the
nation’s highest rate of homelessness at 121 per 10,000 people.
[native-hawaiians-and-pacific-islanders-have-the-highest-rate-of-homelessness-in-the-us.
(2)]
Twenty-four percent of all homeless people identify as Hispanic. This is
higher than the national proportion of the Hispanic population: 19%.
One reason Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders have such high rates of
homelessness could be because of Hawaii’s lack of affordable housing.
Many native Hawaiians are also on wait lists for home land leases.
Veterans also experience homelessness at a slightly higher rate than the
overall population. Twenty out of every 10,000 veterans are homeless,
compared to the nation’s overall rate of 18 per 10,000.
...
Counting homeless individuals is difficult, but more regular quality
checks could improve accuracy. A 2020 report from the GAO found that
both sheltered and unsheltered counts are likely an underestimate.
Read more about standard of living in the US, the states with the most
homelessness and homelessness among students, and get the facts every
week by signing up for our newsletter.
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Sources & Footnotes
Department of Housing and Urban Development
2022 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress
Last updated
February 2023
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Point-In-Time Methodology Guide
Last updated
2014
[1]
Rapid rehousing is apartment-based but focuses less on
self-sufficiency, whereas transition housing is usually
project-based and promotes self-sufficiency. In practice, people
stay in rapid rehousing for around 7-8 months on average, and
transitional housing for 13 months on average.
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[Line chart]
Homeless population
582,462
2022
Explore the data []
[Line chart]
Homeless students enrolled in public school
1.2 million
2022
Explore the data []
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Veterans also experience homelessness at a slightly higher rate than the
overall population. Twenty out of every 10,000 veterans are homeless,
compared to the nation’s overall rate of 18 per 10,000.
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Year Number of homeless veterans
------ -----------------------------
2008 62,223
2009 73,367
2010 74,087
2011 65,455
2012 60,579
2013 55,619
2014 49,689
2015 47,725
2016 39,471
2017 40,020
2018 37,878
2019 37,085
2020 37,252
2022 33,129
: Homeless veterans 2008-2022 (estimated)
The US government has established programs such as the HUD-Veterans
Affairs Supportive Housing program that helps veterans find permanent
housing and access healthcare. Additionally, the number of veterans has
dropped. In 2021, there were 16.5 million veterans, compared to 21.8
million in 2008.
In 2022, 60.6% of homeless people were cisgender men, compared to 38.3%
for cis women. Around 1.1% of homeless Americans were trans, nonbinary,
or questioning.
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How has the homeless population changed over time?
Sheltered homelessness declined over the past decade but unsheltered
homelessness rose.
[1] https://usafacts.org/articles/american-poverty-in-three-charts/
[2] https://usafacts.org/articles/how-many-homeless-people-are-in-the-us-what-does-the-data-miss/