Homelessness Hit Record High This Year Amid Affordable Housing Shortage

Homelessness in the U.S. hit the highest level on record this year as the affordable housing crisis intensifies, federal regulators said Friday.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) tallied more than 770,000 people experiencing homelessness on a single night in January, an 18 percent increase from 2023 that is likely an undercount.

Families with children experiencing homelessness jumped 39 percent, the largest increase on record, according to HUD data. Nearly 150,000 children were experiencing homelessness, a 33 percent increase from 2023.

Veterans were the only population where homelessness continued to decline, down 8 percent from 2023. The number of veterans experiencing homelessness has fallen 55 percent since HUD started collecting data on veteran homelessness in 2009.

Black people continue to be overrepresented among the homeless population: around 32 percent of people experiencing homelessness are Black despite making up only 12 percent of the U.S. population, according to HUD, which also found that the share of homeless people who identify as Black decreased from 37 percent in 2023.

The latest surge follows a 12 percent increase in homelessness in 2023 amid rising rents and a decline in pandemic assistance.

...The cost of buying a home hit an all-time high earlier this year, with advocates and policymakers alike citing a steep shortage in housing and even fewer affordable homes.

The U.S. housing shortage ballooned to 4.5 million homes in 2022 from 4.3 million in 2021, according to a June report from the real estate marketplace Zillow. The National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) estimates the U.S. is short 7.3 million homes that are affordable and available to low-income individuals.

🔗SOURCE ➡️ The Hill .

Related: 10/8 — Idaho Man Who Livestreamed Shooting Of Homeless Man In Downtown Spokane Sentenced To 3 Years In Prison

7/3 — In its 6-3 decision on Friday, the conservative majority upheld Grants Pass, Oregon’s ban on camping, finding laws that criminalize sleeping in public spaces do not violate the Eighth Amendment’s protections against cruel and unusual punishment.

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