The number of homeless people in the US has increased by a record 18% according to the latest annual data from Reuters
Author: Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. saw a record 18 percent increase in homelessness last year, driven by factors such as unaffordable housing, high inflation, systemic racism, natural disasters and rising immigration, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said. Housing and urban development (NS:), he said on Friday.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
The problem of homelessness is getting worse in the US, with the common sight of poor people in many cities living in the open, with tents pitched on city sidewalks. The federal and state governments have been pushing different strategies to deal with the crisis.
BY THE NUMBERS
A total of 771,480 people — or about 23 out of every 10,000 people in the U.S. — experienced homelessness in an emergency shelter, safe haven, transitional housing program or unsheltered location, according to data released Friday.
Overall, the number of people experiencing homelessness increased by 18% between 2023 and 2024, the data shows. Previous such annual data released last year showed a 12% increase in homelessness.
Between 2023 and 2024, children under 18 were the age group that saw the biggest increase in homelessness, recording a 33% increase with 150,000 children experiencing the crisis, according to the data.
Blacks, who made up 12% of the total US population and 21% of the US population living in poverty, represent 32% of all people who have experienced homelessness, the data show.
KEY QUOTATIONS
“Our worsening national affordable housing crisis, rising inflation, stagnant wages in middle- and lower-income households, and the lingering effects of systemic racism have stretched homeless service systems to their limits,” the Department of Housing and Urban Development said.
It also cited “additional public health crises, natural disasters that have displaced people from their homes, increasing numbers of people immigrating to the U.S., and the end of homelessness prevention programs that were put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
