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Some Facts
About Homelessness
| Housing:
- Overall, 14.4 million families have critical housing needs.
- Between 1973 and 1993, 2.2 million low-rent units disappeared
from the market. These units were either abandoned, demolished,
converted into condominiums or expensive apartments, or became
unaffordable because of cost increases (Daskal, 1998).
- At the same time, the number of low-income renters increased,
due to factors such as eroding employment opportunities and the
declining value and availability of public assistance.
- In 1999, there were only 4.9 million rental units affordable
and available to 7.7 million extremely low income renter households;
a shortage of 2.8 million units (According to the 1999 American
Housing Survey).
- It would take annual production of more than 250,000 units for
more than 20 years to close the housing affordability gap (According
to the Millennial Housing Commission).
- In 1997, 3 million low to moderate income working families spent
more than 1/2 of their income on housing. By 2001 this number
had jumped to 4.8 million - a 67% increase.
Children & Education:
- The number of children and youth experiencing homelessness is
increasing.
- The number of children and youth in homeless situations (PreK-12)
identified by State Departments of Education increased from approximately
841,700 in 1997 to 930,200 in 2000 (U.S. Department of Education,
2000).
- The Urban Institute estimates that an estimated 1.35 million
children will experience homelessness over the course of a year
(Urban Institute, 2000).
- Preschool and elementary age children comprise the largest numbers
of children experiencing homelessness reported by the State Departments
of Education (U.S. Department of Education, 2000).
The Homeless and Civil Rights
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People experiencing homelessness
are disproportionately victims of hate crimes and violence,
often resulting in death.
- From 1999 through 2002 there have been 212 acts of violence
against people experiencing homelessness.
- Of these 211 acts of violence, 89 were nonlethal and 123
resulting in death. These incidents took place in 98 different
cities from 34 states and Puerto Rico (National Coalition
for the Homeless (NCH), 2003).
- The overwhelming majority of perpetrators were teens and
young adults.
Communities are diverting scarce resources
from solutions for homelessness to criminalization.
- The cost of arresting, processing and jailing homeless
people is higher than the cost of creating housing.
- Although few communities have committed resources to tracking
arrests by housing status, in Atlanta alone, 18,000 to 19,000
people were cited for "quality of life" violations
annually, and 43,000 were cited in one year in San Francisco.
- People experiencing homelessness in Baltimore spend an
average of 35 days per year in jail.
- Criminalization of homelessness leads to increased barriers
to accessing shelter and housing due to a criminal record.
- People experiencing homelessness often plead "no
contest" instead of "not guilty" to get off
with time served, due to lack of legal representation and
a lack of knowledge of their rights (National Coalition
for the Homeless (NCH, 2002, 2003).
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Thanks To The
National Coalition fot the Homeless.