The number of homeless people in the US soared by 18% in 2024

The United States recorded an 18.1% increase in homelessness in 2024, a marked increase over 2023, when homelessness grew by 12%.

The increase is largely due to the shortage of affordable housing, the natural disasters that damaged various states and populations, the migration crisis, high hard drug use and the results of counterproductive regulatory policies that led to a systemic homelessness crisis in states as large as California, the state with the most 'homeless' in the entire country.

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) reported that, according to federally mandated counts, in January there were more than 770,000 homeless, a figure that is not entirely accurate, as it misses some people on technicalities and does not include those who, for example, are staying with friends or relatives because they do not have a place of their own.

HUD says the 18% increase in 2024, added to the previous 12% in 2023, is due especially to high rent prices and the impact of ending government assistance programs during the pandemic.

Critics of the relief programs also question that government subsidies so far have only served to alleviate the negative impact of homelessness, but without addressing the real causes of the homelessness crisis.

In 2023, as well as 2024, there were many people becoming homeless for the first time and the overall numbers represent 23 out of every 10,000 people in the US, with black people being the most affected within this phenomenon.

According to the HUD report, one of the most worrisome trends is the almost 40% increase in the number of homeless families, an aspect that was especially disrupted with the arrival of illegal immigrants in large cities. In fact, in thirteen of the communities most affected by the massive influx of immigrants, such as Denver, Chicago and New York, the number of homeless people increased markedly, while in the remaining 373 communities the increase was less than 8%.

Another area of concern is that of children who became homeless for a single night. According to the report, 150,000 children were homeless for one night in 2024, a 33% increase over 2023.

"Increased homelessness is the tragic, yet predictable, consequence of underinvesting in the resources and protections that help people find and maintain safe, affordable housing," Renee Willis, interim CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, said in a statement. "As advocates, researchers, and people with lived experience have warned, the number of people experiencing homelessness continues to increase as more people struggle to afford sky-high housing costs."

However, within the bad news with the rise in homelessness, there is also one piece of hopeful data, and that is that homelessness among veterans continued to decline in 2024, dropping 8% year-over-year.