Homelessness in America Reaches An All-Time High

As per a report by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), homelessness in America reaches an all-time high peak of approximately 653,000. Yes, 653,000 and counting. 🤯

As of December 15, the HUD report identified inflation and the expiration of protections against eviction from the pandemic era as the primary perpetrators. Furthermore, the report identified the housing supply shortage as a significant factor.

Comparing 2023 to the previous year, HUD’s annual 2023 Point-in-Time Count, which measured homelessness on a single night in January 2023, revealed a 12 percent increase in homelessness (or 70,650 individuals).

This brought the total number of homeless individuals to 653,104, the highest since the agency began using the point-in-time gauge in 2007.

It is unsurprising to individuals who are directly involved in this crisis. “Nationally, individuals are facing significant financial challenges in meeting the exorbitant rental costs,” said Ann Olivia, chief executive officer of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, in a statement.

This metric increased by 15.5% among individuals residing in families with children, where homelessness increased the most rapidly. The increase in homelessness among unaccompanied adolescents was 15.3 percent, following closely behind.

Former Arizona gubernatorial candidate and current U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake attributed the increase in homelessness to the policies of President Joe Biden. Since Biden, homelessness in America reaches an all-time high.

“In Joe Biden’s America, it is nearly impossible to pay rent or afford a residence,” she wrote in a post on X in 2024, pledging that if elected, she would address chronic street homelessness. So much for “Build Back Better.”

Details on the all-time high of homelessness in America

HUD reports that the majority of the increase in homelessness was attributable to a significant surge in the number of individuals encountering homelessness for the first time.

A quarter-century passed between the fiscal years 2021 and 2022, during which the number of individuals experiencing homelessness increased by 25 percent.

HUD stated that the increase in first-time homelessness is likely attributable to a confluence of factors, including rent increases and the winding down of protections and programs established during the pandemic era to prevent evictions and housing loss.

The historic level of homelessness occurred after substantial rent hikes and stagnant household revenues among renters.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) determined through an analysis of Census Bureau data that between 2001 and 2022, the median rent increased by 18.8 percent when adjusted for inflation, while the median household income of renters increased by 4.3 percent during the same period.

Moody’s Analytics U.S. State of Rent Burden reported earlier this year that the majority of tenants are now “rent burdened,” spending more than one-third of their monthly income on rent.

In addition to “urgent and neglected investments in rental assistance and affordable housing,” the CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness advocated for increased funding for housing support services that assist the homeless in rapidly securing permanent housing.

To get people off city streets, Ms. Lake’s policy proposal to address the homelessness crisis prohibits urban camping and allocates federal lands and funds for supervised camping and shelter facilities.

I almost forgot to mention, that Los Angeles, Portland, Oregon, Seattle, Washington, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania are small examples of the homeless pandemic.

Additionally, she has committed to reconstructing the country’s infrastructure comprising inpatient treatment centers, halfway houses, and assisted-living facilities, to assist the most severely addicted and mentally ill individuals.

Ms. Lake stated in a statement, “I do not believe that God intended for anyone to perish on the streets.” “I will strive in the Senate to fix the homelessness crisis and restore our economy to its pre-Bidenomics state.”

The National Low Income Housing Coalition’s president and chief executive officer, Diane Yentel, advocated for increased federal funding to make housing more affordable.

A statement by Ms. Yentel reads, “The affordable housing and homelessness crises in this country will continue to worsen in the absence of substantial and sustained federal investments to make housing affordable for individuals with the lowest incomes.” Hey, it is raining cold-hard facts up in here!

via GIPHY

People struggle to pay rent

In recent years, the housing costs of renters and purchasers in the United States have skyrocketed.

In November, the shelter index of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) continued to increase, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It experienced a 0.4 percent increase every month and a 6.5 percent increase on an annual basis.

Including food and energy, the increase in the shelter index constituted the most significant contributor to the aggregate CPI index’s monthly increase.

Wait, there is more…

As a result of a housing shortage and rising interest rates, which have compelled more Americans to rent, municipalities and states have implemented rent control.

Massachusetts, Arizona, Florida, Hawaii, Georgia, Illinois, and Kentucky are among the states evaluating rent control proposals. Landlord proponents counter that rent ceilings do not result in price reductions.

Directors of education for the American Apartment Owners Association (AAOA), which has 145,000 members, Alexandra Alvarado, disclosed to The Epoch Times that some of her constituents have discovered that rent control has prompted them to raise rates more frequently.

“Some of our members who previously raised rents infrequently are now doing so annually to prevent falling behind on their rent payments,” she explained. “They have no intention of skipping a year.” “It is contradictory, but I believe that since rent control, our members have experienced greater rent increases.”

Landlord associations argue that rent control would diminish apartment supply by discouraging landlords from constructing or providing housing. This is my story on homelessness in America reaches an all-time high.