The Current State of Homelessness

May 24, 2019

Categories: Homelessness

The National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) released their State of Homelessness 2019 report earlier this year. NAEH offers this report to chart progress in ending homelessness and "serve as a reference for policymakers, journalists, advocates, and the public on trends in homelessness, homeless assistance, and at-risk populations at the national and state levels."  

Nationwide, there are an estimated 552,830 individuals experiencing homelessness on a given night. This is based on data gathered during the annual Point-in-Time (PIT) count where volunteers come together to count and interview people experiencing homelessness. 

This year, the NAEH report includes new data on the following:

• Available beds - Homeless service providers currently can provide temporary beds to approximately 70 percent of the population which leaves 30 percent of the population without access to a year-round bed. 
• Racial and ethnic demographics - African Americans and Hispanics are over-represented in homeless counts. African Americans make up 13% of the U.S. population but are 40% of the homeless population while Hispanics make up 16% of the U.S. population but are 22% of the homeless population.
• Geography of challenges - The states with the most people experiencing homelessness are California (129,972), New York (91,897) and Florida (31,030).   

In Texas, there are an estimated 25,310 individuals experiencing homelessness. The NAEH report provides the following additional information on this population.

• The number of individuals experiencing homelessness in Texas dropped from 39,788 in 2007 to 23,122 in 2016 and then slightly rose again the past two years.
• Among individuals, 46% have shelter, and 54% are unsheltered. Among families, 96% have shelter, and 4% are unsheltered. 
• There are 1,379 unaccompanied children and youth experiencing homelessness. The PIT count began including this as a subpopulation in 2016. 

If you're interested in the state of homelessness in specific parts of the state, the Texas Homeless Network (THN) compiles that information each year. You can access it under the 2019 Community Reports by Area here.

THN provides a wealth of other information as well including Annual Homeless Assessment Reports, Housing Inventory Reports and System Performance Measures. This data provides detailed information on the progress communities are making in addressing homelessness in their area. 

TSAHC and Efforts to End Homelessness

TSAHC continues to support and participate in the following statewide and local efforts designed to raise awareness around homelessness and help make it brief, rare and non-recurring:

• Texas Interagency Council for the Homeless (TICH): TSAHC President David Long serves as an Advisory Member of TICH which coordinates the state’s resources and services to address homelessness. 
• Texas Conference on Ending Homelessness: TSAHC sponsors and attends this statewide annual conference hosted by THN. Click here to learn more and register for the next conference that will take place October 8-10 in Houston.
• Supportive Housing Grants: TSAHC’s Texas Foundations Fund program provides matching grants to support nonprofits that provide supportive housing services to residents at risk of homelessness.
• Permanent Supportive Housing training: TSAHC partnered with LISC San Antonio to host a Developing and Implementing a Successful Permanent Supportive Housing Program training in March in Austin. We plan to offer this free training in other parts of the state later in 2019.
• Frequent Users Systems Engagement (FUSE) Partnership: THN participated in FUSE, a technical assistance program offered by the Corporation for Supportive Housing to help communities and coalitions identify people most at risk of homelessness and connect them with supportive housing resources. TSAHC was THN's statewide sponsor in this initiative. 

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On the House blog posts are meant to provide general information on various housing-related issues, research and programs. We are not liable for any errors or inaccuracies in the information provided by blog sources. Furthermore, this blog is not legal advice and should not be used as a substitute for legal advice from a licensed professional attorney.