Homelessness in the U.S. jumped to record level in 2023, government says
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U.S. homelessness reached a record high in 2023, according to data the federal government released Friday.
The big picture: Homelessness increased by about 12% nationwide since last year, and it rose across all household types, the Department of Housing and Urban Development said in a new report.
- About 653,100 people experienced homelessness on a single night in 2023, according to an annual count done in January.
- This year's result "is the highest number of people reported as experiencing homelessness on a single night since reporting began in 2007," the report says.
By the numbers: Black, African and Indigenous people were overrepresented among the population experiencing homelessness, as has been the case in previous years, the HUD found.
- Black people made up 13% of the U.S. population in 2023, but they made up 21% of the U.S. population living in poverty, 37% of all people experiencing homelessness and 50% of homeless people in families with children.
- Asian and Asian American people had the largest percentage increase in homelessness, up 40% from 2022, to a total of 11,574.
- Hispanic and Latino people saw the largest numerical increase, up 28% from 2022 to 179,336 in 2023.
Zoom in: Families with children saw a 16% increase in homelessness.
- This group made up about 28% of people experiencing homelessness, or roughly 186,100 people.
- Unaccompanied youth made up 22% of all people under the age of 25 experiencing homelessness.
Details: More men (61%) than women (38%) experienced homelessness.
- Men made up about every nine out of 10 homeless veterans.
Zoom out: The HUD measures homelessness based on a single point-in-time count during the last 10 days of January.
- This year's "counts reflect a considerable lessening of the impact the COVID-19 pandemic on shelter use," the department's report said.
- Pandemic-era social safety net programs expired throughout the year, such as income protections and eviction moratoria.
Go deeper: Homelessness politics and voter frustration drive local elections in the West
