According to data from the Feds, home sales have surged in the last few years and the median sale price has steadily risen. At the same time rental vacancy rates have plunged to 5.6% as of the end of 2021.
The most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau indicates that 46% of renters in the U.S. spent more than 30% of their income on rent in 2020. The Department of Housing and Urban Development defines this level as being “cost burdened.” This is a euphemism for “my rent is too high.” Rent across the board has risen 18% in the last five years according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. About one third of U.S. households rented in 2021. Between 2019 and 2021, the shortage of available and affordable rental homes worsened by more than 500,000 units and continuing a long-term trend of diminishing supply.
Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR)
In 2022, more than half a million people experienced homelessness on a given night according to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress. The report provides estimates of homelessness based on data collected during the annual Point-in-Time (PIT) count, which takes place in January.
The PIT count is a one-night snapshot count of homeless individuals and families in shelters and on the streets in the U.S. The AHAR report also includes information on available beds in emergency shelters, transitional housing programs, safe havens, rapid re-housing programs, and permanent supportive housing programs.
| Key Observations |
|---|
| 6 in 10 people were staying in sheltered locations: emergency shelters, safe havens, or transitional housing programs, and 4 in 10 were in unsheltered locations, such as on the street, in abandoned buildings, or in other places unsuitable for human habitation. |
| More than half the people experiencing homelessness in unsheltered locations were in urban areas (60 percent), and the rest were split between rural (19 percent) and suburban areas (21 percent). |
| More than half of all people experiencing homelessness in the country were in four states: California (30 percent), New York (13 percent), Florida (5 percent), and Washington (4 percent). |
Policy Implications
The homeless problem seems to be also an affordable housing problem. Affordable housing is tricky because it affects a mixed bag of land use, density, development, gentrification, tax incentives and more.
To reduce homelessness in the United States, recommended policy solutions include increasing funding for affordable housing initiatives, expanding homelessness prevention programs, implementing Housing-First policies that prioritize finding housing as quickly as possible, and collaborating with community organizations.