Facts about Homelessness & Poverty

• On any given night, an estimated 842,000 people are homeless.   Over the course of a year, 3.5 million people experience homelessness, 1.35 million of them children. (1)

• Families are among the fastest growing segment of the homeless population, representing about 41% of all homeless people. (2)

• According to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau report, approximately. 12.6% of the total U.S. population lines in poverty.   One out of every five children lives in poverty.   (3)

• Requests for emergency shelter by families increased in 68% of cities in 2006.   US cities saw an average increase of 9% in shelter requests by families. 29% of shelter requests by families were unmet.   (4)

• An individual earning the minimum wage would have to work 108 hours per week in order to afford an average two-bedroom apartment. (5)

• The gap between the amount of affordable housing units available and the number of people who need them is about 4.4 million units.   Public housing authorities and Section 8 vouchers (the federal assistance program for affordable housing) have a typical waiting period of 35 months. (6)

• Homeless and low-income families are more likely than other families to experience chronic illness, domestic violence, shortened life span, infant death, and learning disabilities.   The homeless are significantly less likely than housed people to commit a violent crime. (7)

• According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 36 million people, including 14 million children, experience hunger. (8)

• About 47 million people do not have health insurance, including 8.7 million children. More people did not have health insurance in 2006 than in 2005. (9)

• Of the nearly 15 million children eligible for childcare assistance, only 10% receive help.   Only half of the children eligible for the Head Start program (a nationwide, federally funded pre-kindergarten program for less-privileged children) are enrolled in such a program. (10)

Sources

1. NCH Fact Sheet #2
Published by the National Coalition for the Homeless, August 2007.
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/publications/facts.html

2. NCH Fact Sheet #11
Published by the National Coalition for the Homeless, August 2007.
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/publications/facts/families.html

3. US Census Bureau, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance: 2006. (Issued August 2007)
http://www.census.gov/prod/2007pubs/p60-233.pdf

4. US Conference of Mayors, Hunger and Homelessness Survey 2006. http://usmayors.org/uscm/hungersurvey/2006/report06.pdf

5. These figures are based on the 2005 National Low Income Housing Coalition Annual Report. http://www.nlihc.org/doc/2005AnnualReport.pdf
It assumes the current federal minimum wage of $5.85 per hour.

6. NCH Fact Sheet #11
Published by the National Coalition for the Homeless, August 2007.
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/publications/facts/families.html

7. US Conference of Mayors, Hunger and Homelessness Survey 2006. http://usmayors.org/uscm/hungersurvey/2006/report06.pdf

8. Hunger: A Growing Epidemic in America. (Published by the Institute for Food and Development Policy)
http://www.foodfirst.org/poorgohungry_factsheet

9. US Census Bureau, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance: 2006. (Issued August 2007)
http://www.census.gov/prod/2007pubs/p60-233.pdf

10. Children's Defense Fund, The State of America's Children: Yearbook 2005 http://www.childrensdefense.org/site/DocServer/Greenbook_2005.pdf?docID=1741