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The Highest Count Ever Recorded
HUD’s 2024 Annual Homeless Assessment Report counted 771,480 people experiencing homelessness on a single night in January 2024. That is 23 of every 10,000 Americans. It is the highest number since the federal government began counting in 2007.
771,480 people homeless on one night. Family homelessness up 39%. 150,000 were children. Veteran homelessness is down 56% since 2010 because Congress funded solutions.
The number rose 18.1% from the prior year. The increase was not spread evenly.
Families Hit Hardest
259,000 people in families were homeless, a 39% increase in a single year. That included 150,000 children. Between 2015 and 2022, family homelessness had actually declined 20%. Then it surged 57% between 2022 and 2024.
The reversal tracks directly to economics. Median rent rose more than 20% since 2021. Every $100 increase in median rent in a community correlates with a 9% increase in homelessness. Pandemic-era protections expired. Emergency rental assistance ran out.
The Proof That Funding Works
Veteran homelessness is the one population where the numbers keep going down. It dropped 56% since 2010. Unsheltered veterans fell 11% in the most recent count alone.
The reason is straightforward. Congress funded targeted programs. HUD-VASH vouchers, SSVF rapid rehousing, and GPD transitional housing gave veterans a path off the street. The investments worked. The decline is sustained.
That makes the administration’s proposed 44% cut to HUD worth examining. The proposal would have slashed rental assistance by $26.7 billion and eliminated the HOME program entirely. Congress rejected most of the cuts and increased HUD funding by $7.2 billion instead, but the proposal reveals the direction of pressure.
What you can do now
- Call both senators and tell them to protect HUD rental assistance funding. The administration proposed a 44% cut to HUD and $26.7 billion slashed from rental assistance. Congress rejected most of the cuts this year, but the pressure will return in the next budget cycle. Veteran homelessness dropped 56% because Congress funded solutions. The same approach works for families. Use Resist Bot to send your message.
- Contact your House representative and demand they oppose any elimination of the HOME Investment Partnerships Program. The administration’s budget would have ended it entirely. HOME funds affordable housing construction and rehabilitation at the local level. Every $100 increase in median rent correlates with a 9% increase in homelessness.
- Call your state legislators and push for state-level emergency rental assistance. Pandemic-era protections expired, federal rental assistance ran out, and family homelessness surged 57% between 2022 and 2024. Find your delegation at your state page.
- Contact your governor’s office and ask them to expand HUD-VASH-style programs to families. The veteran model works because it combines vouchers with wraparound services. 150,000 of the 771,480 people counted homeless on a single night were children. Families need the same targeted investment that cut veteran homelessness in half.