Veteran Homelessness Declines While Families with Children Fall Through the Cracks
The progress California has made in reducing veteran homelessness is being overshadowed by a growing crisis: more families with children are falling into homelessness. This includes both families who are newly homeless and those experiencing chronic homelessness. While California saw the most significant decrease in veteran homelessness in the country in 2024—1,279 more veterans accessed shelter compared to 2023—these gains highlight the urgent need to address family homelessness.
The trend is happening at a time when homelessness grew by 18% nationwide in 2024, including a 3% leap in California alone. Overall, there are more than 770,000 homeless people in the United States, more than 160,000 of whom live in California alone.
It also illustrates that California’s growing cost of living is pushing more low-income earning households into homelessness. In turn, state leaders have responded by increasing the number of homeless sweeps locally, which does nothing to solve the problem.
“[The] HUD report makes it clear that instead of solving the problem, Newsom’s endless spending ‘solution’ has only made it worse,” state Senate Majority Leader Brian Jones of San Diego told the Times of San Diego.
Shelter Beds Expand, but Family Homelessness Grows
To be clear, California made some impressive strides to reduce veteran and unsheltered homelessness between 2023 and 2024. Part of that success came from increasing the number of shelter beds available to homeless people. Overall, the state added more than 11,500 beds between 2023 and 2024. It also added more than 900 shelter beds for veterans over the last year, bringing its total to 30,637.
California’s number of permanent supportive housing units also increased year-over-year to more than 78,000. Advocates say permanent supportive housing is one of the best ways to give people exiting the streets the stability they need, although the bureaucracy of getting people into these units can be challenging to navigate.
The increase in shelter beds is one reason the state was able to slow the growth of its unsheltered population in 2024. California’s unsheltered population grew by just 0.45% to 112,482. For comparison, the national unsheltered count increased by roughly 7% to 241,953.
“We have turned the tide on a decades-long increase in homelessness – but we have more work to do,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement.
However, the growing number of families with children experiencing homelessness in California suggests that there is a larger underlying problem that is not being addressed—namely, the state’s rising cost of living.
Rising Costs: The Root of Family Homelessness
Homes in California cost about 32% more than the national average, and monthly payments for bottom-tier homes have increased by 80% since January 2020, according to the state Legislative Analyst’s Office.
Meanwhile, costs for utilities, groceries, and gasoline continue to outpace national averages. That means more low-income earning families are having to choose between putting food on the table, paying for housing expenses, and buying necessary everyday goods.
These trends are part of the reason why the number of food-insecure and housing-insecure Californians continues to rise. A recent report from Hunger Free America found there are more than 3.6 million food-insecure Californians as of September 2024, which is 54% greater than the total recorded three years ago.
Similarly, 55% of renters in California are considered cost-burdened, meaning they pay more than the recommended 30% of their monthly income on rent and utility expenses. That compares to 50% of renters nationwide and 38% of homeowners.
If lawmakers continue to ignore these issues, the number of people living on the streets will likely continue to rise. It will also become more complex and expensive to provide services to newly homeless people.
However, lawmakers seem to have little incentive to address these issues. More than 160 cities have introduced new laws prohibiting public camping following the 2024 Supreme Court decision in Grants Pass v. Johnson. The ruling gave cities more power to crack down on homelessness by criminalizing it, even when there is no shelter available.
Advocates have described the ruling as a disaster for homeless people as criminalization has consistently failed to reduce homelessness. Instead, it merely hides it from public view and makes homeless people less trusting of the services they are offered.
Anti-Homeless Laws Are Hiding, Not Solving, the Problem
With the Supreme Court’s gutting of essential protections for homeless people, our work is more critical than ever. Nationwide, anti-homeless laws are gaining ground in legislative committees, fueled by hidden votes, corporate backing, out-of-state lobbyists, and conservative think tanks like the Cicero Institute. We’re fighting a crucial battle against misinformation and the criminalization of homelessness.
The pandemic underscored the urgent need to overhaul housing policies in the United States, revealing that many homelessness initiatives rely too heavily on law enforcement rather than social services.
Stand with our vulnerable neighbors and urge your representatives to take meaningful action to address homelessness. As the first step toward ending homelessness, we must prioritize compassionate solutions over punitive measures.