Florida 2nd in nation in number of those without homes, HUD finds

Homelessness is a growing problem in Florida.

With one of the largest populations of unhoused residents in the nation, second only to California, the state saw an increase last year of nearly 5,000 in the number of those without homes.

For additional perspective, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development reports Florida has 14 people unhoused for every one of its 10,000 residents, compared to California, which has 46 people who don’t have a place to live for each of its 10,000 residents.

Among the contributing factors for last year’s increase in Florida were:

• Hurricane Ian’s impact on West Florida

• Housing costs in Central Florida

• Rapidly increasing rent and eviction rates

• The end of pandemic-related funding for shelters

• The addition of more than 200,000 people in Miami, stretching resources and housing options

HUD did a survey on a single night in late January 2023 that recorded over 650,000 experiencing homelessness at that time.

Homelessness affected people of all ages, though the highest percentage were elderly people.

Three out of 10 of the people experiencing homelessness were women, and more than half were white.