The Chicago Coalition to End Homelessness says the city’s official “point-in-time” count misses people living in abandoned buildings and cars, and those staying at a relative’s or friend’s home.
More than 58,000 Chicagoans experienced homelessness in 2024, according to a new report from the Chicago Coalition to End Homelessness. The new data reveals homelessness in the city is more widespread than official counts show.
The report provides a stark contrast to the annual “point-in-time” count, a snapshot of the number of people experiencing homelessness in a single night, conducted each year by the Chicago Department of Family and Support Services. That count found that about 19,000 people were homeless in 2024. The city’s next point-in-time count will take place Thursday night.
From the article:
“The point-in-time count is flawed to begin with,” said M Nelsen, manager of city policy for the Chicago Coalition to End Homelessness. “It happens one night a year, in January. It’s led by volunteers, and it’s only going by the definition of homelessness as people who stay in emergency shelters or other places not meant for human habitation.”
“We do not have a lack of housing; we have a lack of affordable and accessible housing,” Nelsen said. “So often we kind of shrug our shoulders about homelessness and think, ‘Well, we don’t have the resources.’ We do. We’re just not using them. We’re not allocating them. Policy is not addressing that lack of access.”
