New York City Homelessness: The Basic Facts
In recent years, homelessness in New York City has reached the highest levels since the Great Depression of the 1930s.
In August 2019, there were 61,674 homeless people, including 14,806 homeless families with 21,802 homeless children, sleeping each night in the New York City municipal shelter system. Families make up more than two-thirds of the homeless shelter population.
Research shows that the primary cause of homelessness, particularly among families, is lack of affordable housing. Surveys of homeless families have identified the following major immediate, triggering causes of homelessness: eviction; doubled-up or severely overcrowded housing; domestic violence; job loss; and hazardous housing conditions.
Each night thousands of unsheltered homeless people sleep on New York City streets, in the subway system, and in other public spaces. There is no accurate measurement of New York City’s unsheltered homeless population, and recent City surveys signicantly underestimate the number of unsheltered homeless New Yorkers.
Studies show that the large majority of street homeless New Yorkers are people living with mental illness or other severe health problems.
African-American and Latino New Yorkers are disproportionately affected by homelessness. Approximately 58 percent of New York City homeless shelter residents are African-American, 31 percent are Latinx, 7 percent are white, less than 1 percent are AsianAmerican, and 3 percent are of unknown race/ethnicity.