Becoming Homelessness In America

Homelessness - the state of a person living without a permanent dwelling - is one of San Francisco’s most visible and pressing problems for its residents. As of 2015, there were an estimated 7,500 San Francisco residents who were experiencing homelessness. Over the past 10 years, it is estimated that the annual number of residents experiencing homelessness has not changed significantly regardless of the amount of people who transition into housing. According to the 2015 San Francisco Homeless Count Report, 25 percent of these residents were 18 to 24 years old and 61 percent were 25 years or older when they first experienced homelessness. Additionally, 39 percent of these residents identified as White (Caucasian and/or Hispanic/Latino), 36

In many ways, this housing shortage has been a consequence of strict housing policies enacted in the 1960s that limited the heights of new buildings and allowed neighbours to block developments. Because of this, in recent history the Bay Area has only issued building permits for about 50% of the buildings for the growing population. This combination of high demand and low supply for local housing has allowed housing costs to skyrocket, to the point where the area is no longer affordable for many residents (Russel). This has created a large population of residents who experience homelessness and housing insecurity. Of the 7,500 residents of San Francisco that are currently unhoused, 71 percent were housed in the city before becoming homeless (Connery et al, see Figure 1). Further, 49 percent of residents experiencing homelessness who once had a permanent residence in the city had maintained it for at least ten years. This indicates that San Francisco residents cannot continuously afford to live in the housing currently available in the

In many instances, two of the primary (and often compounding) reasons behind why people become homeless is that there is both a lack of affordable housing options and a lack of income to put towards rent. This lack of income often comes from unemployment, which can be caused by several different obstacles. According to the 2015 San Francisco Homeless Count Report, in 2011, 27 percent of respondents stated that the number one obstacle they experienced in regards to employment was the need for a higher level of education. By the year 2013, the percentage of people who stated this had risen to 28 percent. At this point, the need for education was tied with needing a phone for being the number one obstacle to employment that residents experiencing homelessness faced (Connery et al, see Figure 2).

Figure 2: Obstacles to Obtaining Employment Top Three Responses (ASR) The fact that the need for education was consistently seen as one of the top obstacles for people experiencing homelessness to obtain employment demonstrates that this is a serious need within the San Francisco homeless community. In order to address this need, benefits available to residents experiencing homelessness should include an educational component. Should residents experiencing homelessness have better access to educational resources, they may be able to attain a higher level of education, and thus experience less barriers