In December 2017, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released Part 1 of the 2017 Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress. Part 1 of the AHAR contains estimates of homelessness in the United States taken from the annual Point-in-Time (PIT) count. The report estimated that 553,742 people were experiencing homelessness on a single night in January 2017, an increase of less than one percent since 2016. 

Key national findings: 

• 12% increase in the number of unsheltered individuals in 2017.
• 30% of the unsheltered population were women in 2017. 
• 10% of the homeless population were between the ages of 18 to 24 from 2016 to 2017. 
• 24.2% increase in 2017 in the number of minors experiencing homelessness from 2016.
• 12.3% increase in the number of people between the ages of 18 to 24 who were experiencing from 2016 – 2017. 
• Less than 1% of the homeless population were under the age of 18. 

According to the report, the rise in the number of people experiencing homelessness was as a result of the increase in the number of unsheltered individuals. The report noted that in the last decade homelessness overall has declined by 11%.

Connecticut continues to remain steadfast in its effort to end homelessness. From 2016 to 2017, there was a 13.2% decrease in the number of people experiencing homelessness. However, 12.3% of the state homelessness population were unsheltered. 

Click here to read the report.