Family Homelessness in the United States: a State-by-State Snapshot

February 20, 2018  |  Data and Graphics

Almost 60,000 families with children (57,971) are homeless on any given night in the United States, according to the 2017 federal Point-in-Time count. Nationally, that means 7.4 out of every 10,000 families are homeless. But family homelessness is not experienced equally across all states.

Three states and the District of Columbia have rates far higher than the national average (District of Columbia: 95.0; New York: 35.9; Hawaii: 21.1; Massachusetts: 21.0). Five states and the District of Columbia have rates of family homelessness that are higher than they were five years ago (2012).

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Despite high rates in some states, family homelessness has fallen in the majority of states, and nationwide it decreased by five percent between 2016 and 2017. Sustaining this progress will require maintaining low rates across the South and Midwest while expanding resources and efforts in the Northwest and the Northeast. Key to this effort will be adequate federal funding for McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants, which connect families to the resources and supports they need to end their homelessness.