Trends in Families Experiencing Homelessness

The 2024 homelessness data released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) reveals a concerning shift in demographics and trends that affect families and specifically, young parents. While overall homelessness continues to pose a serious national challenge, the steep rise in family homelessness, especially in major cities, demands our attention. Understanding these patterns is critical for shaping more effective responses so families experiencing homelessness can be connected to resources and communities that know how to care for them.

The age groups making up the largest portion of people who experienced homelessness in 2024 were those under 18 (19.2%) and those aged 35-44 (19.9%). The number of families with children experiencing homelessness increased by 39% from 2023 to 2024, which constitutes the largest increase for any single category of measurement utilized by HUD.

“Parenting youth,” refers to people under the age of 25 who are parents, which makes up 49 percent of all 18–24-year-olds who were experiencing homelessness. Additionally, children of parenting youth make up seven percent of all children experiencing homelessness.

While these increases are stark, especially compared with the other demographics measured, it should be noted that the increase occurred largely in America’s 50 major cities, and almost exclusively in the “sheltered” population within those cities. In fact, the only demographic of families to experience a decrease in total percentage of homelessness was unsheltered homeless families in major cities.

The government uses what it terms “Continuums of Care,” or “CoCs” to establish comprehensive resources for homeless populations. Given that families in major cities appear to be moving from unsheltered to sheltered or entering the homeless population with connection to shelter, it appears that CoCs in major cities have an easier time connecting families with shelter via larger funding bases, more extensive resource networks, and a general focus on “housing-first initiatives.” These initiatives seek to provide shelter to families before any other necessary resources. Such statistics indicate that shelter may be the most critical first step in combatting homelessness everywhere, not just in major cities.

While the overall trends reveal the urgent need for targeted, family-centered solutions; encouragingly, major cities have demonstrated that connecting families to shelter is achievable. These successes present an opportunity: expanding the reach and resources of CoCs, as shelter-first programs extend beyond major urban centers helping address this crisis on a national scale. By prioritizing safe, immediate shelter for families, especially young parents and children, we lay the foundation for more stable long-term outcomes. This model could help us reverse these trends and broaden what it means for the next generation to be happy, healthy, productive members of our community.

To read more, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s 2024 report can be found here.