Navigating Homelessness and
Housing Needs Data:
Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 1
Introduction
No single source of data tells the whole story of homelessness and other housing needs in our country. There
are a variety of different data sources that can and should be used at the community level to both end
people’s homelessness and to address broader housing needs. By centering comprehensive data to help
inform collaborative decision-making processes, communities can stretch the resources they have further,
address a wider range of needs, understand where new resources are needed, and get better results.
This document provides an overview of some key data sources, describes what they measure, and highlights
how communities can use that range of information to strengthen their efforts to address homelessness,
housing instability, and other housing needs. Originally released in March 2019, we have updated this
document with the most recent publicly available reports and data from each of the following sources:
• Part 1 of HUD’s 2019 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report to Congress (AHAR)
• Part 2 of HUD's 2017 AHAR
• Federal Data Summary School Years 2015-16 to 2017-18: Education for Homeless Children and Youth
• Worst Case Housing Needs 2017 Report to Congress
This data was collected prior to the start of the coronavirus pandemic, and does not reflect how COVID-19 is
affecting housing and homelessness. However, when considered comprehensively and used proactively, the
data within these reports can help support communities as they respond with the right solutions at the right
scale to address homelessness and housing crises among their residents.
Federal Definitions of Homelessness and Other Housing Needs
Homelessness Definitions and Data Sources
There are different definitions of homelessness within federal statutes and programs (see pages 12-13). While
recognizing that it can, at times, be confusing to navigate these differences, we encourage communities not to
think of them as competing definitions. Rather, these differentiated definitions allow us to recognize
meaningful distinctions among the individuals and families experiencing housing needs and crises in our
communities, making it possible to more effectively tailor our responses, use our resources most efficiently,
and engage the larger array of systems and services to best address current and projected needs.
The biggest difference in the definitions revolves around people who are paying for their own temporary stays
in hotels/motels (or trailer parks or camping grounds) due to lack of an adequate alternative or who are
sharing the housing of other people due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason (often
referred to as living in “doubled-up” arrangements or “couch-surfing”).
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 2
For example, in order to inform planning for its
statutory programs, HUD prepares its Annual
Homelessness Assessment Report (AHAR) to
Congress to estimate: the number of people who
are unsheltered or are sheltered in emergency
shelters or transitional housing at a given point in
time; and the number and demographics of people
who seek help from HUD-funded emergency
shelters and transitional housing programs over
the course of the year. There are no currently
feasible methodologies for including within these
data sets accurate estimates of the number of
people who are sharing the housing of others or
paying for their own stays in hotels/motels, due to
lacking fixed, regular, and adequate housing.
In order to address their programming mandate of
ensuring that every child and youth has equal
access to the same free, appropriate public
education, and of making sure students are
receiving the supports they need to succeed in
school, State educational agencies (SEAs) gather
and report data that includes children and youth
who are identified as being unsheltered or
sheltered, but also those who are sharing the
housing of others due to loss of housing, economic
hardship, or a similar reason, or who are living in a
motel or hotel due to the lack of alternative
adequate accommodations, regardless of who is
paying for the hotel/motel room. (For distinctions
between HUD and public school data, please see
the box at right.)
It also needs to be recognized that the living
situations of people experiencing homelessness
are not static, and that, for instance, a household
that is unsheltered one day may be in shelter or
sharing the housing of others another day.
State Educational Agency Data, HMIS Data,
and Point-in-Time Data
The homeless education data reported by the U.S. Department
of Education differ from the HMIS and PIT data reported to the
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in several
ways. These different data sources can be used in combination
for planning and policymaking to determine the appropriate
scale and range of programs needed to best respond to
populations experiencing different forms of homelessness, as
defined by federal housing and education statutes.
• SEA data are reported by school and district personnel and
generally verified by school district homeless education
liaisons and State Coordinators for Homeless Education.
HMIS data are reported by homeless service provider staff.
PIT count data are reported by communities based on
counts of people in shelter programs and unsheltered
locations.
• SEA data cover a July 1 to June 30 period; the availability of
data on school children during the summer may be limited.
HMIS data used in the AHAR cover a period from October 1
through September 30. PIT count data are for a single night
in January.
• SEA data include children staying in hotels or motels due to
the lack of alternative, adequate accommodations. HMIS
data include people staying in hotels or motels only if those
accommodations are subsidized through a homeless
assistance program.
• SEA data include children and youth sharing the housing of
other people due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or
a similar reason (often referred to as living in “doubled-up”
arrangements or “couch-surfing”.) The HUD definition of
homeless does not include people in doubled-up or couch-
surfing arrangements; as such, this population is not
represented in HMIS data.
• SEA data reflect information on children and youth from
age 3 through grade 13 enrolled in public school. HMIS and
PIT count data include children under age 3. SEA data
include some youth over the age of 18 who are still
enrolled in public school. HMIS and PIT count data include
all people age 18 and over in a separate category from
those under age 18. The PIT count data report all youth
who are ages 18 to 24 in a separate category.
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 3
Other Housing Needs Definitions
In addition to the differentiated data on homelessness, there are other categories of housing status that we
use to assess housing needs, such as:
• Rent burdened: Households that are paying more than 30% of household income for housing
• Severely rent burdened: Households that are paying more than 50% of household income for housing
• Living in worst-case housing: Very low income renters who don’t receive government housing
assistance and who pay more than half their income in rent, live in severely inadequate conditions, or
both
We should use all this data to develop the fullest possible understanding of the range of housing needs in our
communities, to most strategically respond to that range of needs, and to assess the impact of our efforts.
That understanding can also inform decisions about how many affordable housing opportunities are needed,
how much capacity is required within homelessness crisis response systems, and at what scale other programs
and resources must be engaged to provide households with services and opportunities that can help address
their needs.
Understanding Point-in-Time and
Annual Data
In order to analyze the data effectively, it is
important to understand—and to communicate
to stakeholders and officials—the differences
between point-in-time and annual data.
Point-in-Time Data
HUD’s PIT Count: Through HUD’s annual PIT
count, communities count how many people
are experiencing unsheltered or sheltered
homelessness on one night in late January. That
data, which is reported by Continuums of Care
(CoCs) to HUD and analyzed in Part I of the
Annual Homeless Assessment Report, helps us
to estimate the number of people experiencing
homelessness within a community or
geographic region, the scale of the need for
homelessness services and housing on any
given day, and how that need is changing from
year to year. It is important to note that PIT
count data is not sufficient in and of itself for
these purposes and should be augmented with
other sources of data and methodologies that can help project risks and needs, and that can help account for
potential undercounts within the PIT count data. PIT count data also provides estimates that helps us assess
progress toward reducing and ending homelessness (see table 1 below). PIT count data by CoC and by state is
available at HUD’s 2019 AHAR: Part 1 - PIT Estimates of Homelessness in the U.S.
Inclusion in Data Is Not the Same as Eligibility
It is essential to remember that methodologies and living
situation categories used to gather and report data do not
determine whether an individual or family is eligible to
access a variety of federally funded housing and services
programs.
For example, people who are being sexually exploited or
abused or are fleeing violence or trafficking while living in
hotels/motels or sharing the housing of others are
immediately eligible for HUD-funded emergency shelter.
(Please see federal definitions of homelessness in the
Appendix.)
Other people included within the data reported by school
systems or experiencing worst case housing needs may also
be eligible for HUD’s homelessness assistance programs
and/or for other federally funded housing and services
programs.
For example, see pages 38-39 of ED’s Education for
Homeless Children and Youths Program Non-Regulatory
Guidance and HUD's Definition of Homelessness: Resources
and Guidance and Determining Homeless Status of Youth.
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 4
Racial inequities within the PIT count data are pronounced and stark: an estimated 40% of people counted as
experiencing homelessness in January 2019 were African American, while African Americans make up
approximately 13% of the general population. Communities can use HUD’s CoC Analysis Tool: Race and
Ethnicity to estimate and assess disparities by comparing their data with American Community Survey data
regarding populations within their local areas.
Table 1: Nationally Aggregated Point-in-Time Data for 2019
Population
Total
Sheltered
Unsheltered
Percentage
Change
2018-2019
Percentage
Change
2010-2019
All People
567,715
356,422 (63%)
211,293 (37%)
2.7%
-11%
Individuals*
396,045
199,531 (50.3%)
196,514 (49.6%)
6.3%
0.2%
Veterans
37,085
22,740 (61%)
14,345 (39%)
-2.1%
-50%
Chronically Homeless
People
96,141
35,200 (37%)
60,941 (63%)
8.5%
-9.4%
Family Households
53,692
49,344 (92%)
4,348 (8%)
-4.7%
-32.4%
Unaccompanied Youth**
35,038
17,708 (51%)
17,330 (49%)
-3.6%
* “Individual” refers to a person who is not part of a family with children during an episode of homelessness. Individuals may be
experiencing homelessness as single adults, as unaccompanied youth (ages 18-24), or in multiple-adult or multiple-child households.
** HUD and its federal partners selected the PIT counts from January 2017 as the baseline measure of homelessness among
unaccompanied youth. Data on this population are new and potentially still stabilizing, as communities gain experience with
reporting.
Worst-Case Housing. HUD’s Worst Case Housing Needs 2019 Report to Congress, based upon the American
Housing Survey conducted by the Census Bureau in 2017, provides an estimate of how many renters there are
at any given time with worst-case housing needs, indicating that they: 1) have very low incomes, lack housing
assistance, and have severe rent burdens (in approximately 94.9% of cases); 2) live in severely inadequate
housing (in approximately 2.5% of cases); or 3) are experiencing both problems (in approximately 2.6% of
cases). As the report notes: “Among very low-income renters in 2017, 29% of households avoided worst case
needs because they had rental assistance. Another 29% were able to avoid severe housing problems in the
unassisted private rental market. The remaining 43%, however, were left with worst case needs for assisted or
other affordable housing.”
The survey found that there were 7.7 million renter households with worst case needs in 2017, a 7% decline
from an estimated 8.30 million renters with worst-case housing needs in 2015. Over the long term, the
number of households with worst case needs have increased by 54% since 2001, with historic increases
occurring between 2007 and 2011, when the combination of mortgage foreclosures, widespread
unemployment, and shrinking renter incomes dramatically expanded severe housing problems. The reduction
between 2015 and 2017 is largely attributed to economic growth impacted by increased incomes, lower
unemployment and higher labor force participation rates but high rents in proportion to renter incomes
remain dominant among households with worst case needs.
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 5
When compared to representation in the general public, the data also indicates significant over-representation
of: non-Hispanic Black persons, who represent approximately 13% of the total population, but 20.5% of renters
experiencing worst-case housing needs; and Hispanic persons, who represent approximately 16% of the total
population, but 24.4% of renters experiencing worst-case housing needs.
HUD’s 2019 report provides local estimates of worst case housing needs for 25 select metropolitan areas,
representing the 15 largest metropolitan areas and an additional 10 that are a subset of the 16th to 50th
largest metropolitan areas, which can help inform analysis of needs within those communities.
Annual Data
Sources of annual data help us understand and estimate the number and characteristics of people who
experience housing instability or homelessness over the course of a year. Such data are critical to projecting
the level of need in our communities and the resources necessary on an annual basis to provide every
individual and family with an appropriate and effective level of housing assistance and connections to services
to address those needs.
Homeless Management Information Systems: In
Part 2 of the 2017 Annual Homeless Assessment
Report, HUD reports on data that is gathered
through local homeless management information
systems (HMIS). This data estimates the number
and demographics of people who use emergency
shelters and transitional housing projects during a
12-month period.
The most recent report estimated that 1.42
million people experienced homelessness in
shelters at some point during 2017, a 0.3%
decline between 2016 and 2017 and an 11%
decrease since 2010. Local data should be
available through the organization that manages
your local CoC’s HMIS data.
Some notable disparities in the data include:
• African Americans were present in the sheltered homeless population at roughly 3.4 times the rate of the
total U.S. population (43% vs. 12.7%).
• Men outnumbered women (62.4% to 37.6%) among all adults experiencing sheltered homelessness, in
contrast to the U.S. adult population, where the proportion of men to women is roughly equal.
• Adults with disabilities account for 44.4% of all adults experiencing homelessness in shelter over the
course of a year, while they make up only 15.9% of the total U.S. adult population.
System Performance Measures Data: CoCs are required to collect and report annual data on system
performance measures that help communities assess their progress in meeting the needs of people
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 6
experiencing homelessness. By viewing the local homeless response as a coordinated system of assistance
options rather than programs and funding sources that operate independently in a community, stakeholders
can use system performance measures to assess their progress in preventing and ending homelessness and
develop a more complete picture of how well their community is achieving this goal.
State and Local Educational Agency Public School Data: For
understanding the scope and scale of homelessness among youth
and families with children, we also closely consider data gathered
by schools for the U.S. Department of Education. This data from
the McKinney-Vento Education for Homeless Children and Youth
(EHCY) program documents the number of children and youth
enrolled in public schools who are identified as experiencing
homelessness at some point during the school year, including
students who were identified as: unsheltered; in shelters,
transitional housing, or awaiting foster care placement
1
; sharing
the housing of others (“doubled-up”) due to loss of housing,
economic hardship, or a similar reason; or living in hotels/motels
due to the lack of alternative, adequate accommodations.
As documented in table 2, during the 2017-2018 school year:
• A little more than 74% of the students identified as
experiencing homelessness were sharing the housing of other
people due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason;
• A little more than 12% were in shelters, transitional housing, or awaiting foster care placement;
• Nearly 7% were in hotels/motels; and nearly 7% were unsheltered.
• The largest numeric increase was in the category of students who were sharing the housing of other
people, with an increase of more than 129,000 students (a 13% increase) since the 2015-2016 school year.
• The largest percentage increase was in the category of students who were unsheltered, with an increase of
more than 59,282 students (a 137% increase).
The EHCY data doesn’t include young children who are not enrolled in preschool programs administered by
LEAs, youth beyond high-school age, youth receiving an education outside of the public school system, or
those who are disconnected from school entirely. It does, however, help us understand the challenges facing
families, children, and young people in our communities and speaks to the significant need for access to a
range of affordable housing options, including both options that are provided through the private market and
also through publicly subsidized programs.
1
"Awaiting foster care placement” was removed from the definition of homeless children and youths when the McKinney-Vento Act
was amended in 2015. For covered states (i.e., states that have a statutory law that defines or describes the phrase awaiting foster care
placement for the purposes of a program under the McKinney-Vento Act) the effective date for this change was December 10, 2017.
For uncovered states, the effective date for this change was December 10, 2016. As a result, all states reported students as homeless
due to awaiting foster care placement in SY 2015-16, while only a small number of states did so in SYs 2016-17 and 2017-18.
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 7
For the 2019-20 school year, the Department of Education has proposed new data collection requirements
regarding race and ethnicity for students identified as experiencing homelessness, providing communities with
increased understanding of the impact of homelessness among different sub-groups of students, including
those who may be disproportionately impacted.
In addition to the federal data summary, state-level data and local educational agency data are also available.
Table 2: Number of Enrolled Homeless Students: Total and By Primary Nighttime Residence
Residence at Time Initially
Identified as Experiencing
Homelessness
School Year
2015-2016
School Year
2016-2017
School Year
2017-2018
% Change Over
Last 3 School
Years
Total*
1,303,207
1,355,435
1,507,904
15.7%
Shelters, transitional housing,
awaiting foster care placement
187,137 (14.4%)
187,879 (13.9%)
182,659 (12.1%)
-2.4%
Unsheltered
43,245 (3.3%)
50,187 (3.7%)
102,527 (6.8%)
137.1%
Hotels/Motels, due to lack of
alternative, adequate
accommodations
85,026 (6.5%)
90,087 (6.6%)
105,574 (7.0%)
24.2%
Doubled-up/Sharing the housing
of others due to loss of housing,
economic hardship, or a similar
reason
987,799 (75.8%)
1,027,282 (75.8%)
1,117,144 (74.1%)
13.1%
* When comparing the total # of children and youth experiencing homelessness enrolled by grade level with the total # of children and
youth experiencing homelessness enrolled by primary nighttime residence for any given school year, readers may note a small
difference. Each school year, a small number of enrolled children and youth were missing a primary nighttime residence category.
Importance of Gathering Real-Time Data
In addition to being able to analyze and use the sources of data described above to develop estimates and
projections, to drive resource decisions, and to measure progress, in order to provide specific housing and
services interventions to households on a day-to-day basis, however, communities also need to develop real-
time information regarding everyone experiencing homelessness. Real-time data is critically important to have
the most current, actionable information possible and also because people’s living situations and services
needs are not static but, rather, can change over time and even from day to day.
Communities are using “by-name lists” or “active lists” to ensure that on any given day, they have full and
reliable information about everyone experiencing homelessness within their communities, sometimes
beginning with specific subpopulations, such as Veterans or people who are chronically homelessness, but with
intent to develop capacity to have such real-time information for everyone. In some communities, those “by-
name lists” are embedded within their HMIS and other data systems, and communities are also enhancing
their capacity to use HMIS data and reporting to strengthen performance measurement, streamline referral
processes, and strengthen the implementation of coordinated entry systems.
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 8
Responding to the Data at the Local Level
Individuals and families across the United States need the foundation of safe and stable housing to achieve their educational, professional, and personal goals.
All these sources of data are critical to understanding and responding to homelessness and housing needs in our communities. When looked at
comprehensively, the data helps to ensure that we respond with the right solutions, at the right scale, to address current and projected housing needs and
crises.
Communities should use this full range of data on the different experiences of individuals and families to respond with a full array of service and housing
interventions and opportunities— prevention and diversion, crisis services, emergency shelter, affordable housing, rapid re-housing, supportive housing, and
other tailored solutions and services—that can help households attain and sustain housing and help set them on a path to lasting success.
As described within table 3 below, there is no one-size-fits-all solution, and it is important to remember that the living situations of households experiencing
homelessness are not static. But the data can help drive conversations about your community’s current resources and efforts to end homelessness and to
address a broad range of housing and other service needs. For instance, around the country there have been local partnerships to more closely integrate
housing and education supports for transition-aged youth as well as housing and early care and education supports for parenting heads of household. You can
find other Tools for Action on our website to help your community implement strategies described below.
Table 3: Key Questions in Response to Your Community’s Data
If your data indicates …
Discuss the following key questions …
A large or increasing
unsheltered
population
Can your community deploy additional strategies to strengthen and coordinate outreach and engagement to ensure all
people experiencing unsheltered homelessness are being identified, are known by name, regularly contacted, and
understand the shelter, services, and housing opportunities available to them?
Can your community assess whether there are subpopulations among the unsheltered population that are increasing,
such as youth under 25 or survivors of domestic violence, in order to develop targeted outreach and engagement
strategies?
Have you obtained aggregate LEA or county-level counts of students identified as experiencing unsheltered
homelessness? Student Primary Nighttime Residence (PNR) counts by CoC are also included in a crosswalk of CoC, LEA,
and RHY contacts.
As you consider shelter utilization rates, can your community assess the current shelter model and identify
opportunities to increase shelter utilization, such as through removing or lowering barriers that prevent people from
seeking, accessing, or being eligible for shelter, or through implementation of age- and culturally appropriate practices?
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 9
Can your community implement efforts to reduce lengths of stay in emergency shelter and improve housing placement
rates through a variety of strategies and resources, including problem-solving services, rapid re-housing opportunities,
and connections to other affordable housing opportunities, therefore maximizing the number of households that can be
assisted each year through the existing supply of shelter?
Can your community prioritize and target people who are long-term stayers in shelter for specialized service and
housing interventions, like supportive housing, in order to reduce the number of people who are using a significant
number of bed nights and maximize the number of people that can be assisted?
Can your community also maximize shelter capacity by strengthening diversion efforts, assisting people experiencing
housing crises to not have to enter emergency shelter to access assistance by helping them retain or identify
immediate safe alternate housing arrangements and, if necessary, connecting them with other services and financial
assistance to help them access or sustain permanent housing?
Can your community strengthen prevention and in-reach efforts to prevent unsheltered homelessness through
stronger discharge planning practices in coordination with public systems, including but not limited to state institutions,
county facilities, hospitals, and foster care and child welfare agencies?
Can your community strengthen efforts to link people who are unsheltered to permanent housing opportunities even if
they do not enter shelter?
If you have a growing population of unsheltered people within specific population groups, such as youth under 25,
families with children, survivors of domestic violence, people with disabilities, or others, can your community expand the
scope and scale of available population-specific housing and services interventions?
Can your community prioritize people in such circumstances for access to employment and job placement services,
and other mainstream resources and programs, to help increase their incomes and to access other housing
opportunities and ensure their successful stabilization in that housing?
Can your community assess factors influencing demand for shelter, such as seasonal variations, eviction rates, and/or
changes in housing market, and determine whether, even if all the strategies above are implemented, additional low-
barrier temporary shelter opportunities are necessary in order both to protect people’s health and safety and to provide
rapid exits from homelessness to permanent housing?
A large or increasing
sheltered population
Can your community implement efforts to reduce lengths of stay in emergency shelter and improve housing placement
rates through a variety of strategies and resources, including problem-solving services, rapid re-housing opportunities,
and connections to other affordable housing opportunities, therefore maximizing the number of households that can be
assisted each year through the existing supply of shelter?
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 10
Can your community prioritize and target any people who are long-term stayers in shelter for specialized service and
housing interventions, like supportive housing, in order to reduce the number of people who are using a significant
number of bed nights and maximize the number of people that can be assisted?
If you have a growing population of sheltered people within specific population groups, such as youth under 25, families
with children, survivors of domestic violence, people with disabilities, or others, can your community expand the scope
and scale of available population-specific housing and services interventions?
Have you obtained aggregate LEA or county-level counts of students identified as experiencing sheltered homelessness?
Student Primary Nighttime Residence (PNR) counts by CoC are also included in a crosswalk of CoC, LEA, and RHY
contacts.
Can your community maximize shelter capacity by strengthening diversion efforts, assisting people experiencing
housing crises to not have to enter emergency shelter to access assistance by helping them retain or identify
immediate safe alternate housing arrangements and, if necessary, connecting them with other services and financial
assistance to help them access or sustain permanent housing?
Can your community prioritize people staying in shelter for access to employment and job placement services and
other supportive services, including child care and transportation, to help ensure their successful stabilization in
permanent housing?
Can your community assess factors influencing demand for shelter, such as seasonal variations, eviction rates, and/or
changes in housing market, and determine whether, even if all the strategies above are implemented, additional low-
barrier temporary shelter opportunities are necessary in order both to protect people’s health and safety and to provide
rapid exits from homelessness to permanent housing?
Can your community strengthen efforts to link people who are unsheltered to permanent housing opportunities,
reducing potential demand for shelter?
A large or increasing
number of people
paying for their own
temporary stays in
hotels/motels due to
lack of stable housing
Can your community partner with owners/operators of hotels/motels to regularly identify and engage people who are
staying in such temporary living arrangements to assess their risks and safety and to make sure they understand any
services and housing opportunities available to them or for which they may be prioritized?
Have you obtained aggregate LEA or county-level counts of students identified as living in motels/hotels? Student
Primary Nighttime Residence (PNR) counts by CoC are also included in a crosswalk of CoC, LEA, and RHY contacts.
Can your community provide people who are living in hotels/motels at their own expense with improved access to
permanent housing options for which they are eligible, or assist them to find other safe, temporary living arrangements
while they obtain permanent housing?
Navigating Homelessness and Housing Needs Data: Tailoring and Driving Local Solutions Updated July 2020
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 11
Can your community prioritize people staying in hotels/motels for access to employment and job placement services,
and other mainstream resources and programs, to help them increase their incomes and access other housing
opportunities and to ensure their successful stabilization in permanent housing?
Can your community identify resources to assist households to exit these living arrangements through a variety of
strategies and resources, including problem-solving services, rapid re-housing opportunities, and connections to other
affordable housing opportunities?
Can your community increase access to units in the private rental market through partnerships with owners and
landlords, assistance to reduce screening barriers, flexible financial assistance, and other landlord incentives?
Can your community assess whether the pipeline of affordable housing meets the projected needs within the
community for all populations and, if needed, seek strategies to expand affordable housing opportunities, including
through changes to regulations regarding land use and zoning requirements and through funding the development of
dedicated affordable units, to provide appropriate and affordable alternatives?
A large or increasing
number of people
sharing the housing of
others due to loss of
housing, economic
hardship, or a similar
reason
Can your community improve efforts and strengthen partnerships to identify those sharing the housing of others to
assess their risks and safety and to make sure they understand any services and housing opportunities available to them
or for which they may be prioritized?
Have you obtained aggregate LEA or county-level counts of students identified as doubled-up? Student Primary
Nighttime Residence (PNR) counts by CoC are also included in a crosswalk of CoC, LEA, and RHY contacts.
Can your community provide people who are temporarily sharing the housing of others with improved access to other
permanent housing options for which they are eligible, or assist them to find other safe, temporary living arrangements
while they obtain permanent housing?
Can your community prioritize people in such circumstances for access to employment and job placement services,
and other mainstream resources and programs, to help increase their incomes and to access other housing
opportunities and ensure their successful stabilization in that housing?
Can your community identify resources to assist households to exit these living arrangements through a variety of
strategies and resources, including problem-solving services, rapid re-housing opportunities, and connections to other
affordable housing opportunities?
Can your community increase access to units in the private rental market through partnerships with owners and
landlords, assistance to reduce screening barriers, flexible financial assistance, and other landlord incentives?
Can your community assess whether the pipeline of affordable housing meets the projected needs within the
community for all populations and, if needed, seek strategies to expand affordable housing opportunities, including
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United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 12
through changes to regulations regarding land use and zoning requirements and through funding the development of
dedicated affordable units, to provide appropriate and affordable alternatives?
A large or increasing
number of people
experiencing worst-
case housing needs
Can your community improve efforts and strengthen partnerships to identify those experiencing worst case housing
needs to assess their risks and safety and to make sure they understand any services and housing opportunities available
to them or for which they may be prioritized?
Can your community identify those living in severely inadequate conditions and prioritize them for crisis services or
assist them to find alternate safe temporary or permanent living arrangements, and connect them with other services
and financial assistance to help them access or sustain permanent housing?
Have you obtained aggregate LEA or county-level counts of students identified as experiencing homelessness? Primary
Nighttime Residence (PNR) counts by CoC are also included in a crosswalk of CoC, LEA, and RHY contacts.
Can your community provide people who are experiencing worst case housing needs with improved access to other
permanent housing options for which they are eligible, or assist them to find other safe, temporary living arrangements
while they obtain permanent housing?
Can your community prioritize people experiencing worst case housing needs for access to employment and job
placement services, and other mainstream resources and programs, to help increase their incomes, to reduce their
housing cost burdens, and/or to help them access other housing opportunities and ensure their successful stabilization in
that housing?
Can your community identify resources to assist households to exit these living arrangements through a variety of
strategies and resources, including problem-solving services, rapid re-housing opportunities, and connections to other
affordable housing opportunities?
Can your community increase access to more affordable units in the private rental market through partnerships with
owners and landlords, assistance to reduce screening barriers, flexible financial assistance, and other landlord
incentives?
Can your community assess whether the pipeline of affordable housing meets the projected needs within the
community for all populations and, if needed, seek strategies to expand affordable housing opportunities, including
through changes to regulations regarding land use and zoning requirements and through funding the development of
dedicated affordable units, to provide appropriate and affordable alternatives?
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United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 13
Appendix: Federal Definitions of Homelessness
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
HUD defines homelessness for their programming into four categories. The categories are:
Category 1: Literally Homeless
Individual or family who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, meaning:
(i) Has a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not meant for human habitation;
(ii) Is living in a publicly or privately operated shelter designated to provide temporary living arrangements
(including congregate shelters, transitional housing, and hotels and motels paid for by charitable
organizations or by federal, state, and local government programs); or
(iii) Is exiting an institution where (s)he has resided for 90 days or less and who resided in an emergency
shelter or place not meant for human habitation immediately before entering that institution
Category 2: Imminent Risk of Homelessness
Individual or family who will imminently lose their primary nighttime residence, provided that:
(i) Residence will be lost within 14 days of the date of application for homeless assistance;
(ii) No subsequent residence has been identified; and
(iii) The individual or family lacks the resources or support networks needed to obtain other permanent
housing
Category 3: Homeless Under Other Federal Statutes
Unaccompanied youth under 25 years of age, or families with children and youth, who do not otherwise
qualify as homeless under this definition, but who:
(i) Are defined as homeless under the other listed federal statutes;
(ii) Have not had a lease, ownership interest, or occupancy agreement in permanent housing during the
60 days prior to the homeless assistance application;
(iii) Have experienced persistent instability as measured by two moves or more during in the preceding 60
days; and
(iv) Can be expected to continue in such status for an extended period of time due to special needs or
barriers
Category 4: Fleeing/Attempting to Flee Domestic Violence
Any individual or family who:
(i) Is fleeing or attempting to flee their housing or the place they are staying because of domestic violence,
dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, or other dangerous or life-threatening conditions related to
violence that has taken place in the house or has made them afraid to return to the house, including:
• Trading sex for housing
• Trafficking
• Physical abuse
• Violence (or perceived threat of violence) because of the youth’s sexual orientation;
(ii) Has no other residence; and
(iii) Lacks the resources or support networks to obtain other permanent housing.
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United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 14
Department of Education (ED)
Subtitle VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. § 11434a(2)) defines homeless children
and youth as: A) individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence (within the meaning of
section 11302(a)(1) of this title); and B) includes
i. children and youths who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic
hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of
alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; or are abandoned in
hospitals;
ii. children and youths who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed
for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings (within the meaning of section
11302(a)(2)(C) of this title);
iii. children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing,
bus or train stations, or similar settings; and
iv. migratory children (as such term is defined in section 6399 of title 20) who qualify as homeless for the
purposes of this subtitle because the children are living in circumstances described in clauses (i) through
(iii).
Subtitle VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act defines ‘unaccompanied youth’ as a homeless child
or youth not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian (42 U.S.C. § 11434a(6)).
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
Runaway and Homeless Youth Act
The Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (RHYA) (42 U.S.C. §5732a) defines homeless youth as individuals who are
“less than 21 years of age … for whom it is not possible to live in a safe environment with a relative and who have
no other safe alternative living arrangement.” This definition, used for the Basic Center and Transitional Living
programs, includes only those youth who are unaccompanied by families or caregivers. Additionally,
• For the Basic Center Program, a homeless youth is an individual who is less than 18 years of age, or is less
than a higher maximum age if the state where the center is located has an applicable state or local law
(including a regulation) that permits such higher maximum age in compliance with licensure requirements
for child-and youth-serving facilities.
• For the Transitional Living Program, the age is defined as 16-21 years of age, or 22 years of age if previously
in care under certain circumstances.
In addition, the Basic Center Program serves:
• Runaway Youth: An individual who is less than 18 years of age and who absents himself or herself from
home or a place of legal residence without the permission of a parent or legal guardian, and
• Youth at Risk of Separation from the Family: An individual— (A) who is less than 18 years of age; and (B) (i)
who has a history of running away from the family of such individual; (ii) whose parent, guardian, or
custodian is not willing to provide for the basic needs of such individual; or (iii) who is at risk of entering the
child welfare system or juvenile justice system as a result of the lack of services available to the family to
meet such needs.
The Street Outreach Program also uses the following definition of ‘street youth’: An individual who— (A) is— (i) a
runaway youth; or (ii) indefinitely or intermittently a homeless youth; and (B) spends a significant amount of time
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United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 15
on the street or in other areas that increase the risk to such youth for sexual abuse, sexual exploitation,
prostitution, or drug abuse.
Public Health Services Act
Section 254(b) of the Public Health Services Act established requirements for health centers. Part of these
requirements include serving people experiencing homelessness, who meet the following definitions:
Homeless individual: The term "homeless individual" means an individual who lacks housing (without regard
to whether the individual is a member of a family), including an individual whose primary residence during the
night is a supervised public or private facility that provides temporary living accommodations and an
individual who is a resident in transitional housing.
The Act allows health centers to continue providing care to formerly homeless individuals in permanent housing
for up to 12 additional months.
