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Causes of Homelessness:
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Work is the chief source of income for homeless people, followed by public benefits. However, increases in work wages and public benefits have not kept pace with the increase in living expenses over the last several decades. As a result, poor people have become increasingly less able to afford housing.
A 1996 survey conducted by homeless assistance providers found that single homeless persons reported a mean income of $348 during the last 30 days, and homeless families reported a mean income of $475. These amounts were less than half of the 1996 federal poverty level of $680/month for one person and $1,023/month for a family of three.
Single homeless persons received only 12% of the median monthly income of all American households in 1995 ($2,840) in the month before being interviewed, and homeless families received only 17%.
Forty-four percent of homeless persons did paid work during the past month. Of these, 20% worked in a job lasting or expected to last at least three months. Twenty-five percent worked at a temporary or day labor job, 2% earned money by peddling or selling personal belongings, and 3% reported more than one source of earned income.
The Census Bureau estimated that 32.3 million people lived at or below
the poverty line in 1999. These people are at serious risk of
homelessness. About one in ten of the extremely poor become homeless.
Additionally, minimum wage earnings no longer lift families above the poverty line. More than 3 million poor Americans spend more than half of their total income on housing, yet the Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates families should spend no more than 30%. Although 20% of homeless adults are employed, many work in day-labor jobs that do not meet basic needs.
Sources
Homelessness: Programs and the People They Serve -
Highlights Report. (1996) National Survey of Homeless Assistance Providers
and Clients. HUD USER Policy Development & Research Information
Service. Retrieved on August 18, 2001, from http://www.huduser.org/
publications/homeless/homelessness/highrpt.html
Causes of Homelessness in America. (n.d.) National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty. Retrieved on August 18, 2001, from http://www.nlchp.org/causes.htm
Poverty: 1999 Highlights. (n.d.) U.S. Census Bureau.
Retrieved on August 18, 2001, from http://www.census.gov/hhes/poverty/
poverty99/pov99hi.html
