One Number Update:
Mary Ann Priester
Senior Management Analyst
Mecklenburg County Community Support Services
Since its inception in 2019, the “One Number” has served as the primary benchmark for the number of people experiencing homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
Generated from the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS), the One Number encompasses individuals enrolled in Emergency Shelter (ES), Transitional Housing (TH), Street Outreach (SO), Permanent Housing (PH) (if no move-in date to housing is recorded yet) and Coordinated Entry (CE) programs in HMIS. It includes both those experiencing sheltered homelessness and a portion of those experiencing unsheltered homelessness. It also provides a comprehensive By-Name List of each person experiencing homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
The Housing Data Snapshot, the hub for the latest data related to housing and homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg, not only provides an overall count and demographics of homelessness by household type and subpopulation, it also highlights inflow to (Newly identified, Returns from Permanent Housing, Returns for Inactivity) and outflow from (Exit to Permanent Housing, Exit to Inactivity), homelessness.
This week’s blog post provides the most recent One Number update; the latest One Number trends and analysis; and what this means for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
LATEST DATA & TRENDS
As of July 31, 2024, there are 3,080 individuals experiencing homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. This total includes 1,754 single individuals, 133 unaccompanied youth, 337 households with minor children (totaling 1,115 people), and 44 families with multiple adults (totaling 84 people). Included in the total of 3,080 individuals, 167 are homeless Veterans, and 746 are individuals who are experiencing chronic homelessness. Based on these data, the minimum number of people experiencing homelessness right now (and therefore, the minimum number of housing units and/or subsidies needed) in Charlotte-Mecklenburg is 3,080.
Considering inflow (into homelessness) and outflow (out of homelessness), here are some noteworthy trends:
- Between June and July 2024, there was a 296 person increase in the total number of people experiencing homelessness. There has been a 27% (or 647 person) increase in overall homelessness since July 2023. As context, during this period there have been significant investments in expanding street outreach and coordinated entry capacity. It is possible that the rise in homelessness is due to, at least in part, enhanced capacity to connect with people experiencing unsheltered and sheltered homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
- In July 2024, 1,051 individuals entered homelessness (inflow) and 686 people exited (outflow). Of the 1,051 individuals entering homelessness, 74% (777) were newly identified, whereas 10% (103) represented returns to homelessness from permanent housing and 16% (171) returned from an inactive status. Of the 686 individuals exiting homelessness, 41% (283) moved to permanent housing and 59% (403) exited homelessness to an inactive status, which means that they had not been engaged in services for the previous 30 days. Notably, despite the increase in the overall number of people experiencing homelessness which is due to the significant increase of people flowing into the system, compared to June 2024, there was a 10% increase (73 people) in the number of people who exited homelessness to permanent housing during the month of July.
- Between June 2024 and July 2024, homelessness increased among all household types and subpopulations except veterans. The number of veterans experiencing homelessness decreased by 13 veterans. The number of families with minor children increased by 46 households; the number of families with multiple adults increased by 7 households; the number of single individuals increased by 130; and unaccompanied youth increased by 11. The number of people experiencing chronic homelessness increased by 66 individuals. Finally, the median number of days it takes to exit homelessness into housing decreased from 300 days to 200 days and the average number of days it takes to exit homelessness into housing decreased from 727 days to 670 days. The median tells us the typical number of days it takes to exit homelessness into housing while the average includes long-stayers in shelter and people experiencing chronic homelessness.
- According to the most recent One Number data, disaggregated by race and ethnicity, individuals who identify as Black/African American continue to experience homelessness at rates much higher than their proportion of the Mecklenburg County population (74% vs. 33%) while individuals who identify as White, non-Hispanic experience homelessness at a rate much lower than their prevalence in the population (14% vs 45%). Individuals who identify as Hispanic/Latino have a prevalence of 4% in the homeless population but comprise 14% of the Mecklenburg County population; this reflects a possible underrepresentation of the people who experience homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg and identify as Hispanic/Latino.
WHY DOES THIS MATTER?
The One Number is the best snapshot available for the number of people actively experiencing homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. It provides the most accurate minimum number of people experiencing homeless and provides insights into the minimum number of housing units and subsidies needed today to address their homelessness. These data also provide timely insights into the number of people flowing into and out of the homeless services system by illuminating resource needs and opportunities for system improvement. During the month of July there were increases in the number of exits to permanent housing and decreases in the number of days people spent homeless which suggests that the system is improving in its capabilities to support rapid exit from homelessness. However, the high number of people experiencing homelessness for the first time in the previous two years suggests the need to scale current coordinated prevention efforts to prevent people from entering homelessness. Charlotte-Mecklenburg can not reach its goal of ensuring homelessness is rare, brief, and non-recurring without resources dedicated to both supporting households in exiting homelessness and to preventing them from becoming homeless in the first place.
