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; a synopsis of recent dashboard updates; the latest One Number trends and analysis; and what this means for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
LATEST DATA & TRENDS
As of October 31, 2024, there are 3,244 individuals experiencing homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. This total includes 1,910 single individuals, 168 unaccompanied youth, 316 households with minor children (totaling 1,076 people), and 37 families with multiple adults (totaling 74 people). Included in the total of 3,244 individuals, 169 are homeless Veterans, and 789 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 3,244.
Considering inflow (into homelessness) and outflow (out of homelessness), here are some noteworthy trends:
- Between September and October 2024, there was a 67 person decrease in the total number of people experiencing homelessness. There has been a 15% (or 419 person) increase in overall homelessness since October 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 October 2024, 988 individuals entered homelessness (inflow) and 806 people exited (outflow). Of the 988 individuals entering homelessness, 69% (685) were newly identified, 15% (143) returned to homelessness from permanent housing and 16% (160) returned from an inactive status. Of the 806 individuals exiting homelessness, 36% (290) moved to permanent housing and 64% (516) exited homelessness to an inactive status, which means that they had not been engaged in services for the previous 30 days.
- Between September 2024 and October 2024, homelessness increased among all household types and subpopulations except households with minor children. The number of persons in households with minor children decreased by 145 people. It is important to note that there was only a slight increase in the number of families with minor children who exited to permanent housing. There was a 54% increase in the number of people in families with minor children (229) compared to September exited the system to an inactive status which likely accounts for the significant decrease we see in the overall family with minor children counts. The number of people in multiple adults households increased by 4 people; the number of single individuals increased by 65; and the number of unaccompanied youth increased by 1. The number of veterans experiencing homelessness increased by 7 and the number of people experiencing chronic homelessness increased by 13 individuals. Finally, the median number of days it takes to exit homelessness into housing decreased from 411 days to 261 days and the average number of days it takes to exit homelessness into housing decreased from 794 days to 498 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 (73% 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 only 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.
SO, WHAT
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 October there was an decrease in the overall number of people experiencing homelessness with the greatest decrease among persons in families with minor children. In October, we did see a 16% increase in the number of people flowing into the homeless services system, but we also saw a 16% increase in the number of people flowing out of the homeless services system. We continue to see a rise in the number of people experiencing chronic homelessness who now account for 24% of the overall population. Many people are aging into chronicity which means they are remaining homeless for a year continuous or have experienced homelessness four or more times in the previous three years totaling 12 months. In addition to the need for additional permanent housing resources, particularly for families with minor children and single adults on fixed incomes, additional funding is needed to increase case management capacity across crisis response providers (shelter, street outreach, coordinated entry) to support people in their rapid exit from the homeless services system and to prevent them from becoming chronically homeless.
