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 August 30, 2024, there are 3,169 individuals experiencing homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. This total includes 1,815 single individuals, 146 unaccompanied youth, 346 households with minor children (totaling 1,145 people), and 49 families with multiple adults (totaling 88 people). Included in the total of 3,169 individuals, 180 are homeless Veterans, and 753 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 3,169.
Considering inflow (into homelessness) and outflow (out of homelessness), here are some noteworthy trends:
- Between July and August 2024, there was a 89 person increase in the total number of people experiencing homelessness. There has been a 21% (or 553 person) increase in overall homelessness since August 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 August 2024, 1,060 individuals entered homelessness (inflow) and 836 people exited (outflow). Of the 1,060 individuals entering homelessness, 74% (789) were newly identified, 9% (98) returned to homelessness from permanent housing and 16% (173) returned from an inactive status. Of the 836 individuals exiting homelessness, 27% (226) moved to permanent housing and 73% (610) exited homelessness to an inactive status, which means that they had not been engaged in services for the previous 30 days.
- Between July 2024 and August 2024, homelessness increased among all household types and subpopulations. The number of veterans experiencing homelessness increased by 13 veterans. The number of families with minor children increased by 9 households; the number of families with multiple adults increased by 5 households; the number of single individuals increased by 61; and unaccompanied youth increased by 13. The number of people experiencing chronic homelessness increased by 7 individuals. Finally, the median number of days it takes to exit homelessness into housing increased from 200 days to 282 days and the average number of days it takes to exit homelessness into housing decreased from 670 days to 609 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 (72% vs. 33%) while individuals who identify as White, non-Hispanic experience homelessness at a rate much lower than their prevalence in the population (15% 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.
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 August there was a slight increase in the overall number of people experiencing homelessness with the greatest increases among single adults and persons in families with minor children. We continue to see increases in the number of people who are newly identified which means they have not had any engagement with the homeless services system in the previous 24 months. This suggests the need for continued investment in and scaling of community efforts to prevent people from becoming homeless. Homelessness prevention is essential to make homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
