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.
DASHBOARD UPDATES
When the One Number was relaunched in March 2024, one of the enhancements was to expand the age data presentation to include both the overall age data and age by both household type and subpopulation. This month’s update includes an expansion of race and ethnicity data. We are pleased to now be able to present household type and both veteran and chronic homelessness data disaggregated by race and ethnicity. In addition, previously age data was presented as count data. To increase the ease with which the community can use these data for advocacy purposes and to inform decision-making, we are now presenting the age categories as percentages. Future enhancements to the dashboard will include the addition of gender identity and Coordinated Entry data.
HOUSEHOLD TYPES AND SUBPOPULATIONS BY RACE AND ETHNICITY
In general, we see consistency in the racial breakdown of the overall homeless population with an overrepresentation of people who identify as Black, African American, or African alone (73%-75%) and an underrepresentation of people who identify as White alone (13%-15%) and Hispanic/Latin(a)(e)(o) alone (2%-4%). When we examine June 2024 data by household type and subpopulation type, we do see some variation. Among single adults, we see lower percentages of people who identify as Black, African American, or African alone (69%) and higher percentages of those who identify as White alone (20%) than the overall homeless population. Among families with minor children, we see higher percentages of people who identify as Black, African American, or African alone (83%) and a much lower percentage of those who identify as White alone (5%) compared to the overall population. Among multiple adult households we see a lower percentage of people who identify as Black, African American, or African alone (63%) and higher percentages of people who identify as White alone (26%). Among unaccompanied youth, we see similar percentages of those who identify as Black, African American, or African alone (71%) as the overall population but lower percentages of those who identify as White (10%) and twice as many people who identify as Hispanic/Latin(a)(e)(o) alone (8%).Among veterans, we see slightly lower rates of people who identify as Black, African American, or African alone (71%) and slightly higher percentages of those who identify as White alone (16%). Finally, among those who meet the criteria for chronic homelessness, we see lower percentages of people who identify as Black, African American, or African alone (67%) and much higher percentages of people who identify as White alone (24%).
LATEST DATA & TRENDS
As of June 30, 2024, there are 2,784 individuals experiencing homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. This total includes 1,624 single individuals, 122 unaccompanied youth, 291 households with minor children (totaling 975 people), and 37 families with multiple adults (totaling 73 people). Included in the total of 2,784 individuals, 180 are homeless Veterans, and 680 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 2,784.
Considering inflow (into homelessness) and outflow (out of homelessness), here are some noteworthy trends:
- Between May and June 2024, there was a 142 person decrease in the total number of people experiencing homelessness. There has been a 14% (or 351 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 June 2024, 837 individuals entered homelessness (inflow) and 687 people exited (outflow). Of the 837 individuals entering homelessness, 71% (597) were newly identified, whereas 11% (91) represented returns to homelessness from permanent housing and 18% (149) returned from an inactive status. Of the 687 individuals exiting homelessness, 31% (210) moved to permanent housing and 69% (477) exited homelessness to an inactive status, which means that they had not been engaged in services for the previous 30 days.
- Between May 2024 and June 2024, homelessness decreased among all household types and subpopulations except multiple adult households and those experiencing chronic homelessness. The number of families with minor children decreased by 18 households; the number of families with multiple adults increased by 3 households; the number of single individuals decreased by 226; and unaccompanied youth decreased by 27. In addition, the number of Veterans experiencing homelessness decreased by 12; and people experiencing chronic homelessness increased by 38 individuals. Finally, the median number of days it takes to exit homelessness into housing increased from 288 days to 300 days and the average number of days it takes to exit homelessness into housing increased from 638 days to 727 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 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 providing insights into resource needs and opportunities for system improvement. When disaggregated by household type, subpopulation type, and demographic characteristics, these data can be used to inform person-centered interventions and system level strategies to decrease disparities and address homelessness effectively in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
