SACRAMENTO – Governor Newsom’s ambitious efforts to address the decades-long homelessness crisis have made California a leader in reducing its growth. While homelessness continues to increase across the nation, California stands out for its ability to blunt the rise and even reduce rates in key areas. New HUD annual point-in-time counts show continued progress that points to a continued reversal of the increased rate of people experiencing homelessness in the state, with roughly no increase in unsheltered homelessness, more people accessing shelter than ever before, and more beds available throughout the state – outperforming the nation as well as historic trends within California.

As states throughout the nation continue to see ever-higher increases in homeless populations, California has dramatically slowed the growth in homelessness and reduced the number of veterans and youth experiencing homelessness — more than any other state.

“No one in our nation should be without a place to call home. Homelessness continues to rise and increase at ever-higher numbers nationwide, but we are seeing signs of progress in California. We have turned the tide on a decades-long increase in homelessness – but we have more work to do. California‘s plan is ambitious and challenging but the data is proving that it is not impossible: our strategies are making a positive difference,” said Governor Gavin Newsom.

Homelessness continued to increase nationwide, increasing in 2024 by more than 18%. California is bucking the national trend by holding the statewide increase to 3%. This is a lower rate than in 40 other states.

California is also one of the few states that have dramatically blunted the increases in unsheltered homelessness, holding it to 0.45%. In 2024, nationwide unsheltered homelessness grew by nearly 7% compared to California’s growth of less than 0.45%. Other large population states like Illinois, Florida, New York, and Texas growth in unsheltered homelessness surpassed California in both terms of percentage and number.

The Newsom Administration is making significant progress in reversing decades of inaction on homelessness. Between 2014-2019, unsheltered homelessness in California increased by approximately 37,000 people — more than double the increase seen during the Newsom Administration. Since 2019, the number of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness has increased by 14.3%, a marked improvement compared to the 51.8% increase during the five years prior to the Newsom Administration.

 (Photo Source：LA County )