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On any given night in Florida, an estimated 28,498 individuals experience homelessness.
A common misconception is that all people experiencing homelessness are “broken,” should be in mental health institutions, or are a danger to themselves or others. The data tells a different story.
20% are chronically homeless — meaning they have a disability and have experienced long-term or repeated episodes of homelessness.
17% report having a severe mental illness.
13% have a substance use disorder.
These numbers are not mutually exclusive, as some individuals experience both mental illness and substance use challenges.
Most people with a mental illness or substance use disorder are housed, and most people without housing are not a danger to themselves or others. The primary reason people experience homelessness is simple — they cannot find housing they can afford. Each person’s story is unique, and grouping everyone into a single narrative is neither accurate nor helpful.
For more information about homelessness in Florida, please see the infographic below.
28,498
homeless
In 1970, there were 6.5 million low-cost rental units in the US and 6.2 million low-income renter households with 300,000 units available to households. By 1985, the number of low-cost units had fallen to 5.6 million and the number of low-income renter households had grown to 8.9 million, a disparity of 3.3 million units.
According to the University of Florida Shimberg Center for Housing Studies, Florida has only 24 affordable and available rental units for every 100 households with incomes of 0-30 percent of AMI, a deficit of 391,382 units. Severely disabled individuals in this State cannot find housing. Homeless Continuums of Care use PSH vouchers to subsidize market rental for chronically homeless (severely disabled, long term homeless) persons. They currently support nearly 18,000 severely disabled individuals in housing units across the State.
Florida added over 700,000 units with gross rents above $1,200 from 2012 to 2022 but lost nearly 292,000 units renting for $1,200 or less. To afford a 1,200 unit, a household would need to make $48,000 per year. Full time minimum wage workers earn $27,040 per year and seniors are completely priced out.
Affordable housing is not always available for individuals experiencing homelessness. Barriers continue to exist with income verification, eviction or criminal backgrounds that may effect someone’s ability to find a rental. That is why housing set aside for persons experiencing homelessness is so important.
Over the past 10 years, there was a reduction in shelter beds (-3776), mostly due to reallocation of resources from transitional shelter to rapid rehousing. There are a total of 18,250 shelter beds in the State, including 12,874 emergency shelter, 5,226 transitional housing, and 142 safe haven beds. Of these beds, there are 2,142 beds for victims of domestic violence, 1,015 for veterans and 686 for youth that are not open to anyone, even if the bed is empty on any given night. Overall, 86% of all shelter beds were occupied during the last point in time count (January 2024).
The number of housing beds available to individuals experiencing homelessness has not increased significantly over the past 10 years. Housing with short to medium term housing assistance (Rapid Rehousing) increased by 4,309 beds, and long-term housing (Supportive Housing and Other Permanent Housing dedicated to persons experiencing homelessness) increased by 4,246 beds- mostly through Public Housing Authorities prioritizing persons experiencing homelessness through the Housing Choice Voucher Program, including the addition of Emergency Housing Vouchers prioritizing persons experiencing homelessness. This is primarily due to appropriations for homeless programs not keeping up with rental increases.
Many of these shelter and permanent housing beds are voucher based – which requires the availability of hotel/motel (shelter) or rental housing to place individuals.
The US Department of Housing and Urban Development provides an annual CoC Dashboard to provide an overview of the resources that are available in each community. We welcome you to review the dashboards for your community.
Florida’s Continuums of Care (CoCs) coordinate community-wide efforts to prevent and end homelessness in their designated regions. Under state and federal law, each CoC is responsible for leading a collaborative, integrated housing crisis response system.
Every CoC must develop a plan to effectively and efficiently respond to homelessness, including:
Outreach to connect unsheltered individuals and families with housing and services.
Coordinated Entry System to assess needs, prioritize households, and link them to the right housing intervention.
Emergency Shelter to provide safe, short-term housing while securing permanent options.
Supportive Services to help households remain stable in housing.
Permanent Supportive Housing for people with disabilities exiting homelessness.
Rapid ReHousing to quickly move households into permanent homes.
Permanent Housing Connections including affordable housing, rental assistance, housing vouchers, and private market options.
Ongoing Planning to address the needs of all subpopulations experiencing homelessness.
CoCs are the backbone of Florida’s homelessness response system—bringing together partners, securing funding, and building solutions that connect people to housing, services, and stability.