The following information comes from the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA):
INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA) has released the statewide findings from the 2023 Point-in-Time Homeless Count. Conducted every January, the count provides a snapshot of homelessness in the State of Indiana.
Taking place on January 25, 2023, the Point-in-Time Homeless Count is a requirement by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for every community receiving federal funds for programs to aid the homeless. The count is mandated to take place at least biennially during the last two weeks of January.
While the amount of federal allocations is not directly based on the findings of the Point-in-Time Homeless Count, HUD considers the outcomes and justifications for upwards and downward swings as additional information for tracking purposes and future strategies. Indiana’s Point-in-Time Homeless Count takes place on a yearly basis, with Indiana Balance of State Continuum of Care & IHCDA, the Coalition for Homelessness Intervention and Prevention (CHIP) and the South Bend Continuum of Care conducting counts covering all 92 counties.
The 2023 count demonstrated a 19% increase in overall homelessness from last year, with a total of 4,398 persons without a home on January 25th. The number of sheltered individuals was 3,594 while 804 remained unsheltered. Of these 1165 suffer with a serious mental illness, 848 have a substance abuse disorder, 36 had HIV/AIDS. 328 persons were Veterans.
Gender 65% were Male , 35% Female Race 68% were White, 25% were Black, 4.5% were Multi-racial, Indigenous, Pacific Islanders or Asians less than 1 %
In comparison, the following are the numbers from the 2015 PIT Count.
Breaking down populations by category, Indiana’s 2015 Point-in-Time Homeless Count observed:
5,863 persons comprising 4,470 households were homeless during the last week in January 2015
Of the persons found and identified as experiencing homelessness:
5,281 were staying in emergency shelters, safe havens or in temporary transitional housing programs
582 were unsheltered ( on the streets)
3,798 households were persons without dependent children
636 households were with dependent children
1,261 were under the age of 18 years old
794 of the adults counted were veterans
1,145 of the adults counted were persons fleeing from domestic violence
602 identified themselves as being characterized as "chronically homeless"
1,026 adults counted identified themselves as having a substance abuse disorder
1,099 of the adults counted identified themselves as having a serious mental illness
The Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA), provides housing opportunities, promotes self-sufficiency and strengthens communities in order to build an Indiana with a sustainable quality of life for all Hoosiers in the community of their choice. For more information, visit www.in.gov/ihcda
Helping Our Own People, Inc P.O. Box 11774 Indianapolis, IN 46201