Rachel Sheffield
In 2024, the U.S. saw the largest spike in homelessness since the federal government began regularly collecting data in 2007. This wasn’t a fluke. U.S. homelessness has been on a steep and steady climb—and immigration is largely responsible.
U.S. homelessness hit record highs in both 2023 and 2024, in large part because of major increases in homelessness in New York, Illinois and Massachusetts. On their own, these states account for roughly two-thirds of the growth in homelessness in the U.S. last year.
What’s the common denominator? These states all house large cities (New York City, Chicago and Boston) that have declared themselves “sanctuary cities” and whose shelters have been inundated with soaring numbers of immigrants here illegally—causing the homeless population to skyrocket.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s annual homelessness report, released in December 2024, explains that New York City asylum seekers “accounted for almost 88 percent of the increase in sheltered homelessness in New York City.”
State Cash for Illegal Aliens as Homeless Vets Are Left in the Cold
Nearly all (89%) of New York’s homeless are in New York City, and nearly all (96%) of the homeless in New York are considered sheltered. Thus, the influx of asylum seekers is largely responsible for the large growth in homelessness in New York City—and therefore for most of the state’s homelessness increase.
Illinois tells a similar story. There, 2024 brought a massive 116% increase in homelessness—the largest increase in the country. More than half of the increase in the state’s homeless population was due to an increase in immigrants in Chicago homeless shelters.
Massachusetts saw a 53% rise in homelessness in 2024, also greatly attributed to immigration.
The story of the rise in homelessness in 2024, particularly the rise in sheltered homelessness, very much revolves around illegal immigration.
In the coming months, » Read More
https://www.heritage.org/housing/commentary/why-homelessness-skyrocketed-2024-and-what-do-about-it