Across the country, The United States is experiencing an influx of homelessness, and the great state of Texas is certainly not immune to the problem. While it can be challenging to actually pin down how many Americans and Texans are experiencing homelessness, the National Alliance to End Homelessness is doing its best to understand the numbers. So let’s find out: How much of Texas is homeless?
There are currently around 27,229 homeless people living within Texas’ borders. Texas has the second highest general population in the county, the fourth biggest population of homelessness. With 9.4 homeless people for every 10,000 people in the state, homelessness in Texas is a big problem.
In this article, we will discuss how Texas’ homelessness compares to the rest of the country, why it is happening, and where in Texas, homelessness is the most prominent. If you want to understand how much of Texas is homeless, we have everything you need to know right here.
How Many People In Texas Are Homeless?
Before we dig into why the homeless problem in Texas is so prevalent, it’s important to understand the exact numbers and how they compare to the rest of the country.
The current calculation of homelessness in Texas states that there are 27,229 people in the state living without a roof over their heads.
That means that 9.4 out of every 10,000 people in Texas are homeless. Compared to the other 49 states, Texas’ large population means that this statistic puts Texas as number 19 for homelessness per capita.
However, because Texas has the second largest general population in the country, the sheer number of homeless people makes the state have the fourth highest population of homeless people in the United States.
Throughout the United States, the National Alliance to End Homelessness has counted 568,000 people experiencing homelessness. That means that 4.8% of the country’s homeless live in Texas.
Now that you understand how much of Texas is homeless and how that population compares to the rest of the country, it’s important to understand why there are so many homeless in Texas.
Why Are There So Many Homeless in Texas?
There are many reasons why so many Americans are experiencing homelessness: Poverty, unemployment, untreated mental illness, and a lack of housing.
While the homeless in Texas may be experiencing one or even all of these problems, specifically, Texas is troubled with an extreme housing crisis in 2022. Housing is becoming less and less affordable as Americans are migrating to the state from other areas of the country, and those who cannot afford to keep up are either losing their homes or are unable to find housing to get them off the streets.
In Texas, 3.984 million people live below the poverty line, which is about 13% of the state’s population. The national average is only 11%, so you can start to understand why so many Texans are struggling.
In addition to housing affordability and poverty, studies have shown that race and social status also affect a person or family’s likelihood to become or stay homeless.
In Texas, African Americans make up 12.9% of the total population but 37.2% of the homeless throughout the state.
There are many problems that people face that lead to homelessness throughout the country and in Texas, but the truth is that the increase in housing and the stagnancy of the minimum wage in Texas is certainly influencing the homeless problem in the state.
Where in Texas is Homelessness the Worst?
Texas is a giant state with dozens of counties and a handful of major metropolitan cities. So, of course, the homeless population is not evenly spread out throughout the state.
While the average rate in Texas for homelessness is 9 for every 10,000 people, it varies throughout the major cities and is considerably higher than in the rural areas.
- Austin & Travis County: 18.1 for every 10,000.
- Dallas & Collin County: 12.5 for every 10,000.
- Houston, Pasadena, Harris County, Fort Bend County, and Montgomery County: 6.5 for every 10,000.
- San Antonio and Bexar County: 14.5 for every 10,000.
It is fairly common knowledge that homelessness is usually more prevalent in large cities as there are more resources for the homeless, and it is easier for them to get around without personal transportation; however, in some Texas cities, as you can see, the homeless population per capita is almost double than it is in other areas of the state.
The Bottom Line
When you look at the statistics, while only 9.4 people of every 10,000 who live in Texas are experiencing homelessness, there are more than 27,229 people living without homes throughout the state of Texas.
Homelessness in Texas is certainly a problem that the National Alliance to End Homelessness is trying to solve, but with such a big population and all the problems people are experiencing, it really feels like an uphill battle.
