Homelessness in New York City

Homelessness is a shared experience in New York City – either you have been homeless, know someone who has been homeless, or have shared the sidewalk or a subway car with someone who is homeless. In a city of 8.4 million people, more than 36,000 homeless men, women and children sleep in homeless shelters and at least 3,000 more sleep on the streets and subways in the dead of winter. This means that one in every 215 New Yorkers is currently homeless.

Homelessness is a broad term that looks different for each person experiencing it. Homelessness is both the problem and the symptom of other problems that can range from chronic substance abuse, financial instability caused by unemployment or underemployment, mental illness, domestic violence, sexual victimization and more. Often, it is a complex set of circumstances, choices, and traumas that lead a person to homelessness. Recovery from homelessness, then, is what our President, Ed Morgan, calls “an affair of the heart.” In other words, recovery must address the holistic needs of each individual – spiritual, emotional and physical.

At The Bowery Mission, we have been helping New Yorkers to help the homeless since 1879, meeting the specific needs of each man, woman, and child who walks through our doors. First, we help the homeless by meeting immediate needs: food, shelter, clothing, and medical care. In our residential recovery programs, we address deeper needs for spiritual wholeness, life and job skills training, and addiction recovery. We measure our progress against five criteria, which indicate to us that a life has been transformed from homelessness to hope: connection to faith, connection to family, commitment to sobriety, a job and a place to live, and a plan for the future.

Homelessness is complex, but it can be overcome. If you or someone you know is homeless, please contact us at 1-800-BOWERY-1 (1-800-269-3791) or send an email. If you would like to help the homeless, please consider volunteering with us or making a donation.

Facts About Homelessness in New York City

In October 2010, the number of homeless single adult men and women in the New York City shelter system reached its highest level in more than two decades. An average of 9,114 homeless men and women slept in shelters each night during the month, the highest since 1989 when the average was 9,342.
Single adults account for only a quarter of homeless people in the New York City shelter system. In August 2010, there were nearly 37,000 homeless people in the NYC shelters. This included 9,500 homeless families with 14,500 children.
During the past year (FY 2009), 120,381 different New Yorkers – men, women and children – spent at least one night in New York City’s shelters. This all-time high number included 43,826 different children.
At least 3,111 more homeless individuals were counted living on the streets or in subways on January 25, 2010. The majority are in Manhattan. Four out of five street homeless New Yorkers are men.
The large majority of street homeless New Yorkers are living with mental illness or other severe health problems.
African-American and Latino New Yorkers are disproportionately affected by homelessness. Approximately 53 percent of New York City homeless shelter residents are African-American, 32 percent are Latino, 7 percent are white, and 8 percent are of another or unknown ethnicity.

Sources: NYC Department of Homeless Services, Coalition for the Homeless