Homelessness in the United States is at an all-time high as inflation continues to soar, according to a report from House and Urban Development (HUD).
HUD reported that around 653,000 people were homeless in the U.S., a number that highlights the plight many Americans face under “Bidenomics.”
The homelessness figures mark a 12% rise compared to last year, as rents skyrocket.
However, the key culprits identified in the HUD report were inflation and the end of pandemic-era protections against eviction.
“For those on the frontlines of this crisis, it’s not surprising. People across the country are struggling to pay skyrocketing rents,” Ann Olivia, CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, said in a statement.
Among those homeless were families with children, which saw the sharpest rise at 15.5 percent, followed by unaccompanied youths, which increased by 15.3 percent.
“We simply don’t have enough homes that people can afford,” says Jeff Olivet, executive director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness.
“When you combine rapidly rising rent, that it just costs more per month for people to get into a place and keep a place, you get this vicious game of musical chairs.”
Former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake directly blamed Joe Biden’s policies for fueling the homelessness epidemic.
“In Joe Biden’s America, it’s almost impossible to pay rent or afford a home,” she wrote in a post on X.
Food remains more expensive than just a few years ago.
As NPR noted, “Food pantries say they continue to see large numbers of people. And while rents on luxury condos in some places may be coming down, the massive housing shortfall is worst for the lowest-income renters, many of whom pay more than half their income on rent.”
Spike in ‘first-time’ homelessness
According to HUD, the jump in first-time Homelessness is due to rent hikes and the winding down of pandemic-era protections, fueled by stagnant renter household incomes.
According to an analysis of Census Bureau data by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), median rent rose by an inflation-adjusted 18.8 percent between 2001 and 2022, while median renter household income rose by 4.3 percent.
Diane Yentel, president and CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, called for more federal investment in affordable housing.
“Without significant and sustained federal investments to make housing affordable for people with the lowest incomes, the affordable housing and homelessness crises in this country will only continue to worsen,” Ms. Yentel said in a statement.
