According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s annual count of homeless individuals, Alaska had 2,614 people experiencing homelessness in January of 2023. That amounts to one-third of one percent of all Alaskans. About 1,700 of the homeless are said to be in Anchorage, many having arrived from villages around Alaska to access homelessness services.
Alaska had the lowest rate of families experiencing homelessness, and one of the lowest rates for unaccompanied youth who were homeless. Only 119 veterans in Alaska were homeless, also a low number compared to the rest of the country.
Most of the homelessness in the country is found in Democrat-run states, such as California, Oregon, and New York.
Other facts from the annual HUD report to Congress on homelessness in America:
- – More than half of all people experiencing homelessness in the country were in four states: California (28% of all people experiencing homelessness in the U.S, or 181,399 people); New York (16% or 103,200 people); Florida (5% or 30,756 people); and Washington (4% or 28,036 people).
- – California accounted for 49 percent of all unsheltered people in the country (123,423 people). This is nearly eight times the number of unsheltered people in the state with the next highest number, Florida. In the 2023 point-in-time count, Florida reported 15,482 people or just six percent of the national total of people in unsheltered locations.
- – States with very high rates of overall experiences of homelessness included New York, Vermont, Oregon, and California, with 52, 51, 48, and 46 people experiencing homelessness for every 10,000 people in the state. In the District of Columbia, a single city, 73 of every 10,000 people were experiencing homelessness.
- – While Florida and Texas contributed large numbers of people experiencing homelessness to the national count, they continued to have rates of homelessness lower than the national average of 18 people per 10,000 (14 for every 10,000 people in Florida and 9 for every 10,000 people in Texas).
- – States in the West reported some of the highest percentages of all people experiencing homelessness in who were counted in unsheltered locations. In California, 68 percent of people experiencing homelessness did so outdoors. Other states with more than half of their total population of people experiencing homelessness counted in unsheltered locations were: Oregon (65%), Hawaii (63%), Arizona (54%), Nevada (53%), Arkansas (51%), and Florida (50%).
- – Two states sheltered at least 95 percent of people experiencing homelessness: Vermont (96%) and New York (95%).
- – Continuing the upward trend over the past seven years, the total number of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness in 2023 has reached the highest count observed since reporting began in 2007.
- – The total number of people experiencing sheltered homelessness in 2023 (396,494 people) is the highest observed estimate since 2014 (401,051 people).
- – Between 2022 and 2023, the total number of people experiencing homelessness increased by 70,642 people (or 12%). The overall increase in the number of people experiencing homelessness between 2022 and 2023 reflects both a sharp increase in the number of people experiencing sheltered homelessness, which increased by 47,864 people (or 14%), and increases in the number of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness, which increased by 22,778 people (or 10%) over the last year.
- – Nearly 4 of every 10 people experiencing homelessness identified as Black, African American, or African (37% or 243,624 people). A higher percentage of people in shelter identified as Black (45% or 176,325 people) compared to people experiencing homelessness in unsheltered locations (26% or 67,299).
- – Half of all people experiencing homelessness identified as White (50% or 324,854 people). A higher share of the unsheltered population identified as White (57%) than the sheltered population (45%).
