How do we define homelessness?
A person who is homeless does not have a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence. This person may be sleeping on the streets, with friends or family, in cars or abandoned buildings or in shelters.

How many people are homeless in Philadelphia?
It is very difficult to accurately determine how many people are homeless. It is estimated that there are approximately 4,000 persons who are homeless on any given day in Philadelphia. This includes only those who are in shelters or on the streets. It does not include those who are in transitional housing, low-demand residences, or in substandard/unfit living conditions.

In 2005, the City's Office of Emergency Shelter and Services served 14,986 homeless people (including both single adults and family members) through its emergency shelter system. Of this number, 9,468 were adults without children, 2,011 were heads of households, and 3,507 were children. Homelessness disproportionately affects persons of color, with over 80 percent African-American, about 15 percent White.
 

Why Are People Homeless?
Poverty
Poverty and homelessness as inextricably linked. Difficult choices must be made when limited resources cover some of your necessities( food, childcare, housing, healthcare). Being poor means being an illness, an accident, or a paycheck away from living on the street. In 2004, 12.7% of the U.S. population or 37 million people live in poverty.

Declining Work Opportunities
While the last few years have seen growth in real wages at all levels, these increase have not been enough to counteract a long pattern of stagnant and declining wages. To compound the problem, the minimum wage in 2004 was 26% less than in 1979. Factors that contributing to wage declines include a steep drop in the number and bargaining power of unionized workers, a decline in manufacturing jobs and the corresponding expansion lower paying service-sector employment, and globalization.
 

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