The homeless population is reaching epic proportions in high-cost cities and is glowing in places where homelessness was never as prevalent. Although the reasons are many, the homeless are poor, often have uncontrolled substance abuse disorders or suffer from mental illness. Often the homeless have all the above. High rents exacerbate the above problems.
On an average night, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, close to 600,000 people in the country will be homeless—a figure seen by many as an undercount. More than 40% will be “unsheltered,” or “living in places not suitable for human habitation,” and about 20% will be dealing with severe mental illness.