About Homelessness

Homelessness in the US is a social problem of enormous public health significance. It was estimated in 2007 that 671,859 individuals were homeless, of which about two-thirds were single individuals and one-third were families; about 5 to 7.7% of young people, ages 15 to 24 years are homeless in the United States every year, making them more at risk for HIV, substance abuse, mental illness and victimization than adolescents in the general population (for updated New York City homelessness statistics, please click here). Given the current economic climate, many more individuals and families are expected to experience homelessness over the course of this year. The Center for Homelessness Prevention Studies is committed to developing interventions to prevent and end homelessness for youth, families and adults with mental illness through the following aims:

1) to advance the development of interventions at both the individual and population levels to prevent and end homelessness for youth, families, and individual adults at risk of serious and disabling mental illness;

2) to facilitate the wide-scale dissemination of evidence-based interventions targeted at these constituencies; and

3) to assess how public policies on housing, social welfare, and mental health and health services interact to influence homelessness and facilitate residential stability throughout the life course. Ultimately, it is hoped that the services and housing policy research created through the Center will improve the lives of people with mental illness at risk of homelessness so that they can achieve recovery, lasting housing stability, and greater life fulfillment.