Plumbers, casino supervisors, pizzeria managers, and factory workers—these aren’t the people you’d expect to see homeless. They deliver groceries, sell eyeglasses, and unload trucks at Amazon, yet they can’t afford a place to live.
Homelessness is getting worse, especially among people with jobs. Even with decent-paying positions, they simply can’t keep up with skyrocketing rents. Interviews with shelter workers and data on rising evictions reveal that more working Americans are becoming homeless. For example, Southeast Texas saw a 61% increase in homelessness over the past year, Rhode Island went up 35%, and northeast Tennessee rose 20%.
There isn’t any federal data on how many homeless people have jobs, but shelters and local groups report a noticeable increase. In Tulsa, where homelessness is up 26%, the main reason people gave for being homeless was the lack of affordable housing, not mental health issues or job loss.
Aaron Reed, a 22-year-old Amazon worker near Nashville, earns $21 an hour working 50 hours a week but still lives in his mom’s Hyundai SUV with their dog, Stella. His story highlights a bigger problem: rising rents and a shortage of affordable housing mean even rising wages and a strong job market can’t keep people housed.
“We’re pushing working people into homelessness because they can’t afford rent,” said Margot Kushel from the University of California, San Francisco. She explained that the public often doesn’t see these people as homeless because they’re not visible on the streets. Instead, they’re sleeping in cars or motels, just trying to get by.
High housing costs are a significant issue for many Americans, even if it doesn’t seem like a central political topic. A CNN poll showed housing costs are a top concern for families, just after food prices but ahead of gas, healthcare, student loans, and childcare.
Many cities and states are now saying homelessness is one of their biggest problems. In California, where nearly 70% of homeless people live outside, Governor Gavin Newsom ordered the clearing of homeless encampments on state land, emphasizing the urgency of the situation.
Inflation is making things worse. In interviews with 30 newly homeless workers in 17 states, nearly all said high rents had pushed them into homelessness and were preventing them from finding new homes. Deborah Bower, a dog groomer in California, lost her savings to breast cancer treatments and now sleeps in her SUV or spends $95 a night on motel rooms.
Bower, 60, used to help others, but now she needs help and finds it embarrassing. Many homeless workers make too much to qualify for government aid but not enough to afford housing. They struggle to save for the upfront costs of renting a home, like deposits and the first month’s rent.
Everything costs more when you’re homeless, Reed said. He and his mother spend $50 a day on gas to keep their car’s air conditioning running overnight in the heat and $80 a month on bottled water. Their homelessness began when Reed’s mom lost her job after a hospitalization.
A record 12.1 million Americans now spend at least half their income on rent and utilities, putting them at high risk of eviction and homelessness. Hardly anywhere in the country can someone with a full-time minimum-wage job afford a one-bedroom rental.
The rise in homelessness is due to ongoing rent increases, said Gregg Colburn, a professor and author. It’s no longer just a problem in big cities but also in places like Phoenix, Denver, and Atlanta.
Marie, a hotel and casino supervisor in Mississippi, lost her apartment when her van broke down and repair costs drained their savings. Now she spends $710 of her $900 bi-weekly paycheck on a hotel room she shares with her disabled husband and father-in-law. High living costs mean she can’t save enough to rent a new place.
Rents have risen over 32% in four years, but this has stabilized in some places while spiking in others. For example, in Clinton County, Illinois, rents went up over 30%.
Nelfreed McKay, a server in Manhattan, spends most of his income on rent and now sleeps in Central Park. He’s trying to save $5,000 to rent a room but often skips meals to do so.
Homelessness data is hard to capture, especially for those living in cars or with friends. Still, the number of homeless people hit a record 653,100 last year, up 12% from the previous year. The Biden administration has allocated billions for housing assistance, but experts say it’s not enough to reverse decades of failed policies and under-building.
Housing affordability and homelessness are becoming critical issues before the presidential election. The Supreme Court recently ruled that cities can ban people from sleeping in public spaces. Donald Trump has promised to forbid urban camping and create tent cities for the homeless.
However, advocates argue that criminalizing homelessness makes it harder for people to recover. They suggest policies should focus on increasing rental assistance, changing local zoning laws, and building more low-income housing.
“High rents are the main cause of homelessness,” said Jennifer Friedenbach from San Francisco’s Coalition on Homelessness. She believes addressing rent costs is crucial.
Homeless workers go to great lengths to maintain their jobs, often hiding their living situations to avoid discrimination. Jordan Godlesky, who made $25 an hour managing an ice cream shop in California, slept outside and worried about his safety. Lack of sleep led to him losing his job. He’s now in the final stages of securing a new job with better pay and hopes for stability and a bed to sleep in, thanks to the company’s training program that includes free lodging.
