Homeless Data

This analysis is based on the 2018 Annual Homeless Count data from the HMIS (Homeless Management Information System) run by MCAH (Michigan Coalition Against Homelessness) and 2017 American Community Survey (ACS) data from the U.S. Census. The data is broken down by race and ethnicity, including Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and White. Because Hispanic/Latino is an ethnicity, percentages add up to greater than 100. For the purposes of this analysis, it is assumed everyone in the homeless count is a Kent County resident.

More information about the calculations and citations is available at http://bit.ly/KConnectHousingData.[1]

Definitions

Category 1 – Literally Homeless
Individual or family who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, meaning:

  • Has a primary nighttime residence that is not meant for human habitation; or
  • Is living in a publicly or privately-operated shelter designed to provide temporary living arrangements (i.e. congregate shelters, transitional housing, and hotels and motels paid by charitable organizations or by federal, state, and local government programs.

Category 2 – Imminently Homeless
Individual of family who will imminently lose their primary nighttime residence, provided that:

  • Residence will be lost within 14 days of the date of application for homeless assistance;
  • No subsequent residence has been identified; and
  • The individual or family lacks the resources or support networks needed to obtain other permanent housing.

All individuals in these counts entered the homeless system in 2018 and were assessed to be either a Category 1 or 2. This data does not show how their cases were resolved or what happened after the initial assessment.

2018 Homeless Data – Total Population

  • 10,538 people (of all ages) in Kent County were in the homeless system[2]
  • 1 in 62 people in Kent Count was in the homeless system
  • 33% of people in the homeless system are children
  • 3,471 children (ages 0-17) were in the homeless system
  • 1 in 46 children in Kent County was in the homeless system

2018 Homeless Data – Children by Race & Ethnicity

  • 20% of children in the homeless system, or 710 children, were White
  • 14% of children in the homeless system, or 497 children, were Hispanic/Latino
  • 76% of children in the homeless system, or 2,658 children, were Black/A.A.
  • 1 in 160 White children in Kent County was in the homeless system
  • 1 in 54 Hispanic/Latino children was in the homeless system
  • 1 in 7 Black/A.A. children was in the homeless system

[1] It should be noted that the data is not precise due to margins of error in ACS data that is collected via survey and extrapolated to estimate the population numbers.

[2] Including 8,458 (77%) Category 1 and 2,496 (23%) Category 2

 

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