Sourcebook

Homelessness

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This fact sheet provides homelessness related data for Continuum of Care (CoC) and Planning District Commission (PDC) regions. The selection of each jurisdiction displays data for the entire region of which it is a part. Definitions for each category are provided below. Please note that this data set is not available for MSAs.


Homelessness Snapshot

Point-in-Time Count Data
Total Homeless
Total Sheltered
Total Unsheltered
Housing Inventory Count Data
Total Year-round Beds
Total Family Beds
Total Adult-Only Beds
Total Child-Only Beds
Total Overflow Beds
Seasonal Emergency Shelter

Housing Inventory Count Detail

Family UnitsFamily BedsYear-round BedsAdult-Only BedsChild-Only BedsOverflow
Emergency Shelter
Safe Haven
Transitional Housing
Permanent Supportive Housing

Point-in-Time Count Detail

Total Homeless
Individuals
In Families
Total Chronically Homeless
Individuals
In Families
Total Homeless Veterans
Sheltered
Unsheltered

Definitions/Explanation

Homeless (as defined by HUD): An individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence; as well an individual who has a primary nighttime residence that is a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations, an institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.
Source: Homeless Planning Council of Delaware Glossary of Terms, 2011

Permanent Supportive Housing (As defined by HUD – in terms of their programs): Permanent housing for homeless persons with disabilities is another type of supportive housing. It is long-term community-based housing, which includes supportive services for homeless persons with disabilities. The intent of this type of supportive housing is to enable this special needs population to live as independently as possible in a permanent setting. The supportive services may be provided by the organization managing the housing or coordinated by the applicant and provided by other public or private service agencies.
Source: Homeless Planning Council of Delaware Glossary of Terms, 2011

Emergency Shelter (As defined by HUD): Any facility whose primary purpose is to provide temporary or transitional shelter for the homeless in general or for specific populations of the homeless.
Source: http://www.huduser.gov/portal/glossary/glossary_all.html

Safe Havens offer low-demand, indefinite-length-of-stay, supervised housing alternatives for persons with substance use and/or mental health conditions who need a place to stay that does not tie compliance with rules or service expectations to the maintenance of housing.
Source: Homeless Planning Council of Delaware Glossary of Terms, 2011

Safe Haven (As defined in the Supportive Housing Program) is a form of supportive housing that serves hard-to-reach homeless persons with severe mental illness who come primarily from the streets and have been unable or unwilling to participate in housing or supportive services.
Source: https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/SafeHavenFactSheet_CoCProgram.PDF

Transitional Housing (As defined by HUD): A project that has as its purpose facilitating the movement of homeless individuals and families to permanent housing within a reasonable amount of time (usually 24 months). Transitional housing includes housing primarily designed to serve deinstitutionalized homeless individuals and other homeless individuals with mental or physical disabilities and homeless families with children.
Source: http://www.huduser.gov/portal/glossary/glossary_all.html

Unsheltered: Homeless people living in places not meant for human habitation, which may include streets, parks, alleys, parking ramps, part of the highway system, transportation depots, all night commercial establishments, abandoned buildings, marginal motels/hotels which are not normally operational, farm outbuilding and other similar places.
Source: Homeless Planning Council of Delaware Glossary of Terms, 2011

Unsheltered (As defined by HUD): Homeless persons who are living in a place not designed or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for humans must be counted as unsheltered homeless persons.
Source: https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/PIT-Count-Methodology-Guide.pdf

Veteran: One who has served in active US military duty.
Source: Homeless Planning Council of Delaware Glossary of Terms, 2011

Chronically Homeless (As defined by HUD): HUD has defined chronic homelessness as an individual or family with a disabling condition who has been continuously homeless for a year or more or has had at least four episodes of homelessness in the past three years.
Source: https://www.hudexchange.info/homelessness-assistance/resources-for-chronic-homelessness/

Year-Round Beds/Units (As defined by HUD): Year-round beds and units are available on a year-round basis.
Source: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=14-14cpdn.pdf

Seasonal Beds (Emergency Shelter Only) (As defined by HUD): Seasonal beds are not available year-round, but instead are available on a planned basis, with set start and end dates, during an anticipated period of higher demand.
Source: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=14-14cpdn.pdf

Overflow Beds (Emergency Shelter Only) (As defined by HUD): Overflow beds are available on an ad hoc or temporary basis during the year in response to demand that exceeds planned (year-round or seasonal) bed capacity.
Source: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=14-14cpdn.pdf

Balance of State (BOS): Regional planning bodies similar to COCs that manage the areas not included in COC jurisdictions. The balance of state is essentially the parts of the state leftover after the COCs were formed. The BOS continuums tend to use a regional approach because of the relatively small population density in rural areas. They also tend to have more homeless families than the urban COCs (who have more homeless individuals).
Many states have large areas (often rural in nature) which are not covered by regional, county or city continuums. These were generally formed in the late 90s to take advantage of the “fairshare” formula funding of the HUD McKinney-Vento grants.
Source: https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/coc101.pdf

Continuum of Care (COC): A regional or local planning body that coordinates housing and services funding for homeless families and individuals. A CoC is “a community plan to organize and deliver housing and services to meet the specific needs of people who are homeless as they move to stable housing and maximize self-sufficiency. It includes action steps to end homelessness and prevent a return to homelessness.”
Source: http://www.endhomelessness.org/library/entry/fact-sheet-what-is-a-continuum-of-care

Point in Time Count (PIT): Counts or estimates of homeless persons in sheltered and unsheltered locations on a single night, used to determine how many and what types of homeless people are in the community (e.g., single individuals, people who are chronically homeless, people with mental illness, substance abuse, or both, people who are veterans, victims of domestic violence, and youth). These counts must be done every other year.
Source: https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/counting_unsheltered.pdf

Housing Inventory Count (HIC): Counts or estimates of the number of beds available to homeless people on a single night.
Source: https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/coc101.pdf


The data contained in SOURCEBOOK is intended for informational, educational and research uses. The information may not be used for commercial purposes or re-marketed. Any reproduction and distribution of this information must clearly identify HousingForward Virginia and SOURCEBOOK as the provider of the information.




The data contained in Sourcebook is intended for informational, educational and research uses. The information may not be used for commercial purposes or re-marketed. Any reproduction and distribution of this information must clearly identify HousingForward Virginia and Sourcebook as the provider of the information.

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