Last week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released its annual Homelessness Assessment report.

HUD found more than 770,000 people experiencing homelessness across the country on a single night in January 2024, an alarming 18% increase from 2023.

Here in new Jersey, the latest point in time count from last January saw an even higher increase 24% over the prior year.

What is behind this sudden surge of folks looking for shelter?

Michael Callahan is the director of the Office of Homelessness Prevention with New Jersey's Department of Community Affairs.

He joins me to put it all in context.

Michael, thanks for being here.

Oh, thanks for having me.

So HUD recently reported an 18% increase in homelessness nationally year over year.

That's based on a point in time count.

New Jersey has also seen their numbers rise.

What are the main factors you see contributing to this increase in homelessness?

Yeah, sure.

So particularly across the state, in new Jersey, one of the main precipitating causes of homelessness.

Right.

It's not what people would generally associate with homelessness being either mental health challenges or substance use.

But in fact, it's, evictions and being asked to leave a share of residents evictions and being asked to leave is sure residents are responsible for almost one in every two cases of homelessness in newly entering this year.

So what is this state doing to help prevent evictions and keep people in steady housing?

Yeah, right.

So so one of the great things that we're doing here in the state, through the administration's leadership and also to the commissioner, right, are really working with our nonprofit partners, but also to embedding, embedding resource, what are called resource navigators through the Comprehensive Eviction Defense and Diversion Initiative, right, in, housing Court, where that's taking place.

Right.

And this is where so you have a effective case manager that has access to the entire constellation of eviction prevention resources.

Importantly, those those programs allowed in real time, right.

Us being able to see the folks in that high, that high crisis, high quality situation.

The flip side of that, right, is that we're also working with our partners at new Jersey courts, right, to ensure that when someone is going and seen on the eviction docket, right, that that's coming up.

Right.

The we're engaging in really substantive outreach and using data driven technology on the back end side to connect persons, right, that are in that so that we can see them as far as upstream as possible.

So, Michael, I'm wondering is it working and what are what are those results looking like?

Oh yeah.

Sure.

So, it's definitely I would say it's definitely working when you look at right, our regional sister or regional sister states, right.

When we look at, the, the number of states that are leveraging this eviction diversion model and also homelessness prevention model to get as far upstream as possible.

Right.

We're seeing Maryland, right, which had lower numbers than us comparatively, with only a 3.5% increase rate.

But they've leaned in just as substantively as we have, right.

With eviction prevention, understanding that if we can prevent evictions, that's how we really not end individual homelessness, prevent family homes, right.

Let's switch gears for a second.

People often assume addiction and mental health issues lead to homelessness.

Is that true?

In your experience?

Right.

So I'd say no, right?

I'd say no.

So one of the one of the challenges within homelessness, writ large is it's often a chicken, chicken or the egg thing.

Right?

Is where is our which came first.

Right.

Is it the housing crisis that precipitated the the mental health challenge or the using substances as a palliative.

Right.

That's what we often see.

Well, let's talk about, a population that we actually see decreasing veteran homelessness, which dropped 8% nationwide.

Are we seeing a drop here in new Jersey as well?

All right.

So importantly, right.

Year over year we are seeing a drop in veteran homelessness.

But one of the great things that we're doing because of this drop is the administration is really leaning into not only continuing to try to encourage that drop or to functionally end veteran homelessness in the state, but we stood up for bringing back the Veterans Home Initiative, and through that, we're deploying over $40 million in resources with everything from state rental assistance vouchers all the way through, tripling the number of street outreach teams that are engaging with homeless veterans living in encampments or in the woods or in different places not fit for human habitation.

And, Michael, all these programs, the state is starting.

Are they pushing out in 2025?

Yes.

Right.

So importantly, right where you're just exiting out of procurement for some of those, for some of the Bringing that home initiative, right.

We already partnered really strongly, working with our partners at Tomada, the Department of Military Veteran Affairs, right, where you have already, you know, we have 19 veterans through the Marva that were homeless up until yesterday that are in the pipeline to be housed just even this month.

Right.

And importantly, right when we're going full throttle, we should be housing near and about probably 75 homeless veterans or homeless veteran households per month.

And here's the thing.

We know that the point in time homeless count is at the end of the month.

So what are you anticipating as we look ahead?

Right.

So I think you are going to see that continued year over year increase.

Right.

Go.

And also right be very acutely felt throughout our communities.

But I also think that this the point in time count is a fantastic opportunity for communities to get really dialed into what is happening in their continuum of cares, and also to to partner with the various nonprofit and community based organizations that are doing this work.

Well, a lot of work to be done, efforts in the right place.

Michael, thank you for joining me.

Thanks so much for sharing.