Homelessness In One State Doubled; Illegal Immigration Played A Part

February 2, 2025 1:02 pm

Homelessness in New York State more than doubled, according to a report that State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli published late last month, and a lot of this surge was driven by illegal immigration.

Other factors cited were increases in eviction proceedings and, in this politically blue state, increased rents and a lack of affordable housing.

“From 2011 to 2019, homelessness was growing in New York even as it was steadily declining in the rest of the nation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, homelessness declined in New York between 2020 and 2022 but accelerated sharply in the next two years, increasing exponentially faster than the rest of the nation,” according to the report.

Homelessness in New York State, DiNapoli said, grew by 53.1% from January 2023 to January 2024, more than four times the rest of the nation. Outside of New York City, the rest of the state had double-and triple-digit rate increases, led by Glens Falls, Saratoga and the surrounding counties.

“A key reason for New York’s increase has been the mass arrival of asylum seekers, although HUD (Housing and Urban Development) does not quantify how many homeless are asylum seekers. New York was surpassed by only one state during this time – Illinois, where homelessness grew 180 percent,” the report said.

People experiencing homelessness in New York in 2024 were disproportionately Hispanic or Black, DiNapoli’s report said. The share of Hispanic or Latino homeless grew from 33.7 percent in 2021 to 55.5 percent in 2024. Ten percent suffered from severe mental illness or chronic substance abuse.

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“HUD notes that New York City officials indicated asylum seekers ‘accounted for 88 percent of the increase in sheltered homelessness in New York City,’” according to DiNapoli’s report.

The report went on to say that between the spring of 2022 and December 8, 2024, New York City reported more than 225,700 asylum seekers had come through its intake system.

In January 2022 there were 45,343 people in New York City shelters run by the Department of Homeless Services. By January 2024 there were 89,119, of which 34,057 were asylum seekers. New York City was housing approximately 68,000 asylum seekers in total in January 2024, the month in which asylum seekers in city shelters peaked.

“New York City’s strategy for dealing with this influx also entailed relocating some migrant families to areas outside the city, including neighboring counties but also other urban areas in the state, potentially influencing homelessness in these areas, as well,” the report said.

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