Title: Camillus House - The Causes of Homelessness
Headings: Causes of Homelessness
Causes of Homelessness
Content: By 1995, there were 4.4 million fewer available units than low-income households who needed to rent them. DECLINE IN PUBLIC ASSISTANCE
The declining value and availability of public assistance is another source of increasing poverty and homelessness. Welfare caseloads have dropped sharply since the passage and implementation of welfare reform legislation. However, declining welfare rolls simply mean that fewer people are receiving benefits — not that they are employed or doing better financially. Early findings suggest that although more families are moving from welfare to work, many of them are faring poorly due to low wages and inadequate work supports. Only a small fraction of welfare recipients' new jobs pay above-poverty wages; most of the new jobs pay far below the poverty line. ( Children's Defense Fund and the National Coalition for the Homeless, 1998)
AN ILLNESS OR ACCIDENT CAN CHANGE EVERYTHING
For families and individuals struggling to pay the rent, a serious illness or disability can start a downward spiral into homelessness, beginning with a lost job, depletion of savings to pay for care, and eventual eviction. Nearly a third of persons living in poverty had no health insurance of any kind. Homelessness severely impacts health and well-being.