Homeless Facts:

Almost ½ of ND’s long-term homeless population lives in Fargo

Each year over 1100 people are estimated to be homeless in the metro & over 1/3 are “long term homeless.”

Basic characteristics:

Age. 2/3 are men, with an average age of 44. The average age of a homeless woman in Fargo is 34.

Marital status. Over ½ of those interviewed have never been married.

Veterans. Veterans make up 36% of homeless males in Fargo.

Children. One-third of the women (32%) in sheltered locations had at least one child with them.

Race/Ethnicity. Fargo’s homeless population contains a disproportionate number of persons of color, particularly American Indian – 26%. About 2/5 (39%) of Fargo’s homeless adults are persons of color.

Unsheltered. Three out of four “unsheltered” homeless were men and 34% were American Indian.

Duration of Homelessness. 36% of the homeless population meet the federal definition of chronic homeless.

Education. Almost 80% of Fargo’s homeless population has a high school diploma or GED – 30% have attended at least some college.

Employment. 41% of homeless persons in Fargo are employed – 15% in a full-time status.

For those who are not working, the most common barriers are:

Transportation – 40%

Physical health problems – 33%

Lack of housing – 27%

Mental health problems – 27%

Affordability of Housing

The average amount of income in Fargo that homeless persons receive was $449/month, the median income was $400.

The average amount of rent that homeless persons surveyed said they could pay was $235/month (including utilities).

22% of people surveyed could not afford to pay anything for rent

Health and well being

93% of the long term homeless population and 77% of the total homeless population report having a mental illness, substance abuse disorder, or chronic health problem.

44% of homeless adults in Fargo were told by a doctor in the last 2 years that they have a serious mental illness.

43% of homeless adults report that they consider themselves to be alcoholic or chemically dependent.

19% of the homeless population in Fargo has received in-patient drug/alcohol treatment in the last 2 years, 23% reported receiving out-patient treatment.

22% of homeless adults have been dually diagnosed by a doctor in the last 2 years as having both a mental illness and a chemical dependency problem.

Risk factors for chronic homelessness:

Chronic health condition

Mental illness

Substance abuse disorders

Limited or no social support network

Very low or no income

Discharge from jail, prison, hospital, shelter, detox, treatment, foster care

7 stages of “going home”

*Housing First
1) Increase availability of permanent supportive housing
2) Improve consumers’ ability to pay for housing
3) Develop partnerships that will move people into housing first
4) Make outreach to long term homeless more effective
5) Stop discharging people into homelessness
6) Enhance the coordination and availability of prevention services
7) Collect data and share info about homelessness

Homelessness is not “just a social service issue” – it is a community issue with serious individual & community costs.

The kind of systemic change called for in “Going Home” requires collective and collaborative action between local communities, state agencies, and non-profit and for-profit housing and service providers…all working together toward a common goal.