We’ve Cracked the Code on Veteran Homelessness. We Can Solve Homelessness the Same Way.

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Brand new federal data shows that homelessness in America reached yet another record high in 2024. But it isn’t increasing for everyone.

While total homelessness rates continue to climb, veteran homelessness is at an all-time low. The number of U.S. veterans experiencing homelessness decreased by over 55% between 2009 and 2024, to about 32,800 today.

Twelve U.S. communities, large and small, have proven that it’s possible to make homelessness among veterans rare and brief when it does happen. We can confidently say these communities have achieved this because they’ve reached a critical milestone called “functional zero” – when a community has fewer people experiencing homelessness than the number of people it has the capacity to house in a month.

The hallmarks of these successes in reducing veteran homelessness — including data, funding, and the power of coordination — provide a roadmap for U.S. communities to make homelessness rare and brief for everyone.

It starts with setting a clear, measurable goal. You can’t solve a problem without knowing the extent of it. Cities across the country have historically relied on the point-in-time count, the most widely used measure of homelessness. This annual federal tally provides a snapshot of how many people are experiencing homelessness on a single night in January.

But we can’t wait a whole year for new data, because a city’s challenges in January aren’t necessarily the same challenges in August. We need a real-time understanding.

Marketers know consumers by name. Companies know our address, income range, and spending habits. It helps them understand and meet our needs. Likewise, communities need frequent and accurate information to understand who is experiencing homelessness – their names, how long they’ve been unhoused, the hardships they’ve faced and the help they need.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides a good starting point by knowing each unhoused veteran that accesses its services — including names, demographic data, locations, health conditions, types of services received and needs beyond housing, such as psychiatric care or legal help.

Our local leaders need the full picture to allocate resources effectively and track whether all their programs and investments are actually reducing the number of people experiencing homelessness. Person-specific data also helps them test out improvements to their systems and determine whether they’re reducing homelessness equitably across different races, ethnicities or other demographics.

Many communities across the country are already using real-time, by-name data to measure their progress as part of Built for Zero, our national initiative to end homelessness. In Denver, the approach helped cut veteran homelessness by 30% since 2020 – nearly three times the national average reduction of 11.7%.

Local communities can replicate this success by ensuring all providers contribute to a shared database of every person experiencing homelessness by name and need. They can start by consolidating data from federal agencies and local partners. Additional community outreach can ensure everyone is accounted for. It’s not an easy process. It takes a lot of collaboration and commitment, but it’s worth it.

Efforts to fight veteran homelessness also have the benefit of more funding. Veterans have significantly more access to federal resources, including healthcare and financial assistance, than other homeless populations.

Last year, Congress approved $2.7 billion for VA homelessness programs. HUD received just $3.2 billion for grants to serve the entire homeless population, which is 18 times larger than the homeless veteran population.

In all, Congress spends 15 times more per homeless veteran than per each member of the entire homeless population. To scale the work, Congress needs to provide the same level of assistance to non-vets.

Success in reducing veteran homelessness demonstrates that we need all players working together. Federal initiatives to end veteran homelessness receive bipartisan support. That same cross-party buy-in is necessary for reducing homelessness across all populations.

Communities reducing veteran homelessness are characterized by exceptional collaboration. Detroit reduced veteran homelessness by 47% between 2020 and 2023, largely because of a strong partnership between business leaders, elected officials, service providers, landlords and the VA to connect veterans with permanent housing.

It’s possible to end the devastating toll of homelessness. Communities across the country are proving it. The path forward is an understanding of each person experiencing homelessness — and the financial resources and collaboration that can bring each person home.