Metro Vancouver Homeless Count shows 32 per cent increase since 2020

The first Metro Vancouver homeless count since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic found 4,821 people who had no place to live in the region – a 32 per cent increase since 2020.

The Homelessness Services Association of B.C. published the results Thursday, noting in its report the total represents an "absolute minimum number of people" who were homeless on the day of the count. Although incomplete, the data sheds some light on the scale of the crisis and who is most vulnerable.

"Community members who took part in this process ask that when you review these data, remember that every number represents a person who is unhoused in the region, and took the time to tell their story through the survey to hope to help improve services for all," the report's preface says.

In 2023, the count showed that homelessness increased in all municipalities, a first since it was launched in 2005. The largest percentage increases were in Surrey, Vancouver, and Burnaby.

The count separates those who are "sheltered" – meaning they have a place to stay at a homeless shelter, transition house, detox or other facility – from those who are "unsheltered," which means they are on the streets, living in a vehicle, staying in a tent or other makeshift structure, or couch-surfing.

Of those surveyed, 48 per cent were living outside, on the street. Among those who were unsheltered, 42 per cent said they did not feel safe in the place they stayed the night before the survey was done.

Overall, the number of sheltered people counted has risen from 2,605 to 3,360 and the number of unsheltered people has increased from 1,029 to 1,461.

Indigenous people continue to be vastly overrepresented in the homeless population. Although they make up two per cent of the census population for the region, 33 per cent of the homeless people surveyed identified as Indigenous. Among them, 64 per cent said they had personal or intergenerational experience with the residential school system.

Among all survey respondents, 47 per cent reported first experiencing homelessness as a youth and 31 per cent said they had been in foster care.

For the first time, respondents were asked if they were on a waitlist for housing and 47 per cent answered yes. This year's survey also included a question about the COVID-19 pandemic, with 15 per cent of respondents saying it was the reason they lost their housing.

Not having enough money was the number one reason given for homelessness, at 35 per cent.

"Income to pay for housing costs remains the most common reason for most recent housing loss, a finding that is consistent with 2020 results," the report says.

The full report is available online here.