Homelessness dropped 3% last year, compared to 2024, HUD Secretary Turner says more needs to be done

Despite the drop in people with homes in the U.S., Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner says more is need to be done.

Published: June 1, 2026 8:17am

Updated: June 1, 2026 8:23am

The Trump administration has released the 2025 edition of the federal government's annual report on homelessness in America, finding a 3% decrease from the previous year. 

Despite the drop in people without homes in the U.S. – which has reached crisis-level concern in such cities as Los Angeles, New York and Washington, D.C. – Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner says more needs to be done. 

“The data is clear that the status quo of ‘housing first’ has failed to meaningfully reduce homelessness, resulting in crisis levels of people living on the streets,” he said. 

He also said the agency is restoring its programs to "advance recovery and self-sufficiency and to ensure that taxpayer-funded benefits serve American families.”

The report was released Friday.

The data suggest fewer Americans are living on the street or in shelters amid a crackdown by officials in major cities, according to the news outlet NOTUS. 

The report found 745,642 people were homeless, compared to roughly 770,000 people in 2024, a 3% decrease. However, a majority of states still showed an increase, according to an analysis of the report by NOTUS. 

The annual count takes place one night each year in January. HUD reports that on that night in 2025, 1,456,923 people were homeless or living in a taxpayer-funded or subsidized shelter, also according to NOTUS. 

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