Extent of Child Homeless in America

We estimate that approximately 1,555,360 children living in families had no place to call home in 2005-2006. Using the definition of homelessness delineated by the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act,²¹ we based the number on data collected by 12,550 Local Education Agencies²² as mandated by this Act. For a discussion of systems that identify homeless children and federal definitions of homelessness, see Appendix 1.

Click here to download information of subgroups of people experiencing homelessness

What We Know from the Report Card

• One in fifty American children was homeless in 2005-2006.
  • 2% of all American children are homeless in a given year.²³
  • 11% of American children living in poverty are homeless.²⁴
• 1,555,360 American children living in families lacked permanent homes during 2005-2006. This number excludes youth who are homeless and living without their families. The total number is an under-count.
• Across the states, the geographic distribution of homeless children is uneven:
  • Almost 75% of all identified homeless children in America are clustered in just 11 states.²⁵
  • In contrast, in each of 20 states, the percentage of children who were identified as homeless is less than 1%.