A home for all in North Dakota.
Housing concerns across the state.
2,572 school children experience homelessness across North Dakota.
School districts across the state count children identified as homeless. This includes children and youth living in emergency shelters, automobiles, places not meant for human habitation, outdoors, and “doubled up” with friends and family.
This count is from the 2019-2020 school year.
Homeless in Bismarck
In 2019, over 1,000 people received shelter services and 572 students were identified as homeless. 30% of those seeking shelter were children. Bismarck-Mandan has limited capacity for emergency shelter with only 169 shelter beds in the region. Missouri Valley Coaltion for Homeless People has produce an information sheet.
Housing Shortage in ND
There is a shortage of 12,980 available and affordable rental homes for extremely low income (ELI) renters in ND. 66% of ELI renter households are severely cost burdened in housing. ELI are those whose incomes are at or below the poverty guideline or 30% of their area median income. NLIHC produces an annual report.
Cost Savings
Through an innovative housing based housing navigation program in Fargo addressing chronic homelessness has demonstrated that housing people has incredible cost savings for the community. Over that past three years of stable housing for just 20 formerly chronically homeless households has saved over $1 million. Investing in housing, homeless prevention/response programs is the smart way to do the right thing.
Homelessness in Fargo
Over 1,000 people experience homelessness in the Fargo-Moorhead metro area on any given night. Each year the FM Coalition to End Homelessness collates and reports on the population of those experiencing homeless with an in-depth report and illustrated executive summary overview. This annual report outlines demographics, services, and solutions.
Women and Families.
On any given night, 1 in 4 of the nation's more than 216,000 homeless women are driven to the streets because of domestic violence, according to the National Center on Family Homelessness.
38% of domestic violence victims become homeless at some point in their lives, according to the Family and Youth Services Bureau. Between 23% and 30% of women overall experience domestic violence, but more than 60% of homeless women experience domestic violence. 70% of homeless women reported being physically assaulted by a family member or someone they knew, and half had been sexually assaulted, per the Family and Youth Services Bureau.
Domestic violence is common among all socioeconomic levels, but most prominently affects poor women, per the NCFH. Securing affordable and safe housing is difficult for domestic violence victims, because of their "urgent circumstances, poor credit, rental and employment histories, and limited income," the NCFH writes. The inability to collect and/or enforce child support and alimony payments is key to their income.
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