Facts About Poverty and Homelessness

More than 16,000 people in Washington, DC are homeless during the course of a year.

As many as 16,350 DC residents used homeless services in 2001, including 8,574 men, 2,736 women and 1,133 families with 2,351 children. This means that during 2001, 19%of poor residents or 2.86% of the total population in the District used such services.

Washington, DC, has the widest income gap between rich and poor of any city in the county, with the poorest fifth of DC residents earning an average of 6,126 a year, while the richest fifth earn an average of 31 times that much at $186,830.

In Washington, DC, the overall poverty rate for 2003 was 16.9% and the child poverty rate was approximately 30%.

The unemployment rate in DC was 7.1% in June 2004, notably higher than the national rate for the same time period. Homeless individuals with no phone or address stand a slim chance of competing for jobs in an already tight job market.

For the year 2003, the Fair Market Rent for an efficiency in Washington, DC, was $865 per month. The FMR for a one-bedroom apartment was $984; a two-bedroom was $1154 and a three-bedroom 1285 and a four-bedroom $1897.

In DC, a worker earning the Minimum Wage ($6.15 per hour) must work 152 hours per week in order to afford a two-bedroom unit at the area's FMR.

The Housing Wage in DC is $23.42, which is 381% of the minimum wage. This is the amount a full-time (40 hours per week) worker must earn per hour in order to afford a two-bedroom unit at the area's FMR. Between 2001 and 2002, the two-bedroom housing wage increased by 21.9%.

The maximum amount of Food Stamps available in the District is $139 per month for one person, $256 for two persons and $366 for three persons. For those who get TANF or other cash assistance, the amounts are smaller.

At least 60,000 DC residents - more than one in 10 - are addicted to drugs or alcohol, compared to a national addiction rate or 4.7%. Yet the budget for DC's Addiction Prevention and Recovery Administration was but by $3 million in 2003, and there a long waits to get into detox or the few residential treatment beds that exist. As a result, DC assists only 14% of its addicts.

Although the District spends approximately $42.45 per capita on drug and alcohol prevention and treatment, it spends $1,257 per capita on criminal justice.

As of October 2003, at least one third of the 3,300 people incarcerated at the DC Detention Center were suffering from severe mental illness, for which they o9ften do not receive adequate treatment. Nationally, mentally ill state prison inmates are more than twice as likely as other inmates to report living on the street or in a shelter within the prior 12 months.

Nationwide, 54% of homeless people are single, 41% are part of a family unit, and 5% are unaccompanied minors. Twenty three percent of all homeless people are severely mentally ill, 32% are substance abusers, 22% are employed and 10% are veterans.

The percentage of homeless individuals in the DC region that suffer from mental illness or substance abuse is 71%. The percentage of homeless persons in families that suffer from mental illness or substance abuse is 53%.

Veterans constitute approximately 19% of the District's homeless population. Approximately 31% of homeless people in the District work at least part-time.

This Street Information Card shows where to find shelter, meals, clothing, health care, and legal services. Download the card (PDF, 284 KB) to print and give to a person on the street, or request printed copies by email.