A Blueprint To End Homelessness in Philadelphia, which was published in 1998 by the Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition and developed with the leadership of Project H.O.M.E. staff. The data and analysis are from 1988. Accurate numbers of homeless persons are notoriously difficult to obtain or to validate. The City's Deputy Managing Director for Special Needs Housing offers an estimate of 25,000 homeless people in Philadelphia, both sheltered and unsheltered, over the course of a year.
Homeless persons are disproportionately minorities.
Other factors are generally acknowledged as widespread in the homeless population, especially substance abuse and mental illness. City figures state that 34 percent of sheltered homeless persons and 80 to 90 percent of those unsheltered struggle with addiction. Fifteen percent of homeless persons are believed to have mental health disabilities. Those persons actually living on the streets represent the most publicly visible segment of the homeless population, but in fact it is a relatively small proportion, perhaps no more than 10 percent of the entire homeless population. A study conducted last year by Philadelphia Health Management Corporation offers important new data in helping us understand the issues facing many homeless Philadelphians.