Below is an overview of current poverty and housing statistics, as well as additional factors contributing to homelessness, and a list of resources available for further study.
Poor people are frequently unable to pay for housing, food, child care, health care, and education.
Difficult choices must be made when limited resources cover only some of these necessities. Often it is housing, which absorbs a high proportion of income, that must be dropped. Being poor means being an illness, an accident, or a paycheck away from living on the streets. This represents an increase of 500,000 from 1995. These kinds of work arrangements typically offer lower wages, fewer benefts, and less job security.