Squats can be just short term housing or they can evolve into long-term housing.
Squatting has always been an option people have chosen to meet their housing needs. More and more though, squatting has become an economic necessity. The rise in San Francisco's homeless population demonstrates how many people simply can't afford to rent in San Francisco and have chosen squatting as the only available option. Many people independently choose to squat and set out to identify suitable houses and move themselves in, doing so without much fanfare or organization. Recently, Homes Not Jails has developed an organized squatting movement which identifies and sets up squats for people who are homeless.