Racialized men aged 25 to 49 most likely to experience homelessness in Ottawa

Ottawa’s latest Point-in-Time count gives an inside look at the demographics that make up the city’s nearly 3,000 people living on the streets. The count was also supplemented by a survey to better encapsulate those who couch surf, or are staying in temporary or insecure housing.

On Oct. 23, 2024 dozens of volunteers canvassed the municipality for the count, identifying 2,952 people experiencing homelessness across the city. This is up from 2,612 people in 2021.

The 13 per cent increase is partially due to a higher allocation of resources and collaboration between partner organizations that allowed the city to reach more of the homeless population; but that should not overshadow the need to better fund support services.

“The statistical analysis of the data collected this year is somewhat consistent with past years results, however with the implementing digital data collection and extending the survey period, we were able to gather data from a much larger percentage of the homeless population that improves the reliability of our results,” an executive summary of the report reads.

But the results do more than just provide a number of those living without permanent shelter, it provides details on who is on the streets so that the municipality can create programs that best target these individuals.

The data concludes that racialized men between the ages of 25 and 29 are the largest demographic group experiencing homelessness.

Forty-two per cent of those experiencing homelessness were immigrants, up from 20 per cent in 2021. With the cost of housing and living on the rise, newcomers face a wealth of challenges that make securing affordable housing a major challenge. There also continues to be an overrepresentation of Indigenous people in the homelessness population.

In response to increased immigration, the city has increased in transitional housing options from five in 2021 to 45 in 2024. This has increased the number of respondents reporting living in transitional housing to 23 per cent.

Despite this seeming productive response, the estimated number of unsheltered individuals increased from 190 identified in the 2021 count, to 556 people living unsheltered or in encampments on the night of the Oct. 23, 2024. That said, chronic homelessness has decreased eight per cent to 49 per cent in 2024.

The 2024 survey asked new questions about the status of people’s health. Of those without a permanent residence, 44 per cent reported they had a hospital emergency department visit in the previous 12 months. Of those 25 per cent had more than five visits, and 63 per cent of respondents reported having a hospital stay.

In addition, 37 per cent of respondents reported a substance use issue and 42 per cent reported a mental health issue, illuminating the need for the support of partner agencies.

The results of the enumeration and survey were presented to community agencies and stakeholders on Feb. 6 to better secure funding for these programs and services.