Federal Report Shows Homelessness Fell in California and Nationwide in 2025
Why It Matters
California, home to the largest homeless population in the country, recorded a measurable decline in the number of people without housing last year, according to a new federal report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The findings carry significant weight for how federal dollars are allocated and how state and local officials shape their responses to homelessness — issues that will factor heavily into California’s upcoming gubernatorial race.
What Happened
HUD released its annual homelessness report to Congress after a five-month delay, showing that an estimated 181,934 Californians were counted as homeless in January 2025 — a 2.8% decline from the prior year’s count. Nationwide, the total stood at approximately 745,652 people, representing a 3.3% drop and the first year-over-year decrease since 2016.
California ranked among the five states reporting the largest numerical declines, though several other states posted steeper percentage drops: Illinois fell 44%, Hawaii 41%, Florida 11%, and New York 8%. Within California, Los Angeles County alone reported roughly 2,394 fewer chronically homeless individuals — defined as people with a disability who have been homeless for at least one year.
Local officials in communities that saw decreases credited factors including new housing openings, faster placement of individuals into available units, coordinated matching systems, and expanded street outreach efforts.
By the Numbers
- 181,934 — homeless Californians counted in the 2025 point-in-time survey, down 2.8% from 2024
- 745,652 — estimated total homeless population nationwide
- 3.3% — national year-over-year decline, the first since 2016
- 27% — increase in national homelessness since 2013, the figure the Trump administration emphasized
- 14 of 44 — California continuums of care that did not conduct a count in 2025; HUD used 2024 figures for those areas
Competing Interpretations
The report immediately became contested political ground. HUD Secretary Scott Turner emphasized the longer-term trend rather than the single-year dip, stating that data shows “the status quo of ‘housing first’ has failed to meaningfully reduce homelessness.” Turner said the department is redirecting programs toward recovery and self-sufficiency.
The “housing first” model — which places individuals into stable housing without requiring sobriety or other preconditions — has been national policy since roughly 2013. The Trump administration wants to replace it with an approach that ties housing to sobriety requirements and has sought to shift federal homelessness funds away from permanent housing and toward temporary shelter arrangements.
Advocates disputed the administration’s framing. The National Homelessness Law Center attributed the decline to Biden-era funding decisions, with spokesperson Jesse Rabinowitz stating in a news release that “homelessness is down because Former President Biden funded things that we know work, like housing and support.”
The administration also linked the 2025 decline to immigration enforcement, stating it was tied to decreases in sanctuary cities. The full report does not reference sanctuary cities, though it notes that some communities in New York and Illinois attributed portions of their declines “in part” to changes in federal immigration policy.
Zoom Out
The report’s publication came five months later than its typical December release, without official explanation. Its findings land as California and 18 other states are actively suing the Trump administration over its attempts to redirect homelessness funding away from permanent housing — a legal battle that may ultimately determine how billions in federal dollars flow to local programs. Questions about how housing funding is structured in high-cost markets remain central to that dispute.
Ann Oliva, CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, called the decline a “relief” but cautioned that housing resources available in 2024 — including the Emergency Housing Voucher program and rural homelessness funds — drove much of the measured progress, and those resources face uncertainty going forward.
The report also reflected policy changes in how HUD presented demographic data. The 2025 edition removed all gender breakdowns that appeared in the previous year’s version and replaced the phrase “people experiencing homelessness” with “homeless persons.”
What’s Next
The ongoing federal litigation over homelessness funding allocation will likely shape how California and other states can deploy resources in the coming year. HUD’s shift away from housing-first policy is expected to face continued legal and legislative resistance at the state level, and local continuums of care will next be required to conduct counts within a two-year cycle as federally mandated.