Why It Matters
Maryland recorded a 17% rise in its homeless population between January 2024 and January 2025, bucking a modest national decline and placing the state among the majority of U.S. states where homelessness moved in the wrong direction. The figures come from the federal government’s annual point-in-time count and carry implications for state housing policy, shelter funding, and social services.
What Happened
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released results from its January 2025 point-in-time count, a single-night survey of the homeless population conducted each winter. Nationally, the count recorded 745,652 homeless individuals, a 3% decline from January 2024 — but that headline figure masks significant variation across states.
Homelessness increased in 28 states, including Maryland, where the population rose 17%. Oregon saw a 19% increase over the same period. North Carolina’s count jumped by 3,886 people — a 33% surge — largely attributed to displacement caused by Hurricane Helene in fall 2024, which prompted the state to add roughly 4,000 emergency shelter beds.
On the other end of the spectrum, Hawaii reported a 41% decline and Illinois saw a 44% drop, among the sharpest improvements in the country.
By the Numbers
- 745,652 — total homeless individuals counted nationwide in January 2025
- 3% — year-over-year decline in the national homeless population
- 4% — decline in the emergency shelter population from 2024 to 2025
- 11% — decline in unhoused families with children over the same period
- 22 per 10,000 — national rate of homelessness on a given night; New York led all states at 73 per 10,000
- 27% — increase in the overall U.S. homeless population since 2013, according to a Trump administration statement
Zoom Out
The data arrive as the Trump administration signals a shift in federal homelessness policy — moving away from long-term permanent housing placements and toward transitional housing models that incorporate work requirements and addiction treatment programs. The administration has pointed to the cumulative 27% rise since 2013 as evidence that prior federal approaches have fallen short.
The national picture reflects a tension between real progress in some high-cost, high-visibility states and persistent or worsening conditions in others. Natural disasters, as seen in North Carolina, can distort year-over-year comparisons significantly, making state-level accountability harder to assess in isolation.
Housing supply and affordability remain the structural backdrop for these numbers. Efforts to build new mixed-income and transitional housing are underway in various states — Vermont recently opened a $15.3 million mixed-income housing complex on a flood-damaged site in Waterbury, an example of disaster recovery intersecting with housing development.
What’s Next
Maryland state and local officials will face pressure to account for the 17% increase as housing advocates and budget writers review shelter capacity and support services heading into the next fiscal year. Federally, the Trump administration’s pivot toward transitional housing and treatment-linked programs is expected to reshape how HUD distributes grants to states and municipalities, potentially affecting Maryland’s access to homelessness funding.