The Issues. Solutions.

Who is Homeless in the Fargo-Moorhead Metro?

On any given night, around 1,000 people experience homelessness in our community.

This number is an estimate based on a variety of data available to us including a daily changing shelter census, those encountered in outreach work, and those seeking services. Outreach and service numbers are most likely much lower than reality and change from day to day and week to week. This homeless population in our community is predominantly working age adults (72%) and male (67.5%). There is a significant racial disparity compared to the general population in our community with nearly half the homeless population being non-white.

Homelessness is Simple and complex

The only cause of homelessness is not having a home. The solution is housing.

While this is a simple and accurate truth, there are various complexities ranging from personal tragedy, job loss, and chronic health conditions to generational poverty and housing markets that contribute to why homelessness exists. Housing, adequate supports, and addressing issues of injustice are all part of solutions. One of the most challenging solutions is addressing a unique combination of experiences, traumas, lack of support networks, and access to services or supports.

We are Ending HOMELESSNESS. But not fast enough.

We know what works.

Our local and regional homeless services are housing people. Good work is happening, just not as fast as homelessness is rising. One thing we have learned during the pandemic is that we can effectively prevent homelessness when the social safety net is expanded with rent assistance and evictions are curbed. These are not the only solutions, but can be a key component of larger strategies.

We are experiencing new challenges, as well as progress during the COVID-19 pandemic. As time goes on, we hope to use what we are learning in this time to improve our long term strategies.

Homelessness is created by societal factors we can control. Our goal is to creat the systems and political will to change it. We can end homelessness by making it a RARE, BRIEF, and ONE-TIME experience in our community.