Homelessness causes severe health impacts and may reduce a person’s life expectancy by up to 30 years. People of color are more likely to experience homelessness. This makes addressing homelessness a critical health equity issue. The Department of Health (DOH) has programs and expertise that could help reduce the health impacts of homelessness for both individuals and communities.
Why is housing and homelessness data important?
Across the U.S., the main reason people become homeless is not being able to find affordable housing. It is a bigger contributor than mental illness, drug abuse, or even poverty. In Washington there aren’t enough rental units, which makes rent more expensive. At the same time, wages for people earning average or lower incomes have not kept up with rising housing costs. According to the Department of Commerce, high rents and not enough affordable housing are the most significant challenges for reducing homelessness in Washington.
Data on housing and homelessness help us understand these connections and challenges. It can be used for improving programs and policies that aim to reduce homelessness by addressing the root causes of the problem.
View the Data
What's Here
This dashboard shows data on rent costs and homelessness in Washington. Housing data are presented at the census tract-level to show how housing costs can differ widely across neighborhoods. Homelessness data are shown by county. The data come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates for 2019-2023 and from the Washington State Department of Commerce’s Snapshot Report.
Additional resources
Q&A: What are the root causes of homelessness in King County?
Washington 211 – A hotline to connect individuals to community resources like housing, food, and education supports throughout the state.
The Snapshot of Homelessness Report – This report published by Department of Commerce combines information from several different data systems to estimate the homeless and unstably housed population in Washington.
Contact us
For information or questions related to the Washington Tracking Network, email DOH.WTN@doh.wa.gov.
How have you used our data?
We love hearing about how our data is being used to make an impact on the health of Washingtonians. It also helps us to know what is meeting our users’ needs and how we can improve the information we provide. If you used our data, please tell us about it by sending an email to DOH.WTN@doh.wa.gov.
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