The homelessness crisis has worsened dramatically in blue state New York in just two years, according to a report released Wednesday New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.
Between January 2022 and January 2024, homelessness reportedly doubled in the Empire State, while the rest of the country saw just 21 percent growth. According to the report, the mass arrival of asylum seekers in New York City has caused a huge jump in homelessness.
“A growing number of New Yorkers are experiencing housing insecurity, with an alarming increase in recent years in the number of homeless people,” DiNapoli said.
While the crisis has been driven in part by eviction proceedings, a lack of affordable housing and rent increases, asylum seekers account for 88 percent of the increase in homelessness in New York City, according to the report.
A homeless person sits with his belongings on December 27, 2024, in a subway car in New York City. (Robert Nickelsburg)
“The influx of asylum seekers has been a major reason for the growth in the number of homeless people In New York City“And even in some downstate counties,” DiNapoli said.
“Many of the tens of thousands of asylum seekers who came to New York had no place to stay, which led to increased spending and a large portion of the growth of the homeless population,” he continued.
A homeless person tents in a cordoned off area in New York on December 27, 2024. (Selcuk Akar/Anatolia)
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while we Homelessness Overall, it reached a new peak last year, of which New Yorkers are said to account for 20%, or 158,000 people. The state's homelessness rate, about 8 per 1,000 people, was higher than any state except Hawaii and the District of Columbia.
The spike in homelessness in New York was primarily driven by New York City, which accounts for 93% of the state's total homeless population.
Additionally, children under 18 make up a third of the state's homeless population, one of the highest percentages in the country. The number of displaced children doubled between the two years, reaching 50,000 people.
A homeless person lies on the sidewalk in New York on December 27, 2024. (Selcuk Akar/Anatolia)
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DiNapoli said more needs to be done to help keep people in their homes, especially families with children.
According to the report, New York Governor Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced affordable housing proposals in their recent 2025 policy addresses.
New York State is also implementing a five-year, $25 billion housing plan to “create or preserve 100,000 affordable homes,” according to the Office of Budget Policy and Analysis.
