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Homelessness is the condition of lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.[1][2][3][4][5] Homelessness in the modern day is structural, because it may not entirely mean lacking any sort of housing, but lacking housing that adequately shelters one from the elements and provides a postal address, which are necessary for daily life.[6][7][8] Without a postal address, one can't easily open a bank account or request welfare in most capitalist countries.[4][6][7]
While unusual crises (such as natural disasters) can lead to temporary homelessness, the structural problem itself is created by a lack of accessible housing, and can easily be solved globally by providing people with stable housing that they own under their name, even provided for free.[3][8] It is a problem that exists in the modern day because governments allow it to continue, for two major reasons:
- In capitalism, housing is a commodity that is mostly being traded by speculators instead of being used for shelter.[9]
- Furthermore, the homeless become part of the reserve army of labor, a warning sign to other workers not to rebel against their working conditions lest they become homeless too.[10]
On point 2, it should be noted that in many places a lot of homeless people are employed but are priced out of affording housing. This is the case in the United States for example, where almost half of all homeless people are employed.[11][12] Interns working for the UN in Geneva, Switzerland also often sleep in tents as their internship is unpaid, and the city expensive.[13] This also means that most interns for the UN will be rich graduates whose parents can support them, thereby reproducing social class.
Nuances in definition[edit | edit source]
Statistical definition[edit | edit source]
Because homelessness is a social issue, it revolves around its legal definition, which can erase homeless people out of existence statistically depending on what 'counts' as homeless. For example, some states consider that living in one's own car does not count as homelessness. Some don't even keep statistics on the matter.
For example, until 2020 Switzerland did not run systematic homelessness surveys, letting cities decide for themselves. It was only in that year that a non-governmental national survey was run across the whole country to quantify homelessness.[14]
Homelessness by country[edit | edit source]
In the United States[edit | edit source]
Homelessness is a major issue in the United States. Despite over 17 million vacant homes, there are 3.5 million homeless people in the US each year.[15]
Between 2023 and 2024, official figures recorded an 18% increase in homelessness; however, actual numbers may be even higher due to underreporting.[16]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ https://www.hudexchange.info/homelessness-assistance/coc-esg-virtual-binders/coc-esg-homeless-eligibility/four-categories/category-1/
- ↑ https://www.beavertonoregon.gov/296/HUD-Definition-of-Homeless
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://www.oecd.org/en/topics/sub-issues/affordable-housing/homelessness.html
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 https://www.feantsa.org/download/article-1-33278065727831823087.pdf
- ↑ https://unhabitat.org/sites/default/files/2025/08/definition_homelessness_annex_0708.pdf
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 https://www.feantsaresearch.org/public/user/Observatory/2024/EJH-18-2/EJH_18-2_A04_web.pdf
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/policy/publications/the-postal-paradox-how-having-no-address-keeps-people-homeless/
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 https://ourworldindata.org/homelessness
- ↑ https://socialistproject.ca/2025/07/housing-basic-right-or-playground-for-global-capital/
- ↑ https://cldc.org/homelessness-and-the-reserve-army-of-labor-2/
- ↑ https://endhomelessness.org/blog/employed-and-experiencing-homelessness-what-the-numbers-show/
- ↑ https://nestcommunityshelter.org/breaking-the-cycle-employment-challenges-for-individuals-experiencing-homelessness/
- ↑ https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/society/un-intern-living-in-tent-in-geneva-resigns/41599352
- ↑ https://www.europenowjournal.org/2023/07/06/homelessness-in-switzerland-from-a-blind-spot-to-new-approaches-in-research-and-practice/
- ↑ Ben Becker (2008-02-01). "A glut of homes in a sea of homelessness" Liberation School. Archived from the original on 2020-09-22. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
- ↑ “The US homeless population increased by more than 18% in a year... The figure is likely an undercount, as it does not include people temporarily staying with family and friends.”
"US homelessness hit record high in 2024" (2024-12-28). BBC. Retrieved 2025-08-24.