The number of people experiencing homelessness in Phoenix is growing significantly, alongside the ever-rising prices to rent or buy a home.
A Point-in-Time Unsheltered Street Count conducted by the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) showed that in 2022, over 3,000 people experiencing homelessness were counted in Phoenix.
The report found that Phoenix has the most significant issue with the unhoused population among municipalities in Maricopa County with a growth of roughly 23% in the last two years.
2020 had nearly 2,400 displaced people, and the 2021 number went uncounted due to COVID-19 pandemic complications.
Other Arizona cities struggle with homeless populations like Mesa (451), Glendale (406), and Tempe (384), but nowhere near as much as Phoenix. In Tempe’s case, its numbers have slightly declined since the previous count (396) in 2020.
Part of the overall increase in homelessness within Phoenix comes with the rising cost of housing in Phoenix.
Phoenix Rescue Mission, an organization intending to help the homeless and take measures to prevent homelessness, has identified rising prices for housing as a major cause of homelessness.
“I had a young couple reach out to me in August, saying that when their lease is going to be renewed, their rent is going to increase by $500 a month,” said Pamela Morrison, a community relationship officer for the organization. “And they can’t afford that.”
Kristin Couturier, a spokesperson for the city of Phoenix, identified some MAG stats that showed the magnitude of the Phoenix housing crisis.
Couturier noted that the median sales price for Phoenix in December 2021 was $398,500 – a 29% increase since December 2020. The median rent for Phoenix in quarter 4 of 2021 was $1,418, which is a 28% increase from quarter 4 of 2020.
The median increase in housing is tied to the rising cost of housing, as the percentage of houses that cost less than $200,000 dropped to the single digits last year at a staggering 9%. This is a 17% drop from the year before.
Phoenix apartment rent less than $500 is now a thing of the past. Apartments at that price were last recorded being less than 1% in 2018 before disappearing entirely the following year.
In their place, units over $2,000 per month accounted for 10% of all apartments in Phoenix last year, according to MAG.
In addition to organizations like Phoenix Rescue Mission, the city of Phoenix is also attempting to do its part in order to help people experiencing homelessness.
“People who are unsheltered in our community are still our neighbors and we need to treat them as such,” said Scott Hall, interim deputy director of homeless services for the Human Services Department.
“They’re out there suffering, especially with the extreme weather we have here in Arizona,” says Hall, adding that staying empathetic and keeping the conversation going are ways to help create a greater understanding of the plight faced by people experiencing homelessness.
Since October, the city of Phoenix has split nearly $50 million between various initiatives to assist people experiencing homelessness, including shelters and outreach services.
Partnerships with the city have also funded affordable housing programs and created the Tenants Eviction Assistance Project (TEAP), which offers free “legal assistance to help residents experiencing an eviction crisis, including working cooperatively with local agencies administering COVID-19 related rental and utility assistance programs for the City of Phoenix, Maricopa County and the State of Arizona.”
When asked about ways the general public could help assist, both Morrison and Hall recommended aiding their initiatives and other similar ones.
“I think in general, people need to get involved with agencies like ours,” said Morrison, adding that getting involved can range from volunteering to donating money to supporting food drives and other initiatives to provide assistance to displaced people in the community.
For more information on how to help with Phoenix Rescue Mission, check the “You Can Help” and “Ways To Give” sections of phoenixrescuemission.org. Or visit the city of Phoenix volunteer portal at volunteer.phoenix.gov.
Contact the reporter at kerasmu1@asu.edu.
