The number of people experiencing homelessness across San Diego County fell by 7% over the past year, according to data from the Point-in-Time Count released Tuesday by the Regional Task Force on Homelessness.
The annual tally was conducted over one night in January, with about 1,700 volunteers fanning across the county to count people living on the streets, in shelters or without secure housing.
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WATCH HERE“It’s a freeze frame. It’s a one-night count. It’s measured year-over-year, and it’s one that you can see the trends. And this reduction is measurable,” said RTFH CEO Tamera Kohler. “That’s why we’re encouraged by it.”
The count found at least 9,905 people experiencing homelessness countywide, down from 10,605 in the 2024 count. The latest figure includes 5,714 unsheltered San Diegans and 4,191 people in shelters and transitional housing, according to the RTFH.
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SIGN UP In the city of San Diego, homelessness dropped by 14%, the data shows, and veteran homelessness fell countywide by 25%. But the count found seniors 55 and older experiencing homelessness for the first time grew by 5%, and the number of people living in their cars increased by 7%.
“It's hard to see the difference between 100 people and 90 people, right? Because what you're seeing is still a lot of people,” Kohler said.
But some advocates like John Brady with Lived Experience Advisors cast doubt on the figures – flagging that the task force’s monthly data has shown for the majority of the past three years, more people entering homelessness than exiting it. He said it doesn’t represent the reality he sees on the ground.
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“Either a lot of people died or a lot of people are in jail or we just, given the inaccuracies of the Point-in-Time count, we just didn't manage to get everybody,” Brady said, calling the release “bait for political leaders.”
“Numbers have not gone down. They've gone up. We are serving more people than ever,” he continued. “For the everyday citizens, it's confusing, I think. But for the people on the streets, they're like, ‘What? Who are they kidding?'"
In East Village, Drusilla Yescas said she’s been living on the streets for about five years.
“I need a decent place that’s a third of my income. That’s all. That’s all I’m asking for,” she said.
On that, Brady and Kohler both agreed.
“We still have a problem with the housing affordability here in the region,” Brady said.
“More affordable rents is really what San Diego needs,” said Kohler.
