HUD has released the 2008 Annual Homeless assessment Report (AHAR), the fourth in a series of reports on homelessness in the United States. The report provides counts of homelessness nationwide—including counts of individuals, persons in families, and special population groups such as veterans and chronically homeless people. The report also covers the types of locations where people use emergency shelter and transitional housing; where people were just before they entered a residential program; how much time they spend in shelters over the course of a year; and the size and use of the U.S inventory of residential programs for homeless people.
The AHAR – which is based on data collected in 2009 – showed a ten percent reduction among people experiencing chronic homelessness, but a rise in the number of families seeking shelter.
