Homeless people often aren't homeless because they lack homes. It's a very loaded and misleading term. There are usually many other problems that they need help with, and homelessness is often just a symptom.
Things like drugs and mental health make things worse, but "at the margin" as economists say, if your housing is cheap, you might be able to hold on to it even if you have some problems with an addiction. There are plenty of wealthy people with drug habits who are not homeless.
That’s only relevant if you’re trying to prevent homelessness. The article is about people who are already homeless. They may not have had these problems when the became homeless, but being homeless ain’t easy.
That’s not to say housing costs aren’t a problem, they are but they have to be prepared for other problems as well.
And I'm no expert, but I imagine there's a circular relationship between the issues that homeless people have. Not having a home often means no address (unless they're able to access a PO box or similar?) so difficulty receiving mail or getting a bank account; it can mean less physical security so a higher risk of being a victim of crime (e.g. theft, assult); a higher risk of problems with the police; probably greater risk of ill health due to living conditions; and far less psychological security - to name but a few.
The majority of homeless people are homeless for economic or relationship reasons like loss of job/income, insufficient income, breakups and divorce, and lack of affordable housing[1].
The fastest growing demographic of homeless people are entire families.
From your own link.. that's only the top cause for families, which is only 30% of the total population. The causes for individuals are different and they represent the majority.
Finally.. this is all from a survey from the "U.S Conference of Mayors" which is mostly a lobbying organization as far as I can tell.
This works both ways, though. Once you're without a home, it is harder to keep the rest of your life together. Lars Eighner's (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lars_Eighner) book "Travels With Lizbeth" mentioned that one of the things that was so attractive about spending the little money he had on alcohol, was that it was an achievable goal. Getting enough money for a down payment on an apartment, was (or at least seemed) completely out of reach. Getting enough to buy a bottle of booze seemed achievable. Once you're homeless, it is difficult to get or keep a job, and the downward spiral of mental health issues, etc. can be self-reinforcing.
It certainly makes things easier, actually. You can be homeless because you were priced out of the market. Homelessness can be both the cause and the effect of other issues. My partner works in mental health / AOD, and repeatedly exclaimed how much pressure was ‘accidentally’ taken off so many people when lockdown-era economic incentives gave people in my area a better shot at just getting back on their feet. Housing matters an awful lot.
Right, depression and other mental health conditions, various addictions, heath problems, lack of basic numeracy and literacy. These need to be dealt with as well.
https://www.noahpinion.blog/p/everything-you-think-you-know-...
Indeed, it's the primary driver of homelessness.
Things like drugs and mental health make things worse, but "at the margin" as economists say, if your housing is cheap, you might be able to hold on to it even if you have some problems with an addiction. There are plenty of wealthy people with drug habits who are not homeless.