Homeless Count shows progress in homeless services, while need outpaces funding resources

HILLSBORO – Washington County has released preliminary data as part of the federal 2025 Homeless Point in Time (PIT) Count. The PIT is part of a data gathering effort that is completed on a bi-annual basis and used to determine the number of people experiencing homelessness on one night in January. A known undercount, the PIT allows regions to track the trends of homelessness over time.

During the count, Washington County identified 940 people experiencing homelessness, 701 of whom were currently in emergency shelter. This increase in people experiencing homelessness is reflective of the increase in shelter capacity; Washington County added more than 350 year-round shelter units since 2020 through steady growth and development of a robust shelter program. See the chart below for a look at PIT count trends over time.(1)

Further analysis determined 70% of identified individuals who were chronically homeless(2) in the 2024 Sheltered Count had since been housed in a Washington County housing program or had some other positive resolution and are no longer homeless. This is in large part due to rental assistance, case management services, and shelter connections programmed through the Washington County Department of Housing Services and funded by the regional Supportive Housing Services (SHS) measure. Consistent with these findings, the majority of chronically homeless individuals in 2025 were newly identified.(3) This data point also aligns with the Metro Supportive Housing Services Annual Report finding that, across the region, for every 10 households who exited the homeless services system to permanent housing, 15 new households entered the system.

Experts believe that key improvements in PIT count methodology, and expanded homeless street outreach, are resulting in a more accurate count. Improvements include working with Clackamas and Multnomah counties to align approaches and regionalize the PIT count by working with a shared consultant, Homeless Research and Action Collaborative (HRAC) at Portland State University. HRAC manages the coordination of the street count, updates the survey assessment with consistent questions used in all three counties, and oversees data processing.

“The partnership with service providers and city jurisdictions is crucial to completing the PIT here in Washington County,” says Molly Rogers, executive director of Washington County Department of Housing Services. “Homelessness is more hidden because of the suburban and rural areas in our community, and yet the need is vast here in Washington County. We are proud to have served over 10,000 people with homeless services last year and the PIT is just one indicator of many that these services are tremendously needed.”

The increasing number of people experiencing homelessness is indicative of broader economic trends, like the increase in unemployment. The cost of living, with groceries and utility costs on the rise, has led to an increase in people experiencing homelessness for the first time, which has increased by 69% since 2020.(4) While Washington County has been successful in housing many of the people identified in the prior PIT counts, the impacts of inflation are outpacing resources to address homelessness.

“When expenses go up, the first people to feel the impact are low-income families,” says Kemp Shuey, executive director of Community Action. “We are seeing the rising need play out in real time. People who are living paycheck to paycheck call us every day looking for resources to avoid homelessness and, unfortunately, more people come to us asking for help than we can serve.”

These broader economic trends highlight the eminence need for targeted investments to address homelessness including shelter, case management services, and long-term housing options to ensure a pathway to housing stability. The regional voter-approved Supportive Housing Services measure (SHS) funds these efforts in Washington County, which has dramatically increased the County’s shelter capacity, served over 10,000 people last year, and currently houses almost 4,000 people with dedicated rent assistance.

It is important to recall that the PIT count remains an undercount and does not include people who are sleeping doubled up, couch surfing, or people who move in and out of homelessness over the course of the year, and as such it is not a fully accurate representation of the unmet need. Culturally specific providers tell us that people of color are underrepresented in the Count as a result.

What is next?

Washington County is exploring other ways to provide greater insight into the need for homeless services given the limitations of the PIT count, such as using a “by-name list” of data collected over the course of the year, at points of service throughout Washington County. This approach would provide more information about the individuals experiencing homelessness in our county, and what happens as they seek services over time, providing better information to inform investments and policy. A PIT count is only completed biannually and much of the data is anonymous, where as a by-name list can be updated on a more frequent basis and draws on information we already collect as part of our intake process for homeless services. This will likely result in a higher number of people experiencing homelessness in Washington County; however, the benefit of this more accurate data is crucial to addressing community need.

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[1] Note: To align with our regional county partners, Washington County did not conduct a street county in 2024, so the total reflects only the shelter count.

[2] Chronically Homeless refers to people who have experienced homelessness for over a year and where one member of their household has a disabling condition.

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[4] Washington County Fiscal Year 2023-24 HUD System Performance Measures