CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Homelessness is often defined as those who have no fixed, adequate

and regular nighttime residence or those whose night residence is a shelter.

Various local, state and national programs are in place to assist the homeless but

often result in programs that focus on side effects of homelessness such as getting

people temporary out of public view rather than helping them to create a new

life. Churches and other social agencies work to help people living under the

poverty level without suitable employment to locate ways to find work and

homes. Many recognize that poverty today is a result of a lack of affordable

housing coupled with a lack of entry-level jobs that provide income for the family

to afford housing (Harris 2017).

Eliminating homelessness or reducing its volume substantially will

make certain changes in how housing markets operate. Homelessness, after all, is

ultimately a housing market condition. People who leave homelessness have to

live somewhere they weren’t living before. It is less clear which housing policies

will do the best job of reducing homelessness (Ellen 2010).