A new study has revealed that half of Seattle’s homeless population arrived from outside the city and has no direct connection to the area. The Discover Institute’s Center on Wealth and Poverty released its report, A New Approach to Homelessness in Seattle, highlighting that King County’s homelessness crisis is one of the worst in the nation. The number of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness in the county is at an all-time high and could double in less than three years if current trends continue.
The report found that King County had an estimated 16,385 homeless individuals, marking a 23 percent increase from 2022. Since 2019, the annual Point-in-Time counts have shown a steady rise in homelessness, putting the county’s crisis on par with Los Angeles. Nationally, homelessness has grown by 12 percent, but King County’s unsheltered population has surged by 28 percent. At this rate, the county’s unsheltered population will reach nearly 20,000 by 2027.
According to the report, federal policies such as “Housing First,” which prohibits requiring treatment or job training for homeless individuals, have contributed to the crisis. By eliminating treatment requirements, the policy has created major service gaps for those struggling with substance abuse and mental illness. A study from UC Berkeley and UCLA found that 75 percent of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness reported having a substance use disorder or untreated mental illness. Nearly half of respondents indicated these issues contributed to their loss of housing.
In 2023, nearly half of all overdose deaths in King County involved individuals living unsheltered or in subsidized supportive housing. A July 2024 audit from the City of Seattle reported a 282 percent increase in overdose deaths within permanent supportive housing between 2020 and 2023. The report criticized Seattle’s shift in funding away from emergency response measures in favor of permanent supportive housing, which has failed to address the root causes of homelessness.
The Center on Wealth and Poverty recommended prioritizing funding for treatment and recovery programs with the goal of self-sufficiency. It also proposed redirecting 20 percent of homelessness and housing funds toward emergency treatment responses for the 2,450 individuals with direct ties to Seattle. The report further suggested creating clinical treatment tracks and ensuring service providers tailor their programs to meet different needs rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach.
