More than 2,300 people homeless in Waterloo Region, point-in-time report finds [Video]

A new point-in-time (PiT) report, conducted in October, found that 2,371 people were experiencing homelessness in the Region of Waterloo.

That’s more than double the number reported in 2021, when 1,085 people said that they were unhoused.

“The growth in the rates of chronic homelessness occurring in our community is consistent with the 28 per cent year-over-year growth that we have seen annually since 2020, as reported in the Key Findings report of the Plan to End Chronic homelessness (September 2023),” read a statement from Region of Waterloo Housing Services. “If the 28 per cent annual increase in chronic homelessness continues, the community will have triple the number of residents experiencing chronic homelessness by 2028.”

The federal government requires communities to do a PiT count every two years, which is comprised of two parts: the enumeration (count) and the Survey on Homelessness.

The PiT count in Waterloo Region was completed …