Why Do Big Cities Have More Homelessness?

In "What's Behind Rising Homelessness in America," Nan Roman discusses the alarming increase in homelessness in major U.S. cities in recent years. In "What's Behind Rising Homelessness in America," Nan Roman discusses the alarming increase in homelessness in major U.S. cities in recent years. Load video

Go to any large city, be it Los Angeles, New York, or San Francisco, and you're sure to find an abundance of homeless people.

When I visited downtown Los Angeles, California, for example, tents of homeless people lined the sidewalks of every block. Sure, with a million and a half people homeless in the world today, I was bound to see some homeless living in tents in a major city.

But it's not like that in the suburbs. Homeless people in suburbia are few. So why is it that big cities harbor more homeless people?

While the reasons for why any specific person is homeless vary, and many of the same reasons equally apply to the suburbs as well, big cities have more homelessness due to five inevitable reasons.

Here are the five most significant reasons big cities have more homelessness:

5) BIG CITIES HAVE MORE GENTRIFICATION

Because big cities have more poverty, more gentrification exists in them as well.

Gentrification is the term used to describe the attempt by society to equalize wealth inequality by migrating wealthy people into impoverished neighborhoods.

The idea is that if you build expensive homes in ghettos, and knock down the price enough on the homes you build, richer people will move into them. Then, they will spend more money in the ghetto. This will make each resident more wealthy,(or so the argument goes.)

The problem with this approach to equalizing poverty, however, is by increasing a neighborhood's average property value, landlords in the area begin charging more for rent.

Suddenly, a resident who has lived in a poor neighborhood their entire life can no longer afford to live in the ghetto.

So gentrification fails, at least initially, to equalize poverty. In the beginning stages, gentrification causes more poverty and homelessness.

Thus, the first reason big cities have more homelessness is that they have more gentrification.

Another common reason is more people.

4) BIG CITIES HAVE MORE PEOPLE

As compared to smaller cities and suburbs, big cities have more people. More people mean more individuals that can't work. It also means more people who are victims of unexpected or unfortunate circumstances.

As compared to suburbs, big cities do not necessarily have a higher proportion of people who can't work. They usually don't have a significantly higher proportion of people who are victims of unexpected or unfortunate circumstances. But because big cities have more people, they have greater numbers of individuals who experience the problems that cause homelessness.

More people in big cities means...

more criminal records

Where ever there are more people, there is more crime. Where ever there is more crime there are more people with criminal records.

Criminal records make it difficult to gain employment. No income leads to homelessness.

more job loss

If 50,000 people are employed in a suburb, and 600,000 people are employed in a big city, then surely a greater number of job losses will occur in the big city as compared to the smaller one. Job loss is a common cause of eviction. Eviction causes homelessness.

more evictions

Other than the fact that rent is more difficult to pay in big cities, it is more difficult to pay because rent costs more, and more evictions occur because more housing exists. More people in housing means more evictions. Evictions are one of the most common reasons people become homeless.

more people with disabilities

Besides the fact that where large numbers of individuals exist, disabled people are sure to be found, disabled persons prefer living in big cities over suburbs.

Big cities provide adequate transportation for the disabled. Most disabled persons lack the means to get around. Living in a city better suits them because transportation services in the city accommodate the disabled.

In addition, more grocery stores and medical facilities exist near bus routes in large cities. Homelessness results from physical and mental disabilities as well.

more domestic abuse

Separate a group of 20,000 families, from a group of 90,000 families, and the group with 90,000 families will probably have more instances of domestic abuse. Homelessness results from domestic abuse when a victim of violence leaves a home to flee from an abuser. So big cities have more homelessness due to more domestic abuse.

more people that choose to be homeless

Finally, because some people choose to be homeless, wherever more individuals are, more homeless people who choose to sleep outdoors exist too.

Therefore, big cities have more homelessness due to more people's problems.

3) BIG CITIES HAVE MORE POVERTY

While big cities host good job opportunities, they are also are home to some of the most impoverished neighborhoods. Cities like Harlem Queens, and San Francisco come to mind, for instance.

The reason for this is big cities have higher population densities. This means that for every square block, too many people are in my way.

The result of this is housing is harder to come by. Because housing is more scarce, the cost of renting or owning shelter is high. Many people just simply can't afford to pay rent in big cities.

So what tends to happen is the people with money rent and buy expensive homes in nicer areas, while the poor get pushed into the ghettos and out on the streets.

Thus, big cities have more poverty because more people make housing more scarce. Less housing in the area drives up the costs of living.

Even some city ghettos are too expensive to rent a home in.

So another reason why big cities have more homelessness is that poverty exists in big cities.

2) BIG CITIES HAVE MORE UNEMPLOYMENT

Next, big cities have more homelessness because they host more unemployment.

The reason is jobs are more competitive in big cities. Many people are poor and live in the ghetto. And so they are willing to take another person's job and do it quicker and with less pay.

Unemployment is a major issue in big cities as well. While there may be more jobs to apply for, there are also more people applying for those jobs. When a person becomes unemployed and can't secure another job quickly, homelessness is often the result.

Therefore, another reason why big cities have more homelessness is they host more unemployment.

1) BIG CITIES HAVE MORE UNAFFORDABLE HOUSING

Another reason why big cities have more homelessness is they foster more unaffordable homes.

Unaffordable housing results from a shortage of available living spaces. One common cause of a housing shortage is a population explosion. Mass migration of people from the suburbs to the city, for example, can cause a housing shortage. Housing shortages drive up the cost of living.

When I was living in Reno, NV, a new Giga Factory was built on the outskirts of the city. The new Giga Factory made electric cars and needed a massive amount of people to build those cars. To meet that need, the company recruited thousands of people from other parts of the world to work at that factory.

The migration of people and the additional hundreds of thousands of dollars that were then flowing through my city's economy drove up the cost of living enormously. As a result, more homeless people walked the downtown area than I had ever seen in my 10 years living there.

So unaffordable housing is another reason why big cities have more homelessness.

OTHER REASONS WHY BIG CITIES HAVE MORE HOMELESSNESS

In addition to fostering the conditions that make it possible for homelessness to occur, big cities also attract more homeless people.

Metropolitan areas offer better opportunities for the homeless. So many homeless people migrate to big cities in search of better opportunities.

Some of the opportunities that exist in big cities, opportunities that are less prevalent in suburban areas, include services and donations for the homeless, and greater returns from panhandling.

Perhaps nothing attracts more homeless people to the city than homeless shelters. Especially in the winter months, many homeless people migrate from the suburbs to big cities in search of relief from the rain, cold, and snow.

Social services like welfare programs also attract the homeless. Big cities offer more services to the homeless, and many homeless people leave in search of services.

Plus, big cities have more non-profit agencies that offer food and clothing donations. Many of the homeless like to take advantage of those.

Finally, for the few that panhandle, big cities offer greater returns on investment. More cars drive by, and if the homeless person finds just the right spot to beg, richer people donate generously.

So big cities also have more homelessness due to migration.

FINAL WORDS

Big cities have more homelessness for 5 main reasons.

First, more gentrification exists in large cities. In an attempt to equalize the wealth disparity, governments implement more gentrification in large cities. This causes more homelessness.

Big cities also have more people. More people mean greater numbers of individuals experiencing the problems that lead to homelessness.

In addition, big cities have more poverty. Poverty results from the high population density that large cities have.

Big cities additionally have more unemployment. Jobs are more competitive because more people bid for them.

What's more, big cities have more unaffordable housing. Housing shortages are a common cause of unaffordable housing.

Finally, other reasons why big cities have more homelessness relate to greater opportunities for the homeless. Many homeless people migrate to large cities in search of social services such as welfare, and food and clothing donations.

conclusion

So the next time you're downtown in the city and you see a bunch of homeless people begging for change, think of gentrification, unfortunate life circumstances, poverty, unemployment, and unaffordable housing as reasons for why they're homeless.