Homelessness increased across the United States by a shocking 18 percent in 2024. It rose much less in Leon County -- but it still rose.
Leon County saw an overall 5 percent increase in homelessness, according to the 2024 Point-in-Time Count conducted last January. A total of 840 people were experiencing homelessness at that time, including 192 youth and 112 veterans.
There was also an increase among sheltered individuals. Anyone staying in an emergency shelter, such as Tallahassee’s Kearney Center, is considered sheltered. There were 624 sheltered Leon residents experiencing homelessness last year.
At the same time, more than $33 million went to efforts to prevent and reduce homelessness in Leon County. That included dedicated funding for emergency shelters to secure permanent housing for people without it. A unit within the Leon County Sheriff’s Office focuses on reaching out to unsheltered people sleeping in cars, abandoned buildings, or in the woods.
The 2025 Point-in-Time Count will be conducted during the last full week of January.
