The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced that it housed 47,925 veterans experiencing homelessness in the fiscal year 2024. This achievement surpassed the initial goal of housing 41,000 veterans by 16.9%, marking the highest number of veterans housed in a single year since fiscal year 2019. Additionally, VA reported that 96% of these veterans did not return to homelessness.

Ending veteran homelessness remains a key focus for both the VA and the Biden-Harris Administration. Since fiscal year 2022, nearly 134,000 homeless veterans have been permanently housed, contributing to a decrease in the total number of homeless veterans in the U.S. by over 4% since early 2020 and more than 52% since 2010.

"Nearly 48,000 formerly homeless Veterans now have a safe, stable place to call home — and there’s nothing more important than that," stated VA Secretary Denis McDonough. "No Veteran should experience homelessness in this nation they swore to defend. We are making real progress in this fight, and we will not rest until Veteran homelessness is a thing of the past."

In Los Angeles, significant progress was also made with the permanent housing of 1,854 homeless veterans this fiscal year—the highest number for any city nationwide for three consecutive years—and exceeding regional goals by 15.5%. The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority's recent Point-in-Time count indicated a reduction of 22.9% in veteran homelessness between 2023 and 2024.

The VA's approach to combating veteran homelessness involves outreach to understand and address unique needs through an evidence-based "Housing First" strategy. This method focuses on providing immediate housing followed by necessary support services such as healthcare, job training, legal aid, and education assistance.

For further information on housing initiatives and programs supporting homeless veterans, visit VA.gov/homeless.