The Nation - News from Aug. 25, 1986

The number of homeless people in the United States last year was approximately 350,000, a study by a Harvard University economist concludes. The number is about the same reported two years ago in a controversial Housing and Urban Development Department study. “We came in thinking we were going to find HUD with a serious undercount. We were surprised,” economist Richard Freeman said in an interview. Various advocacy groups have estimated that the number of homeless is as high as 3 million. Freeman said his study found that 39% of the homeless had spent some time in jail, and “the typical homeless person will be on the street or in shelters for 12 years,” not for just a relatively short period, as HUD concluded.