A new report reveals that visible homelessness in Quebec has witnessed a significant increase of about 44 percent between 2018 and 2022. The analysis conducted by the province’s public health institute indicates that homelessness has escalated in all the regions surveyed, with certain areas outside Montreal experiencing the sharpest rise.
The survey, carried out on October 11, 2022, estimated the number of homeless individuals across the province at 10,000, including 4,690 in Montreal. Although Montreal had the highest number of individuals residing in shelters or on the streets, the city’s proportion of Quebec’s total homeless population declined from 80 percent in April 2018 to approximately 60 percent.
The Outaouais region in western Quebec observed the most substantial increase in homelessness over the specified four-and-a-half-year period, followed by the Laurentians region north of Montreal and the Montérégie region to the south of the city.
The researchers acknowledge that their report does not capture the complete number of people without homes, as it fails to include individuals without permanent addresses who are temporarily staying with others or in hotels.
In the report, visible homelessness is defined as the number of individuals lacking permanent housing who are living on the streets or in locations such as cars, sheds, and emergency shelters.