Data & Reports

Sonoma County Homeless Census and Survey

On January 27, 2023, volunteers and guides fanned out across Sonoma County as part of an annual, community-wide effort to understand the needs, number, and circumstances of persons experiencing homelessness. Point-in-Time Counts measure the prevalence of homelessness in each community and collect information on individuals and families residing in emergency shelters and transitional housing, as well as on people sleeping on the streets, in cars, abandoned properties, or other places not meant for human habitation. In the weeks following the street count, a survey was administered to 445 unsheltered and sheltered individuals and families experiencing homelessness in order to profile their experience and characteristics. Visit Sonoma County's Annual Homeless Census website to read the 2023 Homeless Count Report and past reports.

Homelessness in Santa Rosa and Greater Sonoma County

By The Numbers

There has been a 27% reduction in homelessness in Sonoma County since 2015. Most recently, the number of individuals experiencing homelessness decreased by approximately 22% countywide from 2022 to 2023, including a 30% decrease in the City of Santa Rosa. 

Number of Individuals Experiencing Homelessness in Sonoma County

2015
3,107
2017
2,835
2019
2,951
2020
2,745
2022
2,893
2023
2,266


Sheltered/Unsheltered

43% Sheltered
975 individuals countywide in emergency shelters. 
57% Unsheltered
1,291 individuals countywide in cars, on the street, and other public spaces not meant for human habitation. 
51% in Santa Rosa
More than half of the overall countywide homeless population reside in Santa Rosa, the largest city in Sonoma County. Of the 1,160 individuals experiencing homelessness in Santa Rosa, 695 (60%) individuals were sheltered.


Results of City-Funded Programs and Initiatives for Fiscal Year 2022/23

380 Housed
1,734 Sheltered* 
4,681 Served*
Number of individuals housed through City-funded programs, including direct placements into housing through street outreach and persons exiting emergency shelter to permanent housing.Number of individuals sheltered through City-funded emergency shelters, including referrals to shelter through day services and street outreach as well as persons directly sheltered through City-funded emergency shelters and safe parking.Totality of individuals served --including those sheltered and housed -- through City-funded programs, including day services, street outreach, emergency shelter, and safe parking.

*Individuals who are served by multiple City programs are counted for each program in which they received service.

Funding - $8.5M

2023/2024 fiscal year investment in Santa Rosa's Homelessness Solutions is $8.5 million. This includes one-time Encampment Resolution Funding in the amount of $3.8M for a three-year period. This does not include additional investments by the City in affordable housing, permanent supportive housing, and its innovative mental health response team, InRESPONSE.

City Investments Over the Past 6 Years
2018/2019
$3.4M

2019/2020
$3.4M

2020/2021
$5M

2021/2022
$7.6M*

2022/2023
$4.9M

2023/2024
$8.5M**

* 2021/2022 included one-time funding for the Safe Parking Program ($2.8M) for a two-year period.
** 2023/2024 includes one-time Encampment Resolution Funding ($3.8M) for a three-year period

Open Data Portal & Dashboard

The City of Santa Rosa's Open Data Portal includes a Homeless Services Dashboard tracking the number of people served, sheltered, and/or housed by quarter through the following City-funded programs: Homeless Outreach Services Team (HOST), Samuel L. Jones Hall Homeless Shelter, Family Support Center, Homeless Services Center, and the Safe Parking Pilot Program.