A startling trend has hit Santa Clara County over the past two years — more people have fallen into homeless for the first time and can’t find a way out.
Santa Clara County’s 2025 point-in-time count found 4,650 people have been homeless for a year or longer, with a disabling condition that makes maintaining work or housing difficult, known as chronic homelessness. That’s a 21% increase from 2023, when there were 3,833 chronically homeless residents county-wide.
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The county surveyed 1,534 people as part of the report to better understand their circumstances. The loss of a job or income is the primary reason people report becoming homeless, at 27%. Divorce or breakups are also contributors at 17%, and 12% of people report becoming homeless due to an eviction or rent increase.
The county’s homeless population has risen to 10,711 in the past two years, up 8.1% from 2023, while chronic homelessness has gone up 53% during that two-year period…