The Homeless Count

The homeless population in most of the country has been declining for years, thanks to a strong economy and a low unemployment rate. But in Los Angeles County, the homeless population has been rising fast--nearly 25% in the last year.

A team from USC set out to figure out what was going on. They launched a big survey to ask people how they had ended up on the street. They found that the new homeless population has changed. A lot of homeless people are educated, have jobs, and many are elderly.

Half of them had become homeless for the first time in just the last 30 days.

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