Preliminary 2025 Point-in-Time homeless count numbers show steep decline

The preliminary 2025 Point-in-Time Count, conducted across Sonoma County the morning of Jan. 31, registered a decrease of 23%, for a total of 1,952 people experiencing homelessness. This is the lowest number since the PIT Count began in 2007 and reflects a welcome reduction of 570 unsheltered individuals from 2024.

“It is very encouraging to see progress,” said Supervisor Lynda Hopkins, chair of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors. “This year’s count reflects the tireless dedication of County staff, the Continuum of Care volunteers and our community partners — people who are showing up every day to do the hard, human work of addressing homelessness.”

The full PIT Count report, which will include a breakdown of the count by cities and regions, as well as demographic data and causes of homelessness, will be made available toward the end of summer and provide insights into the reasons for the decrease.

Department of Health Services Director Nolan Sullivan posits that at least part of the reason for the reduction includes new department initiatives having come online, such as permanent housing projects for chronically homeless individuals with mental illness and set asides in affordable housing projects for people experiencing homelessness.

“I’m very happy for the nearly 600 people who are no longer homeless and the other positive changes that these numbers reflect,” Sullivan said. “And, while we had two additional projects start up toward the end of last year — Bridge Housing at Arrowood and the homelessness prevention program — whose progress will be reflected in next year’s count, we also need to remember that we are losing funding all around the system due to state and federal funding cuts, and this progress that we are celebrating today can be easily turned around.”

The number of individuals in unsheltered circumstances decreased from 1,577 in 2024 to 1,123 in 2025; at the same time, the number of individuals in sheltered circumstances decreased from 945 in 2023 to 829 in 2025. “Unsheltered” individuals are defined as those who live in a place not meant for human habitation, such as cars, parks, sidewalks and abandoned buildings. “Sheltered” homelessness pertains to those who live in an emergency shelter or transitional housing.

The 2025 count’s preliminary numbers include homeless subpopulations as required by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, two of which saw decreases and two of which saw increases. This year’s count found:

• The number of individuals experiencing “chronic homelessness,” defined as those who have been homeless for at least 12 months or on at least four separate occasions in the previous three years (and who have one or more disabling conditions), rose 20% over 2024.
• The number of homeless veterans dropped considerably from 162 to 99 (-39%).
• More families (identified as having at least one adult over 18 with at least one child under 18) are experiencing homelessness, having risen from 57 to 78 (37%). Almost all families were found to be in sheltered settings in 2025.
• The number of homeless youth dropped from 151 to 115 in 2025, reflecting 10 unaccompanied children (persons under the age of 18 without parents) and 105 transition-age youth ages 18–24. This is a reduction of 24% from 2024 numbers (despite the early 2024 closure of Social Advocates for Youth), which had already dropped 50% from 2023 numbers.

“Though the decrease is welcome news, the looming reductions at the state and federal levels may mean that it is short lived,” said Ending Homelessness program manager Michael Gause. “There is a lot more work to be done.”

How the count was done

The 2025 count was conducted in a manner similar to recent years. All deployments were in person and maps were chosen ahead of time by city and nonprofit partners in all areas of the county where individuals experiencing homelessness were known to be. Community volunteers also were involved in selecting maps to ensure countywide coverage. 

This was the second year that the count included use of the “by-name list” for all five regions of the county. By-name lists, part of the Continuum of Care’s Five-Year Strategic Plan on Homelessness, are lists by name of individuals experiencing homelessness. This increases the validity of the count as volunteers and paid homeless guides were able to locate individuals more accurately. The by-name list tally on the day of the count was 1,813, substantiating the reduction in overall numbers found in the PIT Count.

The PIT Count is based on visual observations of unsheltered individuals and groups, as well as a census of people in shelters; as a result, it provides a snapshot of homelessness during a single point in time. It is a valuable count, but County officials note that it may not adequately reflect the total number of people experiencing homelessness throughout the year.

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Media Contact:
Sheri Cardo, DHS Communications Specialist
Sheri.Cardo@sonoma-county.org
(707) 565-8619