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Some Differences Exist Between Rural and Urban Homeless Populations

Often pride, fueled by a difficulty in accessing services with any level of anonymity, will keep the underserved from seeking help.

Rural Homelessness Has Some Similarities to Urban Homelessness

A lack of affordable housing is probably the main reason for homelessness in all areas, both rural and urban. As older and affordable housing becomes uninhabitable, new affordable housing is not being created to keep pace.

Issues like mental illness and addiction are sometimes contributing factors. The rates of addiction are now very similar whether in rural or urban areas.

Although they are often eligible for services available in urban areas, most often those who are experiencing homelessness refuse to enter the culture of the inner city to access services. Their perception may be that there are dangers that they cannot cope with.

Unlike the urban homeless, the rural homeless usually don’t have places that they gather to receive services such as soup kitchens and emergency shelters, therefore they are much more hidden from their community.

With little or no local services, law enforcement are sometimes forced to ask the homeless move on to a different area. The homeless in many rural areas represent a problem with no good solution. Many more resources are needed to begin to address the concern.

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