GREEN BAY, Wis. — The number of Wisconsinites dealing with homelessness climbed by almost 2% in 2023, according to a recent report from the Wisconsin Policy Forum.

Agencies statewide reported that more than 4,800 people in Wisconsin were homeless at some point last year.

It's an issue seen firsthand at House of Hope in Green Bay, Wis., which has provided clothes and a place to stay for young adults and their kids experiencing homelessness for more than 20 years.

What You Need To Know

  • There were 653,104 people experiencing homelessness on a single night in Jan. 2023 according to Housing and Urban Development data

  • In Wisconsin in 2023, local agencies reported more than 4,861 people were homeless — that’s a 1.8% increase from 4,775 in 2022                                                                     
  • Brown County homelessness numbers have spiked in the last few years. In 2023 that number was 2,154, up from 1,867 the year prior

"Last year, we had about 48 people who were counted on the street [as] unsheltered, homelessness," said Shannon Weinandt, House of Hope's executive director. "This year we counted 86 during the point-in-time count."

Wienandt has worked with those who are homeless for 11 years. She said Brown County’s number of unsheltered  people has risen drastically in just one year.

House of Hope is part of Wisconsin’s 21-member Balance of State Continuum of Care, a coalition that monitors Wisconsin’s homelessness issues. 

Wienandt said in the past few years there’s been a shift in the face of homelessness.

"The trends we're seeing in Brown County are that more of our senior residents are experiencing homelessness than ever before," Wienant said. 

But it’s not just seniors. Beverly Scow, vice chair for Brown County’s Homeless and Housing Coalition, said the numbers for homeless young adults are even more troubling.

"The largest age range is 25- to 34-year-olds who are homeless in this town. Ten percent of them are fleeing domestic violence; 8% are veterans. And 15% are youth households. Seventy percent of 18-year-olds and above have some kind of a disability that's impacting their ability to be housed," Scow said.

Scow said the overall homeless numbers have climbed since 2022, with numbers nationwide now topping 653,000, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

She cited the lack of affordable housing along with earning a livable salary as two big reasons for the jump.

"Someone at minimum wage of $7.25 an hour would have to work 81 hours [in a week] to afford a one-bedroom apartment in this town," Scow said.

Wienandt said that means the people most affected by homelessness are those who help keep the community running.

"People who are keeping the grocery store open and, and the gas station. So it's unfortunate; we see a lot of people coming into the shelter who are working two or three jobs and still just struggling to make ends meet," Wienandt said.

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