Sharp increase in people sleeping rough in New Brunswick

New Brunswick's homeless population has nearly doubled in each of the province's three major cities over the past two years, with more than a third of people living in encampments, vehicles or outdoors, according to a survey by the Human Development Council.

Greg Bishop, a senior director with the council, said the numbers are "eye-opening," but expected. He said frontline workers have reported a steady, visible increase over the past two years.

"It's the number of people who are outdoors where we saw the most significant rise," he said. "People who are in encampments or perhaps tenting alone in a park, park benches, ATMs."

From April 17-18, 2023, the organization conducted what's known as a point-in-time count, speaking to people at shelters, unsheltered locations and correctional facilities in Moncton, Fredericton, Saint John, Bathurst, Miramichi and St. Stephen.

The group counted more than 687 people experiencing "absolute homelessness" in these communities.

And the group found a large number of New Brunswickers experiencing chronic homelessness, defined as 180 days or more in the past year without a permanent place to live.

Bishop said part of the goal is to gather information about why people are experiencing homelessness and barriers to finding housing.

Barriers to housing included not being able to afford rent, not enough income and addiction. 

WATCH | Advocate Mike Randall says homeless shelters are a Band-Aid solution:

Root causes of homelessness need addressing, advocate says

11 months ago

Duration 1:31

There’s been an 80 per cent increase in homelessness in three New Brunswick cities since 2021. Mike Randall says that number will only continue to grow unless change happens.

Across the communities surveyed, 75 per cent of respondents reported the cost of rent as a challenge to finding housing. 

Of the three major cities, Saint John saw the largest uptick in homelessness at 128 people — a 131 per cent increase since 2021. In Fredericton, 119 people were counted as homeless.  

The majority of the province's homeless population, nearly 400 people, were counted in Moncton. 

Mike Randall, co-chair of the Greater Moncton homelessness steering committee, said advocates have been raising concerns over the significant increase in the past few years.

"The frustrating thing for me is it reinforces something we've been saying for two years," he said of the survey's findings. 

"I think we've seen a consistent increase in inflow despite record numbers of housing people."

Nearly half of respondents in Moncton said their most recent housing loss was due to an eviction, and one-in-four said it was because they didn't have enough income.

Shannon Barry, senior director of outreach services at the YMCA of Greater Moncton, said the cost of living and limited affordable housing are contributing to homelessness. 

Barry said the true number of homeless people in the city is likely higher that what was captured during the 48-hour point-in-time count.

"There's definitely a lot of hidden homeless, particularly youth homelessness and a lot of couch-surfing," she said.

Randall said 166 people were moved into permanent housing in Moncton in 2023, but record numbers of people becoming newly homeless are making it difficult to keep up.

He said the current focus is on "Band-Aid" solutions such as shelter beds, which don't tackle the root causes of homelessness in the community, including a lack of affordable housing, mental health issues and addiction.

An individual shelter bed can cost the province as much as $20,000 per year, Randall said.

"We're spending that to save lives, which is important, but we're not solving the problem and we're starting all over again every spring. That isn't the right way to approach this if we're looking for permanent solutions."