More than 7,000 people on London's supportive housing waitlist, city data shows

The number of Londoners seeking community housing is on the rise, according to the southwestern Ontario city's latest homelessness data.

At the end of 2024, more than 7,000 people were on the waitlist for community housing in London, but the number of them landing a home shrunk, said Craig Cooper, the city's director of housing stability services.

"We've seen a steady increase in individuals applying for community housing, which I think is a direct function of a lack of affordable housing," Cooper said Monday.

"But we've seen, for the last number of years, a general decrease in the average number of households placed every month, given that there's not as many people moving out of social housing due to challenges owning a home or getting into the rental market."

The updated data also showed a snapshot of how many people were homeless in London as of Dec. 31. Nearly 1,600 people fit the bill, according to the data, which is based on what the city calls a "by-name list". 

In September, approximately 1,900 individuals were homeless, more than there are today. 

"That's pretty consistent with our data over the last three years," Cooper said. "We generally peak in September to October. Then, it goes down over the winter as people self-shelter or end up not reconnecting with services during that 90-day window."

At the end of December, more than 15 per cent of people on the by-names list were "chronically homeless," which the city defines as a person who has been unsheltered for at least six months over the past year, or 18 months over the past three years.

Cooper said there has also been an increase in individuals the city considers "hidden homeless," who are couch surfing and not connected with London shelters. 

5 local groups interested in opening new hubs

Cooper said he expects the numbers of Londoners without permanent housing to rise again in spring, when people leave whatever temporary housing solution they've found for the cold months.

"Generally those folks will come back through the system in March," Cooper said. 

With 2025 underway, he's hopeful that more hubs can open in the city, given there is funding available.

The province announced in September that it will spend $378 million to open 19 homelessness and addiction recovery treatment, or HART, hubs in Ontario. London has submitted an application to run one, in collaboration with the local branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association, but has not yet learned if the proposal is approved .

The city has also put up a tender for organizations interested in creating local hubs. Five local groups, including London Cares and St. Leonard's Community Services, have put in a bid so far. 

"We want to make sure we have sites and operators ready, should that funding become available, to operate the [hubs] quite quickly into 2025," Cooper said. 

He added there is not a one-size-fits-all approach to solving homelessness in London.

"There's no real one magic thing that is going to solve this. It is a lot of different types of responses for meeting people where they're at and ensuring our community has the appropriate resources to deal with this challenge."