New Canadians making up larger share of Ottawa's homeless population: report

Newcomers to Canada are making up a bigger part of Ottawa's homeless population, while a smaller portion of homeless Ottawans are using the city's shelter system, according to a new detailed look at the situation in the nation's capital.

On Friday, the city released the results of its most recent survey of people experiencing homelessness.

The survey was part of a point-in-time count conducted over 24 hours last October, which found there were 2,952 homeless people in Ottawa — an increase of more than 300 people since the last count in 2021.

During the count, the city also administered a 29-question survey that asked homeless people about their experiences. 

A total of 2,595 people completed the questionnaire.

This is the third count and survey done by the city. Previous counts took place in 2021 and 2018.

Newcomer homelessness up 22%

The 2024 survey got more than 1,000 more responses than in 2021, in part because people were given five days to complete it rather than just one.

One of the big shifts involved the percentage of respondents who said they'd come to Canada as an immigrant, refugee or refugee claimant. That share increased to 42 per cent, up from 20 per cent of respondents in 2021.

As well, more than 600 respondents said they'd been in the country for less than a year and over 200 have been here for five years or more.

"These findings suggest that housing supports for newcomers need to address both those who have arrived in Canada recently and those who have been here for many years," the report said.

Additionally, 56 per cent of survey respondents identified as racialized. Nineteen per cent identified as First Nations, Métis, Inuit or having Indigenous ancestry — lower than the 34 per cent reported in the 2021 homelessness survey, although the overall number increased from 428 to 479.

Smaller portion staying in shelters

Of the people surveyed, 43 per cent said they were staying in emergency shelters — a decrease from 55 percent in 2021 and 67 per cent in 2018. 

However, the overall number of people who said they were doing so rose by more than 300 compared to 2021.

Participants were also asked why they were avoiding the shelter network: 

• 31 per cent of respondents reported they feared for their safety.
• 12 per cent said that they had other temporary housing.
• 12 per cent said the emergency shelters are too crowded.
• 11 per cent indicated concerns about bed bugs and other pests.

Various reasons cited

The data also showed that 30 per cent of respondents said the top reason they'd lost housing was because they weren't making enough money to address rising rents and cost of living expenses.

That number stood out to Rideau-Vanier Coun. Stéphanie Plante, who said it could easily be addressed with either rent supplements or some form of universal basic income.

"I'm absolutely shocked that you would be homeless for a shortage of just a couple hundred dollars a month. It's completely unacceptable," said Plante, who sits on the city's emergency shelter crisis task force.

Other top reasons for housing loss from those surveyed include:

• Conflicts with a spouse or partner, a parent or guardian, a landlord or someone else (878 respondents).
• Discrimination (411).
• Substance abuse issues (315).
• Mental health issues (289).
• Physical health issues (149).

Foster care homelessness

Plante said another detail that stood out was the number of youth who became homeless after being in foster care.

According to the report, 19 per cent of respondents said they had previous experiences in foster care, a decrease from 27 per cent of respondents in the previous two counts. 

Among those with previous foster care and group home experiences, 29 per cent reported becoming homeless less than a year after leaving foster care.

Additionally, 46 per cent of those with experience in foster care identified as Indigenous.

"When you are homeless as a youth, it is extremely, extremely difficult to get back on your feet. So that is something I think we should have to be taking very, very seriously," Plante said.