Skyrocketing Housing Costs Fuel Soaring Homelessness Nationwide

It's scary. So, homelessness is scary? Definitely. What's the scariest part? The unknown. Not knowing where you're going to get your next meal. Yeah. Where you're going to sleep. Who's going to attack you? Homeless for three years, Timothy Gadbury feels like he's fallen through the cracks of a system that's now left him behind. There's no life to go back to. I feel like I'm a dead man walking. It affects a staggering number of Americans, with more than 650,000 homeless on any given night. I have been so hungry, almost in tears, not knowing what I was going to eat. Homelessness in America is at an all-time high in the last 15 years, surging 12% in just one year. Here in Oklahoma City, we're seeing a 28% increase. That's more than twice the national average. In response, leaders have adopted a housing-first approach, which is seeing success in bigger cities like Dallas and L.A. One rehousing initiative aims to put 500 homeless people in open apartment units within two years, no strings attached. It's about a $13 million program. That's for two years. Erica Warren, with the Key to Home Partnership, works with more than 50 organizations and non-profits, including Catholic Charities, to find apartments for those in need. I don't tell my mom about the times where I've seen a guy run up an apartment complex with a gun, or don't tell my mom about the time where I stepped on a used needle or, you know, things like that. But that is the reality of it, right? People from all creeds, races, walks of life experiencing homelessness together. While some danger can be involved, Rachel Golden remains committed to changing lives one apartment at a time. She also sees it as a balancing act, trying to keep landlords and service providers on the same page, in order to keep the initiative moving forward. Homeless people, people experiencing homelessness, whatever term you want to use, are just like you and me. They, like I said, we're two or three bad paychecks away from being in that situation. In Oklahoma City, lack of affordable housing has caused rent to skyrocket. The cost of a one-bedroom apartment averages $850 a month, leaving many struggling to make ends meet. Nearly 75 percent of monthly minimum wage income goes toward rent here, and it's a crisis reaching nationwide. As the Key to Home program marches forward, the goal is not only to reduce homelessness, but to help restore dignity and rebuild lives. Advocates stress that success is measured when people have the support needed to stay housed, stable, and contribute to their communities. Just be kind. Maybe ask them if they need a hug. Somebody to maybe sit with them, talk to them for a little bit. A lot of people don't want help financially. They want somebody to actually care, genuinely care. Reporting in Oklahoma City, Brody Carter, CBN News.