The high demand and low supply of housing in the city is making it difficult for homeless New Yorkers seeking housing to compete with an already competitive market.

“When I’m stuck inside the shelter system, it’s tough to get out,” said James Lee who lives in a homeless shelter.

Lee believes his best shot of escaping the system is completing classes that will help him become a computer programmer.

What You Need To Know

  • There are more than 60,000 people in the city’s shelter system

  • The U.S. Government Accountability Office found the median rent increases of $100 a month was associated with a 9% increase in homelessness

  • 5,008 people exited the city shelter system with government vouchers for rent

“But the problem is, graduation isn’t until September of next year, so even at the earliest if I’m trying to get employment, you see, I’m not even going to be able to get out of the system, based on that, for a long time,” Lee said.

Lee’s one of more than 60,000 people in the city’s shelter system. He said he has felt lost shuffling from shelter to shelter since December and applying for apartments he can't afford.

“I apply every so often, but it's got to be between 80 and 100 [applications] I would think, maybe more,” Lee said.

He does have a $2,000 housing voucher from the city to subsidize a monthly rent, which would allow him to pay his bills, but he says that voucher is actually a strike against him.

“At some point you have to mention that you have the voucher, and then oops, who knows? Suddenly, they’re no longer getting back in contact with you,” Lee said.

Charles McNally at NYU’s Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy says this is a common problem.

“It’s not surprising that someone receiving housing assistance would have a hard time finding a unit,” McNally said.

While the Coalition for the Homeless said in 2021, 5,008 people exited the city shelter system with government vouchers for rent, that's actually the lowest amount of people exiting shelters with vouchers since 2017.

The Coalition attributes this to not enough money for the vouchers with rising rents.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office found, across the country, the median rent increases of $100 a month was associated with a nine percent increase in homelessness.

“Higher rents are driven by a shortage of available rental units, so in order to address our homelessness problem we really have to build more housing that’s affordable for people at all income levels,” McNally said.

McNally hopes the homeless crisis gets better, but feared with the ongoing migrant crisis and soaring rents, things could worsen for people like Lee.