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Every two years, San Mateo County conducts a “One Day Homeless Count” to count the number of people sleeping outside or using the county’s shelter services. This year’s count found 2,130 people experiencing homelessness in San Mateo County, an increase of 18% since the last count was conducted in 2022.
A county press release cites ongoing affordability challenges and income inequalities as continuing challenges contributing to the increase in homelessness in the county. Since the previous count in 2022, San Mateo County has been working toward reaching a “functional zero” of homelessness, where “every unsheltered homeless person in the county who chooses assistance can be sheltered in an emergency shelter or in temporary or permanent housing.”
In the last two years, the county has created new shelter capacity, adding 240 units at its Navigation Center in Redwood City and 44 units at the El Camino House in San Mateo.
This year’s count found that Redwood City has the highest number of people experiencing homelessness, followed closely by Pacifica and the unincorporated land along the San Mateo County coast. Hillsborough and Portola Valley were the only towns in the county where no people experiencing homelessness were found.
Of the people contacted by the team of volunteers this year, 1,145 people were experiencing unsheltered homelessness, meaning that they were living on the streets, in cars, in RVs or in tents, and 985 people were experiencing sheltered homelessness, which includes stays in emergency shelters or transitional housing programs.
The data shows that 40% of the unsheltered population were living in RVs, 31% were living in cars or vans, 19% were living on the street, 7% were living in tents or makeshift shelters and 3% were living in some other type of situation.
A shelter along train tracks in Redwood City is spotted during the county’s One Day Homeless Count on Jan. 25, 2024. Photo by Magali Gauthier. 
LifeMoves outreach worker Carolina Moscoso looks through images and maps of encampents in Redwood City during San Mateo County’s One Day Homeless Count on Jan. 25, 2024. Photo by Magali Gauthier. 
Volunteers drive past a parked RV during San Mateo County’s One Day Homeless Count in Redwood City on Jan. 25, 2024. Photo by Magali Gauthier. 
LifeMoves outreach worker Carolina Moscoso looks through images and maps of encampents in Redwood City during San Mateo County’s One Day Homeless Count on Jan. 25, 2024. Photo by Magali Gauthier. 
Belongings are piled up at a large encampment in Redwood City during San Mateo County’s One Day Homeless Count on Jan. 25, 2024. Photo by Magali Gauthier. 
San Mateo County Executive Officer Mike Callagy, center in black, chats with a volunteer at the start of the county’s One Day Homeless Count in Redwood City on Jan. 25, 2024. Photo by Magali Gauthier. 
Belongings are piled up on the sidewalk at a small encampment in Redwood City during San Mateo County’s One Day Homeless Count on Jan. 25, 2024. Photo by Magali Gauthier.
Though the overall homeless population increased by 18% or 322 people since 2022, the number of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness increased by only 5%. The number of people using shelter services within the county increased by 38%.
San Mateo County officials say that despite the increased total count, the higher proportion of unhoused individuals using shelter services may be a good sign.
“While we never like to see our numbers go up, I am heartened by the fact that we saw an increase in those receiving shelter in our emergency facilities like the Navigation Center and El Camino House,” said Claire Cunningham, director of the Human Services Agency in the press release. “This means fewer individuals in less safe situations such as on the street or in tents. And shelters provide case management and supportive services to help residents move toward permanent housing.”
The One Day Count is organized by San Mateo County’s Human Services Agency in collaboration with local nonprofit organizations to provide a “point-in-time count” of the number and location of people experiencing homelessness throughout the county. This data is used to help the county and its partners assess how to best serve people needing housing services and to satisfy data requirements from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The survey was conducted on Jan. 25, 2024, by a team of approximately 300 experienced volunteers, consisting of social workers, city and county staff, community-based service providers and members of the public.
County officials say the data is not perfect since it only captures what the teams of volunteers discovered during a couple of hours on a particular day and can be influenced by external factors. The 2022 count was conducted during inclement weather, which may have influenced the number of people experiencing homelessness who were contacted.
County Executive Office Mike Callagy said, “This confirms our work is never done and we remain committed to helping as many of our unhoused residents who are willing to accept it. Our Board of Supervisors has made reaching functional zero homelessness a key priority and we make strides toward it with every person we move from the street or their vehicle into a place with a warm roof, the supports they need to be successful and the dignity we all deserve.”
The county also conducts surveys of the individuals experiencing unsheltered homelessness in the week following the one-day count to track detailed information on demographics and circumstances. This data will be available in the complete One Day Count Report, which will be available later this summer.
You can read the executive summary of the count on San Mateo County’s website, smcgov.org/hsa/2024-one-day-homeless-count.
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