Homeless Have you ever noticed people outside asking you for money on the train or in the street? Most of them smell funny, or are barely dressed when it's cold outside? These people are most likely homeless. Being homeless is the state of a person living on the street, if they do not have housing. Homelessness occurs because many people cannot afford housing, do not have jobs, receive low incomes, suffer from mental illnesses, or are addicted to drugs (Coalition for the Homeless). Homelessness affects society in various ways, making it a social problem. This causes an economic downturn, increases poverty and also causes family dysfunction. Since January 2002, the rate of homelessness has increased by 69 percent. There are more than 52,400 homeless people sleeping in homeless shelters in New York, and thousands sleep on the streets or on trains. In New York, more than 12,500 families, including 22,100 children, sleep daily in a homeless shelter (Coalition). These families and individuals are now considered part of the percentage of those labeled as poverty stricken. Poverty is the state of being extremely poor. Although most families are not exclusively poor, they are labeled as part of poverty because they cannot adequately provide for their families and themselves. Poor people are often unable to afford housing, food, child care, health care, and education (The National Coalition for the Homeless, 2009). The poor are a poverty statistic because unemployment is increasing and most of them receive low wages that can barely help them survive. Difficult choices must be made when limited resources cover only part of these necessities (National Coalition). affordable housing and improving support services such as TANF, housing vouchers and health care. The National Coalition for the Homeless supports Students Against Hunger's theory on how to end homelessness. The National Coalition for the Homeless states that "efforts to ensure jobs provide living wages, adequate support for those who cannot work, affordable housing, and access to health care will end homelessness." shelter”. The City of York." Coalition for the Homeless. Np, and Web. December 4, 2013. "Overview of Homelessness in America." Homelessness in America. The National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness, nd Web. December 3, 2013. “Why are people homeless?” National Homeless Coalition, July 2009. Web.. 2013.