Report confirms spike in the number of homeless people in Ontario

The Association of Municipalities of Ontario has released what it calls a groundbreaking study on the state of homelessness in the province.

AMO worked with a third party to produce the report, which found 81, 515 people experienced homelessness in 2024, an increase of 25 per cent since 2022.

A homeless encampment in Timmins is seen in this file photo. (File)Of those, 25 per cent are under the age of 24 while 4,400 are Indigenous.

"We are at a real tipping point," said AMO president Robin Jones.

"Without concrete action, it is only going to get worse. More than half of homeless Ontarians are chronically homeless. Too many people are stuck in a cycle because our homeless response system is broken and poorly funded."

Timmins Mayor Michelle Boileau, chair of the Northern Ontario Service Deliverers Association, said the problem has quickly gotten worse since 2016.

“A 204 per cent increase in homeless numbers just in northern Ontario," Boileau said.

"That's significant, especially considering we don't have the system's capacities to be serving such a large population."

AMO now plans to share these cold hard facts with the province.

Tents set up in North Bay as homelessness crisis grows. Sept. 24/21 (Eric Taschner/CTV Northern Ontario)

"This report shows an additional $11 billion over 10 years is needed to address building housing and prevent prevention capacity to end chronic homelessness in Ontario," said Karen Redman, chair of Mayors and Regional Chairs of Ontario.

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"An additional $2 billion would ensure encampment residents are appropriately housed. We also know from other research that without this investment, taxpayers will end up paying much more through our shelters, hospitals, police budgets -- in addition to the human suffering."

Boileau said homelessness in the north could increase to more than 26,000 people by 2035. That’s why she would like to see all levels of government take decisive action to help end the issue.