Slightly fewer people are homeless in Nevada and Placer counties than in 2023
The homeless population in Placer and Nevada Counties dipped slightly, with a total of at least 1,177 homeless people across both counties in the most recent federally mandated homeless survey. More than 75% of them were living in Nevada, Placer or a neighboring county at the time they became homeless.
The homeless “point in time” count was conducted in January and February, and the results were published last week. In 2023 — the most recent prior count — volunteers, nonprofit workers and local government workers found at least 1,218 people were homeless.
In Placer, 67% of homeless people were living in that county and 19% were in a neighboring county at the time they lost their permanent housing. In Nevada County, 73% were living in that county and 6% had their last permanent housing in a neighboring county. That lines up with other research. In 2023, UC San Francisco published a study of nearly 3,200 individuals across the state who had no permanent housing: Of those, 75% were living in the county where they had become homeless.
The most common reason that renters became homeless, the UCSF study found, was that they lost income and couldn’t afford their rent. Of the respondents in that study, 70% said they believed they could have remained in their homes if they had had an extra $300 to $500 a month.
JoLyn McMillan, the executive director of the Homeless Resource Council of the Sierras, said in a news release that the area had lost “dozens of transitional beds that had served domestic violence victims.” The number of people reporting a history of domestic violence in the 2025 count was about 50 people higher than at the last count, an increase of about one-third.
Of the total this year, 711 people — 58% of whom were unsheltered — lived in Placer County, and 466 — 55% of whom were unsheltered — lived in Nevada County.
Neither county has enough shelter beds for every homeless person within its boundaries. Placer had about 300 emergency shelter beds in 2023, and Nevada had about 260. In 2023, Placer’s 257 permanent housing spots had a 96% occupancy rate, while all of Nevada’s 68 permanent spots were occupied.
Black and Native people are disproportionately homeless compared to their numbers in the general population of the counties. But 69% of homeless people in Placer and 83% of homeless people in Nevada are white.
