The South Carolina Interagency Council on Homelessness (SCICH) operates as an interagency council and aims to end homelessness in South Carolina by convening homeless service providers, state agencies, and other stakeholders to collaborate and work to develop and advance statewide strategies designed to end homelessness. SCICH is South Carolina’s authority on homelessness and works to disseminate evidence-based practices by sponsoring various trainings, workshops, and opportunities for collaboration.

It’s difficult to get an exact count of people experiencing homelessness for a variety of reasons. One of the most consistent counts South Carolina has is the Point-in-Time (PIT) Count. It only counts people who are homeless on one night in January, so it doesn’t portray the full extent of need throughout the year, but in 2016 the annual PIT count estimated that 5,050 people in South Carolina were homeless on

As of the last, official count, about 564,708 people experience homelessness on any given night in the United States.

Specific reasons vary, but research shows people are homeless because they can’t find housing they can afford. According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), an estimated 12 million renter and homeowner households now pay more then 50 percent of their annual incomes for housing, and a family with one full-time worker earning the minimum wage cannot afford the local fair-market rent for a two-bedroom apartment anywhere in the United States.

HUD also notes that the generally accepted definition of housing affordability is no more than 30 percent of monthly income going toward housing costs. Families or individuals who pay more than 30 percent of their income for housing are considered “cost-burdened” and can have difficulty affording necessities such as food, clothing, transportation, and medical care.

The lack of affordable housing is a significant hardship for low-income households and can prevent them from meeting their other basic needs, such as nutrition and health care, or saving for their future.

Immediate sources of aid in your community can be found by consulting your local department of social services or your local branch of the Salvation Army or the United Way help line. You may also find it helpful to consult directories of homeless service providers by HUD and the National Coalition for the Homeless.

An organization called Neighborworks also has a hotline, 888-995-HOPE, and a website to help homeowners avoid foreclosure. For assistance specifically with default/foreclosure or rental needs, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has provided a list of approved housing counseling agencies.

South Carolina 2-1-1 is your one-stop resource for finding assistance in your local community. They keep a database of a wide variety of service providers including support groups, community clinics, counselors, shelters, food pantries, programs for seniors, and many more agencies in South Carolina.

You can call 2-1-1 any time--24 hours a day, 365 days a year--to link to vital services in your community. You can also reach 2-1-1 toll free at 1-866-892-9211. This service is free and is available in multiple languages.

Data indicates that the average homeless person is a middle-aged African American man, but the chart below provides more insight into the demographics of the homeless population in the U.S. Below is a chart with common demographics from the Part 2 of the 2014 Annual Homeless Assessment Report.