Unsheltered Meaning

Unsheltered homelessness takes many forms in both urban, suburban, and rural settings. Unsheltered homelessness can be sleeping in vehicles, abandoned buildings, farms, and wilderness.

HUD considers individuals and families sleeping in a place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation (e.g., abandoned buildings, train stations, or camping grounds) as “unsheltered” homeless. Additionally, HUD would generally consider individuals and families sleeping in a garage, shed, or other location outside of a housing structure, but on the property of a housing structure as “unsheltered” homeless for purposes of the PIT count. However, for purposes of counting, HUD would not consider any individual or family sleeping inside of a housing structure as unsheltered homeless, even if the room inside of that housing structure is not typically used for sleeping (e.g., a kitchen or bathroom). Please note that HUD would still consider persons sleeping in the hallway of an apartment or hotel (i.e., outside of an apartment unit or hotel room) as unsheltered.