How you and I think about homelessness

Every month, we track the number of families we served who exited homelessness so we can determine if we are on pace to meet our housing goals for the year. Staying on top of this information helps us ask the important questions—of ourselves and others—to make sure we are doing everything possible to get people off the streets and into homes. 

In July, 13 families exited homelessness with Hamilton Families

In July, we helped 13 families move into permanent housing in the San Francisco Bay Area!  

For this month’s move-in snapshot, we’re not only looking at the progress made in July, but also the number of family move-ins during the same month last year in 2021. 

The good news is that more families exited homelessness last month than in the same period the year before. But although 13 families moving into their new homes in July is something to celebrate, we have so much work to do so we don’t fall short of our housing goals for San Francisco families. 

 Families moved into permanent housing with Hamilton Families. 26 families in July and August of 2021. 27 families in July and August of 2022

We see the results of our collective action—families living in places not meant for human habitation are getting sheltered, other families struggling to get treatment and care are receiving the services they need, families at-risk of eviction are getting the homelessness prevention assistance they need, all thanks to the hardworking teams at Hamilton Families.

Their hard work is our reason to be hopeful. But WE all still have hard work to do, and it begins with how you and I think about homelessness. 

Having been active since 1985, Hamilton Families has witnessed how attitudes around homelessness and affordable housing have changed. But in the past few years, those attitudes have actually changed very little in the Bay Area. Views on housing and racial justice are very engrained and hard to shift, but the good news is that many Bay Area residents believe in our community’s ability to take on structural inequity.  

We couldn’t agree more. 

This research gives us hope that there’s potential to disrupt the negative narratives surrounding families experiencing homelessness.

If we empower our fellow community members to see themselves as having a place in this movement and organize behind bold, effective solutions, we can take on the region’s passive approach to housing instability and homelessness. 

Join Hamilton Families and our Shift the Bay partners to grow our capacity to take on these battles. We know how to end big problems like these, we just need your support to do it. 


We need you! You’re one of the reasons why Hamilton Families has made the progress we have. Here’s how you can show up for unhoused families in your community: 

  • Share this post with three friends/colleagues on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to start a meaningful conversation about ending family homelessness in our community. 

  • The solutions to family homelessness start with YOU. Click below to become an advocate and donate in support of Hamilton Families today.