Show of Hands

I dont think those two factors can be separated. Economic insecurity is a major driver of drug abuse.

If people had access to essentials like housing, food, employment, and healthcare I bet you most of peoples addictions would be gone. They’re used to deal with the stresses of life and being able to afford to live is stressful and for some so difficult that killing your self to drugs seems more likely than them ever obtaining a fulfilling life.

Drug addiction and severe mental illness. And just simple “I don’t want to live in regular society”.

Probably could be all ties back to dysfunction in the family unit. How often do people get hooked on drugs because that’s the alternative to mentally escape from issues at home? How many mental illnesses go untreated or caused because of inadequate support at home?

Poor post communist countries can eliminate homelessness.
Homelessness in America is there by design. A threat to what could happen to you if you don’t rent your labor to an owner

Had to pick one so I said Economic unfairness. The reasons for homelessness are multifaceted and while Substance use disorders are a significant problem, access to housing, food, work, medical, and mental health treatment are all factors. Additionally, chronic mental illness like schizophrenia and major depression not to mention PTSD are over represented in this group. I would replace “unfair” with “lack of economic resources” which need to address all the areas fore mentioned.

Drugs and alcohol, plus mental illness. It’s something my SIL cop sees everyday while cleaning out bum camps. Every single one needs to be locked up: drug and alcohol addicts need to be locked up in rehab temporarily. Most with mental illness need to be locked up permanently.

Plus you have millions and millions of migrants and illegals taking all the apartments , homes , motels , ect….. that could be made available to homeless.

There are many different causes that contribute.

The single largest, perhap over 50%, cause is government encouraging and enabling.

I’d say it’s more due to enabling drug addiction, mental illness and laziness.

If it were mostly economic, the billions that California and New York have spent on it would have solved the problem. Instead, that has made it worse.

Addiction and mental illness

Addiction and mental illness.

Good question. I don't really know. What came first the chicken or the egg? Did poverty lead the person to addiction, or did addiction lead the person to poverty? A lot of addicts are not poor, so I don't think poverty is the main cause of addiction. It's easy to blame the system, but ultimately we need to blame ourselves for our problems and take responsibility for overcoming them. Handing a homeless person a home doesn't solve their problems, it usually enables them more. The solution to the homeless problem is very complicated I think

Drugs, laziness, lack of ambition and a dependence mindset. Most homeless people have believed the leftist view of the government taking care of them their whole life and were lied to. I find it interesting that they can afford drugs, cigarettes and booze but can’t buy food. Most have cell phones too.

This is a 3 legged stool.
Addiction, unfairness, but the other is illegal immigrants .
Landlords are able to raise enormous rent cost because government subsidies to illegals . Many people who lived in rentals, in small towns have lost housing because of the government subsidies to illegal.
Citizens, and residence of Springfield, Ohio experienced exactly this, they went from affordable housing to be unable to afford their rental !

I think it all ties back to systemic economic unfairness.
Lack of access to healthcare and mental health care.
Wages that haven’t kept up with the cost of living.
Corporate profit growth without wage growth.
Lack of affordable housing.
And the stress from all of that often leads people toward addiction.

Of course, at the very bottom of the barrel there are just some bad people — but I don’t think the majority fall into that category. Most are caught in systems that fail them long before they fail themselves.

So while addiction and mental illness play big roles, I’d argue the economic system is the root that feeds every one of those problems.

Some of both.

I think there is a good amount of overlap.

I deal with the homeless every night at work. It's 99.9% addiction and mental illness. People who become homeless for purely economic causes typically don't *stay* homeless for very long. Especially considering you can't throw a rock without hitting a "Help Wanted" sign.

I think it's all intertwined, along with many other causes. Even when I see somebody drugged out, I don't assume that is the underlying issue.

Way more reasons than that

Out here, 99% addiction.

I was gonna wait but what the heck I probably won’t change what I’m thinking by listening longer; if I do I can always return.

Hmm 🤔 — the “addiction vs. unfairness” framing is tidy, but the real world rarely is.

Homelessness isn’t a single-cause issue — it’s where multiple system failures intersect. Housing costs outpacing wages, untreated mental health, addiction, stagnant social mobility, and even zoning policies all pile together until people fall through the cracks.

We keep arguing whether it’s “bad choices” or “bad luck,” when in truth it’s bad policy that keeps the cycle going.

So maybe the better question is:
Are we willing to treat homelessness as a policy failure — not just a personal one?

Poverty leads to addiction

Poverty combined with addiction leads to either criminality or homelessness.

If the person chooses criminality, homelessness is usually replaced by incarceration.

If the person remains law abiding, they usually face an early death due to a combination of addiction, disease and homelessness.

The root cause of most of our problems are areas of endemic poverty.

I’m ready for this BS to end since 2008 when Obama was elected. It’s already decades old and I’m an old man m.

Addiction. 😔

On the micro level, drugs and mental illness.
On the macro level, economic interference from governments.