Thirty-eight homeless people were counted in Richmond this year, representing just one per cent of Metro Vancouver's homeless population, which has remained steady over the past six years.
Among all the municipalities surveyed, the city has the second fewest shelter, safe house and transition house spaces.
Richmond's numbers decreased from 49 in 2011 and 56 in 2008, according to the Greater Vancouver Regional Steering Committee on Homelessness, which Aug. 1 released its final 2014 tallies from its region-wide 24-hour survey conducted last March. The survey is done every three years.
The count is an underestimate of the homeless population, however.
Although volunteers surveyed 2,777 "visible" homeless people, it is estimated 5,900 individuals will experience homelessness over the course of 2014.
"The number of homeless people identified in homeless counts in the region has remained fairly stable since 2008," stated the report.
Men represented about three quarters of all homeless people, although the report notes women are likely undercounted as they are more likely to be staying with family and friends or in unsafe situations, rather than accessing typical homeless services or walking the streets.
Children and youth (under age 25) represented 20 per cent of the count.
And while Aboriginal people represent two per cent of the region's population, they account for about 20 per cent of the total homeless count.
Low income and high rents were the most common reasons for being homeless and about one-third of respondents reported a mental illness.
It was found that about 80 per cent of homeless people tend to be relatively stationary, living in the community they were interviewed in for at least one year.
One-third of those surveyed had no shelter; the proportion of sheltered homeless declined from 71 to 66 per cent over the past three years. In Richmond, there were two youth found homeless with shelter. A total of 11 homeless seniors (over age 55) were found, seven of whom were unsheltered. Six unsheltered people with Aboriginal identity were also found.
According to the survey, the city has just two shelters with a total of 20 beds: Nova Transition House and Richmond House (Salvation Army). A temporary extreme-weather shelter exists at St.Alban's Anglican Church.
With only 20 beds surveyed, Richmond lags far behind municipalities of similar size and population; Burnaby has 47 beds.
Only Port Coquitlam, a city onequarter the population of Richmond, has fewer beds at 15.
The survey is used to address questions surrounding homelessness such as, how people become homeless, what services are available to them and where they tend to end up living.
