Homeless people 2022

Homelessness is concentrated in large cities

The number of homeless people living alone in the Greater Helsinki region decreased by 301 persons from 2021. The equivalent number fell by 313 in Helsinki and by 60 in Espoo, whereas the number of homeless people living alone increased by 72 in Vantaa. Of the large Finnish cities, homelessness decreased only in Helsinki, Espoo and Lahti. Other large cities reported a higher number of homeless people than in the previous year.

Long-term homelessness decreased in almost all large cities. Only Turku, Kuopio, Jyväskylä and Lahti reported more long-term homeless people than in the previous year. The number of homeless families increased slightly in Tampere and Pori. In other large cities, the number of homeless families decreased or remained unchanged.

The highest relative number of homeless people was found in Turku with 2.0 homeless people per 1,000 inhabitants. The homeless ratio in Helsinki was 1.7 and 1.4 in Espoo. Of the major Finnish cities, Oulu had the lowest relative number of homeless people with 0.6 homeless persons per 1,000 residents.

Most homeless people are staying temporarily with friends or relatives

Nearly two-thirds (70%) of the homeless people living alone were temporarily staying with friends or relatives. The number decreased by seven persons from the previous year.

There were 492 people living outside and in stairways and overnight shelters, and 302 homeless people were living in dormitories or hostels. The number of people associated with these two forms of homelessness decreased by 195 from the previous year. The number of people living in institutional units decreased by 58 persons to a total of 328 people.

Homelessness increased among women and young people

The number of homeless women increased by 19 persons in comparison to 2021. This is the first time in five years when the number of homeless women did not decrease. In November 2022, the number of homeless women was 910, and they amounted to approximately 25 per cent of all homeless people. 

There were 2,776 homeless men, which is 281 fewer than in the previous year. In 2022, there were 815 homeless young people under 25 years of age in Finland. 

The number of young people amounted to 22 per cent of all homeless people. Homelessness among young people increased by 104 persons compared to 2021. There were also 621 homeless immigrants. Their number decreased by 99 persons in comparison to 2021.

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