Over the course of a week in January, social welfare providers and volunteers spread out across Central Oregon as much as possible to perform the annual census of the region’s homeless population.

An estimated 1,811 people are homeless in Central Oregon, according to preliminary data from the 2024 Point-in-Time Count. It’s nearly 10% more than last year.

But 2024’s numbers tell only a small part of the story.

Despite the slight increase — which is evident in the counts from Prineville, Madras, Sisters, southern Deschutes County and the Warm Springs Indian Reservation — Central Oregon’s largest cities, Bend and Redmond, saw decreases in their numbers for the first time in recent years.

The data gives social service providers invaluable insight into the populations they serve, but Erik Nelson, a housing specialist for the Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council, wonders, “But what is it not telling us?”

The Point-in-Time Count is mandated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In Central Oregon, the Homeless Leadership Coalition oversees the region’s tally of people living unsheltered and those in shelters.

This year’s data indicates a strong count of unsheltered people, Nelson said. Unsheltered means an individual or family is living in a place not meant for habitation, which includes cars, abandoned buildings, outdoor locations and recreational vehicles. The sheltered count encompasses public and private temporary shelters, which includes congregate shelters, transitional housing, jails and hospitals.

In Central Oregon, more than 580 people were living in shelters in January, and nearly 1,200 people were unsheltered, according to the count data.

The data contains some limitations, said Ben Scott, who cleans and compiles all the count data, during a Tuesday meeting of the Homeless Leadership Coalition.

The data is as good as the information respondents give, Scott said. The survey results are self-reported, and not everyone participates. Plus, it’s up to the discretion of those being counted whether to disclose the details of their lives.

“It’s their perception of their situation. It’s their self-reported state of being at the time,” said Scott, the unhoused services data coordinator for NeighborImpact, a social services nonprofit.

The unsheltered count could contain some instances of people counted twice, which could occur if a person slept outside one night and in a shelter the next night, during the count, he said. On the other hand, those who perform the count simply don’t have the ability to reach every corner of Central Oregon where someone might be experiencing homelessness, so an undercount could exist, as well.

Ultimately, the unsheltered count has stalled after nearly a decade of steady increases, according to available data from the Homeless Leadership Coalition.

“This is really positive information as it means we are improving and expanding our shelter options for our homeless,” said Bend Mayor Pro Tem Megan Perkins, who also sits on the governing board for the Coordinated Houseless Response Office.

Bend had the largest share of people experiencing homelessness in Central Oregon in January — as is usually the case — with around 960 people counted. It’s the first decrease the city has seen in recent years. In 2023, an estimated 1,012 people were homeless in Bend. The year prior, it was 785 people.

In 2023, the city implemented a ban on camping in one location for more than 24 hours, and it also removed homeless campers from a longstanding, populated camp on Hunnell Road in northern Bend. Those could contribute to the decrease. However, the city of Bend and local nonprofits were also able to double the city’s shelter capacity in fewer than three years, Perkins said. In 2023 alone, more than 100 new shelter beds became available in Bend, according to Lynne McConnell, the city’s housing director.

In Madras, its first ever permanent shelter opened in January, thanks, in part, to funding from the governor’s office and the city of Madras.

Crook County saw what service providers are calling its most comprehensive, accurate count to date thanks to funds dedicated to street outreach for the county’s only homeless shelter in Prineville. Because of the milestone, Crook County saw one of its highest numbers on record with 224 people counted in 2024. That’s compared to 50 people counted the year prior and nearly 70 people in 2022.

Redmond saw a similar decrease as Bend, from 262 people in 2023 to 169 in 2024. That decrease could be attributed to investments in safe parking, a new shelter by Shepherd’s House Ministries and a new outdoor shelter called Oasis Village.

The full results of the Point-in-Time Count will be available in the coming weeks on the Homeless Leadership Coalition’s website at cohomeless.org.

Point-in-Time Count

Quick facts from Central Oregon’s preliminary January 2024 Point-in-Time Count:

• An estimated 1,811 people experience homelessness in Central Oregon.

• Roughly 224 people are homeless in Crook County, 1,430 people in Deschutes County and 157 people in Jefferson County, early estimates say.

• The majority of people who are homeless in Central Oregon have lived in the region for 10 years or longer.

• Unemployment and inability to afford housing were the primary causes of homelessness, according to roughly 680 people surveyed in 2024.

• Bend had the largest share of people experiencing homelessness in Central Oregon in 2024 — as is usually the case — with around 960 people. But it’s the first decrease the city has seen in recent years.

• Homelessness has generally increased over time. That trend continued in 2024.

• Most people counted are white, which is in line with Central Oregon’s population. However, Hispanic and Latino, Black and Indigenous people, people who are LGBTQ+ and veterans experience homelessness at a disproportionately high rate in Central Oregon compared to their white peers.

• Men are more likely to experience homelessness in Central Oregon.

• Older individuals, particularly older men, are more likely to be chronically homeless, which means they’ve been homeless for at least one year or at least four times in the past three years adding up to 12 months.