od, housing, health care, childcare and education. Difficult choices must be made when limited resources cover only some of the necessities. Often it is housing which takes a high proportion of income that must be dropped. Being poor means being an illness, or a paycheck away from living on the streets.A lack of affordable housing and the inadequacy of housing assistance programs have contributed to the current housing crisis and to homelessness. The gap between the number of affordable housing units and the number of people needing them has created a housing crisis for poor people. Between 1973 and 1993,2.2 million low-rent units disappear from the market. These units were either abandoned, converted into expensive apartments or became unaffordable due to cost increases. These actions have left many people already homeless or on the verge of it (NCH Fact sheet #1, February 1999).Domestic violence is a very frequent problem that leads to homelessness. Battered women who live in poverty are often forced to choose between abusive relationships and homelessness. A 46% of cities surveyed by the U.S. Conference of Mayors identified domestic violence as a primary cause of homelessness.Approximately 20-25% of the single adult homeless population suffers from severe and persistent mental illness (Koegel et al, 1996). The mentally ill cannot cope with the stresses of the every day world. Therefore, they are vulnerable for eviction from their home, sometimes because of an inability to deal with difficult or even ordinary landlords. Many have a tendency to drift away from their families; they may be trying to escape the pull of dependency and may not be ready to come to terms with living in a sheltered low-pressure environment. Once they are out on their own they will probably stop taking their medication, which will cause further serious complications. They may become so disorganized that they won’t be able to extricate themselves from livi...
