Connecticut’s homeless population increased for the fifth year in a row — but at a lower rate than the previous two years.

The state’s annual point-in-time count, a census of the homeless population, found that there were 3,847 people experiencing homelessness on the night of Jan. 27, 2026. The number of homeless people increased by 3% between 2025 and 2026, a smaller rise than previous increases of 9% in 2025 and 13% in 2024.

Providers have attributed the increase largely to rising rents and higher cost of living overall while incomes remain stagnant. Particularly for seniors, many of whom live on a fixed income, it can be hard to keep up — and the number of homeless seniors has increased by 51% since 2024.

The point-in-time count is broadly considered an undercount because it typically doesn’t include people who are couch-surfing or doubling up.

The census was conducted at the tail end of the January winter storm, which had activated Connecticut’s severe cold weather protocol. The state had previously allocated $5 million for cold weather resources such as emergency beds and faster responses.

Service providers for years have called for this emergency funding to be annualized in the state budget and said they need more resources to meet the growing need, but so far budget allocations have fallen short of their requests.

This year, a census report compiled by Nutmeg Consulting found that the homeless sheltered population increased by around 17%, while the number of people living outside decreased by almost 50%.

“The data shows that investment in housing, outreach, shelter and extreme weather response — especially during cold weather — are yielding and producing measurable results,” Sarah Fox, chief executive officer of the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness, said.

The number of homeless children remained stable at 592, while the number of homeless people 65 or older saw the biggest increase, jumping from 281 to 320 in a single year. Since 2024, the elderly homeless population has increased by 51%.

“We’re finding more older adults living on fixed incomes are unable to keep pace with rising costs and health care expenses,” Fox said.

The report also found that 348 individuals living in emergency shelters in 2025 continued to reside there a year later. Jim Bombaci, vice president of operations at Nutmeg Consulting, said that factors such as mental health issues or a lack of trust may prevent a person from transitioning to more permanent forms of housing.

“We really wanted to provide information that we know is consistent — not only on the night of the … count but every night after that,” Bombaci said. “There is a relationship, and there are metrics and measures we can hopefully show to legislators.”

Rep. Kadeem Roberts, D-Norwalk, and legislative chair of the homelessness caucus, cited increased rent and reduced federal funding as two factors contributing to the uptick in Connecticut’s homeless population. 

“Federal cuts are definitely killing us tremendously,” he said. “The funding that we were getting from the federal government is not the same as we had during the Clinton administration.”

Fox estimated that Connecticut, which is in the process of applying for federal funding, will lose around $30 million in resources and 2,000 permanent supportive housing slots. The federal government late last year announced plans to cut permanent housing programs, and Gov. Ned Lamont filled some of that loss with $5 million from a legislative emergency fund.

Earlier this year, the state also bolstered its Head Start on Housing program, which offers families rental aid and child care. The Department of Housing added 250 rental assistance vouchers to the program, while the Office of Early Childhood announced that it would spend $750,000 to contract with an agency providing case management for enrolled families. 

“We’re honestly still playing catch-up on some stuff that we should have fully funded years ago,” Roberts said.