Our modern era of houselessness can be best traced back to the early 1980s, when several major forces changed its complexion: gentrification of the inner city, sweeping deinstitutionalization, budget cuts to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and social services agencies in response to the country’s worst recession since the Great Depression, high unemployment rates, the emergence of HIV/AIDS, and inadequate amounts of affordable housing options.
