2026 POINT-IN-TIME REPORT
BUFFALO, NY—Every year, more than 7,000 adults, teenagers, and children experience homelessness across Erie, Niagara, Orleans, Genesee, and Wyoming counties. Yet, the regional system built to help them can support only one in five people in need of housing. That means families, veterans, and older adults are searching for housing every single day—not because they don’t qualify, but because there simply isn’t enough. That concern was further underscored by the 2026 Point-in-Time (PIT) count recently completed by the Homeless Alliance of Western New York*, which showed record highs across the region.
The 2026 Data
The latest Point-in-Time (PIT) count, conducted on January 22, 2026, identified 2,188 people experiencing homelessness across the region, including 2,163 in shelters and 25 unsheltered. This marks the highest number recorded since official PIT count data collection began in 2005 and represents a 24 percent increase from the previous year (1,768), underscoring growing demand for affordable housing and supportive services.
The Point-in-Time count is a federally required, one-night census led locally by the Homeless Alliance across its five-county coverage area to measure need, inform funding decisions, and guide the community’s response to homelessness in Erie, Niagara, Genesee, Orleans, and Wyoming counties.
This year’s data shows that 51 percent of people experiencing homelessness in our region are single adults, while 49 percent are family households. To further define the family dynamic, children under 18 accounted for 31 percent of those counted, highlighting the impact on families with children.
Data also revealed that people are staying longer in shelters than before. On average, people stayed 71 days in shelter in FY2024, a number that rose to 92 days in FY2025, a nearly 30 percent increase. This trend reflects ongoing challenges in accessing affordable housing. Homelessness is also increasing in rural communities, especially among families experiencing long-term or chronic homelessness. This is not just a city issue—it affects communities across our entire region.
For many people included in this year’s count, homelessness was not something they expected. The survey showed the most common reasons reported for homelessness were eviction, loss of a job or benefits, and domestic violence.
“The results of this year’s PIT count reflect real people and neighbors in our community, not just numbers on a page,” said Kexin Ma, Executive Director of the Homeless Alliance of Western New York. “We are seeing older adults experience homelessness for the first time after the loss of a loved one, and families with children spending months, sometimes more than a year, in shelter due to medical and financial challenges. These situations may look different, but they share a common reality. It does not take much for someone to lose their housing, and it can take much longer to get back on their feet.”
As the data makes clear, the need is growing—and the housing and homelessness response system cannot keep up.
One Way To Help
The Homeless Alliance of Western New York has spent more than 20 years working to address these challenges. Our community made real progress in reducing homelessness before the pandemic. Today, rising housing costs and economic pressures have reversed that trend, with the number of people experiencing homelessness now far exceeding pre-pandemic levels. The Homeless Alliance of WNY coordinates care across agencies, connects people to housing, and makes sure every available resource in the region is used as fairly and effectively as possible. But as the crisis grows, so does the need. The organization is asking the community to help and, for the first time ever, are hosting an event aimed at engaging the broader WNY community.
On Friday, May 15, the Homeless Alliance hosts its first-ever Meat Raffle at the Knights Events Center in Cheektowaga.
Doors open at 6 p.m. with the first spin at 7 p.m. The evening features 17 meat raffle rounds along with a basket raffle, wine pull, gift card draws, and a 50/50 raffle. Admission includes unlimited beer, wine, and soft drinks. Guests are encouraged to bring outside snacks.
Presale tickets are $15 per person, with tables of eight available for $100. Tickets at the door are $20.
A $15 ticket—or even a $5 donation for those who can’t attend—helps the Homeless Alliance of Western New York get someone off the street and into shelter on a brutally cold night, helps someone start a new job, supports families as they wait for a place to call home, and ensures that when someone moves into a home of their own, it can be furnished and lived in from day one.
“Western New Yorkers always show up when the community needs them,” said Ma “We’re hoping this becomes an annual tradition, a truly WNY night that’s genuinely fun and genuinely meaningful, because the need in our region is very real and growing.”
In a moment when nonprofit funding is increasingly uncertain, events like this one make a direct and measurable difference. Proceeds from the May 15 meat raffle will support the Homeless Alliance of Western New York and its mission to coordinate community efforts to prevent and end homelessness across Erie, Niagara, Genesee, Orleans, and Wyoming counties.
Tickets for Homeless Alliance’s Meat Raffle on May 15 and more information are available at WNYhomeless.org.
HOMELESS ALLIANCE OF WNY MEAT RAFFLE DETAILS
What: Homeless Alliance of Western New York First-Ever Meat Raffle
When: Friday, May 15, 2026
Time: Doors open at 6 p.m.| First spin at 7 p.m.
Where: Knights Events Center, 2735 Union Road, Cheektowaga, NY 14227
Tickets: $15 presale | $20 at the door | Tables of 8 for $100 (presale)
Info: WNYhomeless.org
ABOUT THE HOMELESS ALLIANCE OF WESTERN NEW YORK
Since 1992, the Homeless Alliance of Western New York has coordinated the region’s Continuum of Care, bringing together service providers, government agencies, and community partners to prevent and end homelessness across Erie, Niagara, Genesee, Orleans, and Wyoming counties.
*For more details about the 2026 Point-in-Time count and the growing need for support of Western New York’s unhoused population, please reach out to the Homeless Alliance of Western New York.
Data for the 2026 Point-In-Time Count was submitted by Continuums of Care (CoCs) throughout the country and will be released by HUD as part of its Annual Homeless Assessment Report in late 2026.