We recently visited Oakland, CA where we surveyed vehicular homelessness.
Thank you to Jesse and his dog Bonnie for their interview.
The San Francisco Bay area is notorious for its homelessness problem. The region has the third-largest population of people experiencing homelessness in the United States, behind only New York City and Los Angeles.
This is due in large part to their Catch-22 situation.
The average rent for San Francisco and Oakland for a 1 bedroom apartment in 2021 is $2,800 and $1,997 respectively, whereas the average national rent is $1,631 meaning the two largest cities of the region have rent prices 147% higher than the national average.
Unfortunately, the two cities have strict zoning laws that make it difficult to build new affordable housing, meaning many people either live in the streets, or in their cars.
According to NBC Bay Area, nearly 10,000 people are living in their vehicles in the region, with Alameda County, (where Oakland is located) having the highest number of people living in their vehicles at more than 2,800.
Sleepy Herd believes that calling attention to the reality of vehicular homelessness in the United States will cause municipal, city, and local governments as well as major government agencies such as HUD and other homelessness non-profits to direct more of their resources towards addressing this issue.
We also believe that through safe, designated parking lots and amenities we plan to provide (bathrooms, washers, dryers, etc.), we will be able to restore dignity in those facing vehicular homelessness.