The Point in Time (PIT) count data is used to develop and fund housing and supportive programs for those in need. The most common factors of homelessness in northern Nevada are domestic crises (including domestic battery), inability to find an affordable house or apartment, unemployment, sudden illness in the family, and unforeseen major expenses.  Additional factors include the lack of adequate transportation preventing individuals from living in permanent housing, non-payment for child assistance, severe mental illness, chronic substance abuse, and victims of domestic violence. Preventing and ending homelessness is a complex issue beyond just providing housing or rental assistance, involving a coordinated system with access to substance abuse, mental, physical and behavioral health services, foster care, and criminal justice systems services.

The Regional Alliance to end Homelessness (RAH) formerly (RAAH), works with youth, data, Veterans, advocacy, and diversion groups comprise the Northern Nevada Continuum of Care (CoC) Leadership Council, to develop the region-wide CoC plan submitted to HUD.

NOTE: Whereas the PIT count is a snapshot of one day in late January, the Washoe County Built for Zero Actively Homeless Count  separately tracks those actively homeless at midnight on the last day of each month. This methodology utilizes the Built for Zero (BFZ) national movement to end homelessness definition of “actively homeless,” and all the data reported are from the HMIS (Homeless Management Information System), documenting those people experiencing homelessness who are actively receiving available homeless services each month.  Although the PIT count also uses HMIS data for people in emergency shelter and transitional housing, the PIT count and BFZ definitions differ and the data are not directly comparable.

Additionally, many believe another key data measurement for understanding the complexity of homelessness is recidivism. Recidivism is most easily defined as an individual or family that successfully transitions out of homelessness and then returns (within two years) to homelessness. Currently, recidivism rates are being tracked by Our Place the women, children and family shelter in Washoe County run by RISE or the Reno Initiative for Shelter and Equality.