Prevalence of eviction, home foreclosure, and homelessness among low-income US veterans: the National Veteran Homeless and Other Poverty Experiences study.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Housing stability is essential for health and social well-being, and the United States is focused on preventing homelessness among veterans, so this study examined the prevalence of different events related to housing instability among low-income US veterans. STUDY DESIGN: This was a nationally representative survey. METHODS: Using a sample of 1004 low-income veterans in 2021, this study examined the lifetime prevalence and characteristics associated with eviction, home foreclosure, and homelessness among low-income US veterans. RESULTS: In the total sample, 10.9% reported a lifetime history of eviction, 8.0% reported a lifetime history of home foreclosure, and 19.9% reported a lifetime history of homelessness. Among those with a history of homelessness, 39.2% also reported a history of eviction, and 13.9% reported a history of home foreclosure. Hierarchical logistic regression analyses found that for eviction, sociodemographic characteristics (e.g. being Hispanic, having private insurance, and being from the Northeast was associated with lower risk of eviction) together explained 26% of the variance, and clinical characteristics explained an incremental 12% additional variance. For homelessness, sociodemographic characteristics explained 18% of the variance, and clinical characteristics explained an incremental 20% (e.g. diagnosis of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, any history of suicide attempt, and lower physical health scores were associated with higher risk of homelessness). For home foreclosure, sociodemographic, clinical, and psychosocial variables together only explained 14% of the variance. CONCLUSION: Evictions, home foreclosures, and homelessness are discrete events and occur at relatively high rates among low-income veterans. In addition, homelessness was more associated with biosocial dysfunction, whereas eviction was more closely associated with socio-economic vulnerability, which may inform intervention efforts for both events.