The number of people living in Denver without homes has decreased for the first time in almost a decade, according to annual one-night census.
The point-in-time count, which tallies how many people were homeless on a single night in January each year, showed a 12.5% decrease in overall homelessness in the city compared to the 2025 report. Unsheltered homelessness — which is those who are sleeping in tents or on the streets — was down 34% from the previous year.
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston celebrated the new data Wednesday as a win for his All In Mile High homelessness program, which has been his administration’s focus since he was elected in 2023.
“This is a historic accomplishment, and it is one we celebrate with every city employee, partner and Denverite who shares the belief that our neighbors deserve better than to sleep on the streets,” Johnston in a statement ahead of a morning news conference.
He added at the event: “A goal that once seemed like fantasy — the idea that we can end the cycle of street homelessness in Denver — now feels like a very real possibility.”
A snapshot of data
The count, conducted by the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative, found 518 people living unsheltered on Denver’s streets on that night in late January. That was down from 785 people last year and the decade peak of 1,423 people in 2023.
Due to sub-freezing temperatures, the city’s cold weather shelter was open that night and people who stayed there were counted in the “sheltered homelessness” category. That means there may be more than 518 people who would be unsheltered on a warmer night.
Cole Chandler, the executive director of the city’s Department of Housing Stability, addressed that limitation of the PIT count during the news conference in the Uptown neighborhood Wednesday.
“It was activated this year but it was also activated last year,” he said of the cold weather shelter. “There were less people in cold weather shelter this year.”
Last year, MDHI counted 7,327 people who were homeless overall in the city, meaning that they may have shelter but don’t have stable housing. This year, the initiative counted 6,411. After a 12% increase in overall homelessness last year, the new decrease brings the count down a bit lower than it was in 2024.
“We’re here to say that together, we are reducing homelessness in Denver,” Chandler said. “We’re here to say that our policies, programs, strategies and investments are working.”
The MDHI’s , including six other counties near Denver, found 9,950 people who were homeless, down 7.6%. Of those, 1,703 were living unsheltered, down nearly 21% from last year.
Jason Johnson, the director of MDHI, also spoke Wednesday, highlighting that the decrease was happening throughout the region as counties collaborate more.
“These regional efforts are showing the impact,” he said. “This is not an issue with a finish line but one that takes ongoing, consistent effort from all of us.”
Throughout the region, homelessness among youth — including people ages 24 and younger — increased by 10.3%, according to MDHI’s report. In Denver, however, sheltered homelessness in that group decreased by 28% and street homelessness fell by 57%.
Families experiencing homelessness also rose by 6% throughout the region.
“It’s really important to use all data sets,” Johnson with MDHI said. “Regionally, all data is pointing to a decline, so we’re really proud of that effort.”
Once homeless, now housed
Under Johnston’s administration, the city has added about 1,000 shelter beds, bringing the overall number in the city’s system to 3,000. The city has converted several former hotels into shelters and added a handful of tiny home microcommunities to move people indoors from encampments.
Urban Alchemy, a San-Francisco based nonprofit group, started operating the 289-unit Aspen shelter this year. One of the people who once stayed in the shelter, Ny’isha Murray, spoke highly of her experience with the organization during the news conference.
“They showed me some structure,” she said. “And when it was time for me to leave … they got us out of there.”
Murray emphasized the programs she was able to start and participate in during her time at the shelter, including taking a journaling class and creating a clothing bank for other guests. Her grandchildren, with whom she said she wouldn’t have been able to reconnect without Urban Alchemy’s help, sat in the crowd Wednesday.
Tyler Thompson the director of operations at The Aspen, said the group’s workers, many of whom were once homeless themselves, see their job as “loving on people.”
“We create a place of safety, then we guide our guests to resources. Once they get connected to resources, we start to see the magic happen that everyone likes to see,” he said. “We’re here to continue to love people all the way, not only to permanent housing but to long-term stability.”
The mayor’s office says the city’s homelessness program costs about $58 million each year, but the city auditor has taken issue with that accounting. In a dispute earlier this year, an audit — which the mayor’s office disputed — found that the actual cost is higher.
The developments come as the federal government under President Donald Trump has cut funding for homelessness services. Denver alone lost 180 housing vouchers last year, Johnston said.
