More of San Diego’s most vulnerable grappling with homelessness

Editor’s Note: This story’s headline has been edited to correct a spelling mistake. We apologize for the error.

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — While people across America’s Finest City may be aware of the homeless crisis, they may not be aware of one of the groups losing their homes despite working their entire lives.

More of San Diego’s seniors are ending up on the streets as rental rates go up.

Fred Persaud, who spent over six years sleeping on the streets, now has transitional housing that costs around $850 a month, subsidized by an organization called Serving Seniors. He moved into his current residence last December after stumbling upon the organization.

His SRO or Single Room Occupancy is quaint, but safe, and more than enough after spending over six years sleeping on the street.

“It’s like flipping a coin, and saying, hey today is your lucky day,” Persaud said. “It took me about a week for it to sink in when I got here, that I actually had a roof over my head.”

According to Paul Downey, CEO of Serving Seniors, people 55 and up experiencing homelessness are the fastest-growing cohort among people on the streets in San Diego. Data from the Regional Task Force on Homelessness shows that since March, over 8,860 seniors are homeless or on the cusp , a number that has risen by over 170 since the start of the year and by 600 since January 2023.

“We’re overwhelmed…and what’s unfortunate is that we can provide them food, we can find them a safe place to live during the daytime, but we can’t get them the one thing they need which is housing,” Downey explained.

The economy, particularly high inflation, is a significant barrier to finding permanent housing, according to Persaud, who expressed the challenges of finding a place with his income.

The City of San Diego has received nearly $4 million from the state for homeless outreach and transitioning people to transitional housing. While this funding is helpful and necessary, Serving Seniors believes prevention is crucial to avoiding a return to homelessness.

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