New York City has been showering money on homeless outreach and low‑barrier shelter beds, yet anyone walking through Midtown at midnight or riding the A train after hours can see the results are not matching the receipts. A new state audit shows that even as the city has sharply increased spending on services for people living on the streets and in the transit system, the number of New Yorkers counted sleeping outside has gone up, not down. That split between investment and visible impact is now under the microscope for auditors, advocates, and City Hall alike.
State Audit: Big Spending Spike, But More People Outside
In a report released this March, the Office of the New York State Comptroller found that the city’s unsheltered population rose from 3,588 in FY2019 to 4,504 in FY2025. Over the same stretch, spending on services specifically aimed at people living outdoors jumped from $102 million to nearly $368 million.
The state auditors also noted that the share of Department of Homeless Services (DHS) spending devoted to street-homeless services nearly doubled, from under 5 percent to close to 9 percent, with plans for those costs to climb again in FY2026. In other words, the city is putting more of its homelessness budget into the streets, even while the street count keeps creeping up.
City Cites More Outreach Teams And Low‑Barrier Beds
Mayor Eric Adams’ administration argues that the rising tab reflects an intentional shift in strategy rather than waste. Officials say the money is paying for beefed‑up outreach teams, the Subway Safety Plan, and a build‑out of low‑barrier Safe Haven and stabilization beds that are meant to be easier for people to accept than traditional shelters.
According to a detailed city briefing, the administration locked in a $106 million baseline investment to lift the number of low‑barrier beds to 4,900. The same document says the first wave of new Safe Haven sites was scheduled to open in spring 2025.
Auditors Say Outcome Numbers Are Still Fuzzy
The state comptroller’s office is not convinced New Yorkers are getting a clear picture of what all that money is achieving. The report notes that some indicators, such as HOME‑STAT placements of unsheltered people into “stable settings,” have climbed sharply. But it also stresses that published budget documents do not make it easy to see how much is being spent specifically on low‑barrier programs, or how those dollars translate into long‑term housing results.
“More data on outcomes can offer insight into how the City can continue to help individuals get into permanent housing in a cost‑efficient manner,” the auditors wrote, urging clearer public reporting on exits to permanent housing and on the link between outreach spending and permanent placements.
On The Ground: HOPE Count, Volunteers, And Reluctant Residents
While officials argue over spreadsheets, volunteers have been out on the streets trying to count the people behind the numbers. The city’s annual overnight HOPE canvass sent teams across all five boroughs in a bid to get a more accurate snapshot of how many New Yorkers are sleeping outdoors.
NY1 joined outreach crews who described a familiar pattern: many of the people they approach turn down offers to come indoors, even when a bed is available. The city’s new Department of Social Services commissioner told the station that rebuilding trust with people who have cycled through shelters, hospitals, and the criminal justice system is critical if those offers are going to stick.
Advocates Say Housing Supply, Not Outreach, Is The Bottleneck
Homeless advocates counter that the core problem is not a lack of outreach or even a shortage of specialized beds, but a lack of actual homes. The Coalition for the Homeless points out that in January 2026, more than 100,000 people slept in city shelters on an average night, a record that underscores how clogged the pipeline to permanent housing has become.
The organization argues that long waits for affordable and supportive housing are the main reason people get stuck in shelters or on the street. In its analysis, the Coalition for the Homeless urges the city to dramatically expand the number of apartments that combine permanent housing with on‑site services and long‑term supports.
What Comes Next As City Bets Big On Safe Havens
For now, the state comptroller is pushing the city to sharpen its scorecard for street‑homeless programs. Officials at City Hall say they are moving ahead with opening additional Safe Haven sites and launching initiatives such as the “Bridge to Home” program, which is meant to connect unsheltered New Yorkers with both clinical care and housing.
PoliticsNY first spotlighted the audit on March 11, noting that the results of this year’s HOPE count and the city’s updated reporting later in 2026 will be critical tests. The question hanging over it all is simple enough, even if the solutions are not: will these bigger budgets finally move people off sidewalks and out of subway stations for good, or will New Yorkers keep wondering where all that money went every time they step outside?
