Youth Homelessness
In 2024, over 1,500 unhoused young adults ages 18 to 24 sought help from the Homeless Services Network of Central Florida and our partners. An estimated 60% or more had been homeless for longer than a year.
Equally tragic, in the 2023-24 school year, our three public school districts (Orange, Osceola and Seminole) reported there were 427 unhoused and unaccompanied students ages 16 and up. These were teens who were not living with parents or guardians. They were young people forced to navigate life on their own while living in shelters, motels, cars — or even on the streets.
Without intervention, research shows, teens experiencing homelessness are more likely to become homeless adults, and those who are already young adults are at increased risk for chronic homelessness, living in shelters or on the streets for years to come.
This is why we launched Brighter Days, our youth homelessness community initiative. It was and continues to be an historic effort to provide hope, help and housing to Central Florida’s unhoused 16- to 24-year-olds. Not only do we seek to end homelessness among this current generation of young people, but we also aim to prevent homelessness for the young people who follow them.
“I want to leave a footprint in this community — I want a chance to show that all things are possible. Because I was once the one who was struggling, who was living in a car with my 1-year-old while I was pregnant with my son. I was at the bottom, and I want to show others there is a way up.”
— Ellease, a Brighter Days advisor with lived experience of homelessness
It is more expensive than ever to make the leap to adulthood. The costs of transportation, food, and especially housing have soared. Across Central Florida, for instance, rent for an average two-bedroom apartment has climbed by nearly $700 a month in the past five years, making it all but impossible to get by on entry-level wages. If you come from a family that can’t bankroll this transition — or at least cushion the blow — it is all too easy to fall behind.
The Brighter Days Community Initiative, led by the Homeless Services Network of Central Florida, aims to combat youth homelessness by creating a network of community support and innovative housing solutions. This effort prioritizes dignity and safety by first ensuring that young people can get off the streets and into transitional housing, followed by access to education, jobs, healthcare and peer support to empower youth towards lasting stability and growth.
Key Services include:
Housing - providers help youth identify housing options and provide rental and deposit assistance.
Access Points – agency partners trained to connect youth to housing resources.
System Guides – providers trained to help those at risk of homelessness navigate their options, including diversion and prevention, and to directly support youth in crisis.
Street Outreach – providers identify young people experiencing homelessness and help them access resources.
Drop-In Centers – offer help with basic needs (crisis counseling, food, laundry, showers, phone-charging), connection to other programs, and diversion.
Employment and Education Resources – education workshops, job training sessions and outreach programs with specialized youth focus.
Young Voices Lead the Way
Yasmine was a founding member of our Youth Action Society, an advisory board of people with lived experience who helped to guide us in creating this initiative and putting together the resources necessary for youth and young adults.
After living in her car, she became housed through the Homeless Services Network/Brighter Days program, earned her GED and enrolled in college.
Take Action
If you’re 16-24 years old and have lived experience, please consider joining our Youth Action Society. If you’re interested, you can fill out this brief form or send an email to admin@flyinaction.org.
If you’re a community member and want to help with outreach efforts, serve as an advocate, provide resources or job opportunities, or just lend your ideas and creativity to the cause, please join one of our workgroups. Sign up by sending us an email at membership@hsncfl.org.
If you’re a property owner or manager and have housing to rent or donate, please see https://www.hsncfl.org/landlords.
If you’d just like to support the cause, please click the button below.
