A new report confirms what many of us already see with our own eyes: the homelessness crisis in Ontario is getting even worse.
According to updated numbers from the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO), nearly 85,000 people across the province were known to be homeless in 2025 — a jump of almost 8 per cent from the previous year, and nearly 50 per cent since 2021.
The problem is especially stark in Northern Ontario, where homelessness grew by more than 37 per cent last year.
Although the numbers are discouraging, AMO’s report does lay out a potential path forward: an $11-billion, 10-year plan “that prioritizes long-term housing solutions over temporary emergency measures and enforcement-based responses.”
If we don't act now, the report warns, homelessness in Ontario will likely double over the next decade — and potentially reach 300,000 in the face of an economic downturn.
“It is absolutely not hopeless,” says Lindsay Jones, AMO’s executive director. “We do know how to solve these problems.”
Jones is our guest on tonight’s episode of Village Media’s Closer Look podcast.
Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, and produced by Derek Turner, Closer Look is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.
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