City of Abbotsford reports drastic reduction in homeless count

ABBOTSFORD – The City of Abbotsford says it’s identified a 20 per cent drop in its homeless count in the most recent survey compared to a year ago.

In a statement, the city says it recently completed its annual Point-in-Time Homeless Count, offering a road map for ongoing local response efforts based on the minimum number of people experiencing homelessness in the community on a single night.

This year’s census found 521 homeless people, a drop of 133 people versus the 654 homeless individuals who were recorded in 2025.

The city says the double-digit decrease constitutes the first decline in Abbotsford’s count in several years, and follows significant collaborative efforts with local service providers and BC Housing to connect homeless people with housing and support.

“While any number of people experiencing homelessness in our community is still far too many, seeing a reduction in this year’s count is encouraging,” said Mayor Ross Siemens. “We are grateful for the Province’s continued investment through BC Housing, and for the strong collaboration among our government partners and local service providers. These organizations and their frontline staff do tremendous work every day helping people access housing and the support they need. Homelessness is a complex issue, and meaningful progress depends on all of us working together.”

This year’s count was conducted on Wednesday, October 7, 2026. Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) was contracted through the City of Abbotsford’s Reaching Home Program to conduct the count.

The results included 223 individuals residing in emergency shelters, 248 people who had no shelter on the night of the count, 28 individuals with no fixed address who were staying in hospital, and 22 individuals occupying time-limited transitional housing.

Over the past year, the City of Abbotsford says it has worked alongside BC Housing, provincial ministries and local service providers to support coordinated responses to several large encampments on Provincial lands.

These efforts included the closure of encampments at Cole Road, McCallum Road, Peardonville Road and Whatcom Road, with outreach helping many individuals transition from those sites into housing and other available accommodation.

The City of Abbotsford says it continues to support local housing, prevention and diversion initiatives through the federally funded Reaching Home program, including Raven’s Moon scattered-site supportive housing and Cedar Outreach, while also providing land to BC Housing for two new provincially-funded supportive housing developments that will add more than 100 units over the next two years.

Moving forward, the City of Abbotsford says it will revise its Homelessness Action Plan to identify immediate actions and longer-term initiatives, as well as opportunities for greater collaboration with Provincial partners, service providers and other community organizations.