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Homelessness is falling but concentrating in greater Seoul, Welfare Ministry reports

Published: 10 Jun. 2025, 21:06

A homeless senior at Seoul Station, central Seoul, on Nov. 29, 2024 [JOONGANG SUNDAY]

While the overall number of homeless people in Korea is declining, a growing share of street dwellers are concentrated in the greater Seoul area, according to a government survey released Tuesday.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare published findings from the 2024 Survey on the Status of the Homeless, a comprehensive nationwide review that also includes residents of jjokbang, or a house divided into small rooms to accommodate more people. This year marks the third edition of the survey, following previous studies in 2016 and 2021.

As for the survey conducted from May to July of last year, a total of 12,725 individuals were identified as either street or sheltered homeless or jjokbang residents — down 11.6 percent, or 1,679 people, from 2021.

By residence type, the largest group — 6,659 individuals, or 52.3 percent — lived in shelters such as self-reliance, rehabilitation or care facilities. Jjokbang residents numbered 4,717, or 37.1 percent, while 1,349, or 10.6 percent, were street homeless.

Regionally, 52.1 percent — or 6,636 people — were located in the greater Seoul area. Among the street homeless population, 75.7 percent — or 1,022 — were living in Seoul, Incheon or Gyeonggi. This was a 1.2 percentage point increase from the 74.5 percent reported in 2021.

Homeless seniors at Seoul Station, central Seoul, on Nov. 29, 2024 [JOONGANG SUNDAY]

Job loss was the most frequently given reason for becoming unhoused, cited by 35.8 percent of street homeless respondents. Other reasons included divorce or a family breakdown at 12.6 percent, and business failure at 11.2 percent. The share citing family dissolution rose by 3.7 percentage points from the previous survey.

When asked why they did not use public shelters or welfare facilities, 36.8 percent said it was due to discomfort with shared living and rules. Other reasons included feeling confined indoors at 16.6 percent, a lack of information about facilities at 14.2 percent and conflicts with other residents at 11.5 percent.

The unemployment rate among homeless people remained high at 75.3 percent, similar to the 75.7 percent in 2021. Of those unemployed, 56.9 percent said they were unable to work.

The average monthly income over the past year was 794,000 won ($580) for street homeless individuals and 505,000 won for those in shelters. The primary source of income was public assistance — including basic living allowances and pensions — which accounted for 47.8 percent, followed by public work programs such as self-sufficiency projects, at 37.6 percent.

A homeless senior at Seoul Station, central Seoul, on Nov. 29, 2024 [JOONGANG SUNDAY]

Only 40.3 percent of homeless respondents rated their health as good or very good, down from 44.4 percent in 2021. However, the proportion of those who said they “endure illness without going to the hospital” dropped from 9.6 percent to 6.5 percent, suggesting improved access to medical care.

The most helpful welfare services, according to respondents, were free meals at 23.8 percent, livelihood support under the Basic Livelihood Security Program at 16.6 percent and access to social welfare facilities at 14.8 percent. The most urgently needed assistance was income support at 41.7 percent, followed by housing support at 20.8 percent and medical care at 14.4 percent.

The ministry plans to use these findings to develop a third National Homeless Welfare and Self-Reliance Support Plan, scheduled to run from 2026 to 2030.

“While the proportion of homeless people avoiding hospitals has decreased and service usage indicators have improved overall, their perceived health status has worsened and unemployment remains high,” a ministry official said. “We will comprehensively analyze these changes to inform future homelessness policy.”

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY NAM SOO-HYOUN [[email protected]]