The number of homeless people checking into New York City shelters every evening is up 45 percent since Mayor Michael Bloomberg took office eight years ago, according to a new report.
Over 39,000 homeless people — including 10,000 families — are spending each night in homeless centers throughout the city, according to a report released Tuesday by the advocacy group Coalition for the Homeless.
This year has turned out to be "the worst on record for New York City homelessness since the Great Depression," a spokesperson told NBCNewYork.com said.
In 2002, about 31,000 people were using city shelters each night — and those numbers have steadily increased each year, the group said.
Coalition for the Homeless attributes the rising number of homeless to increased on employment and a shortage of low-cost rental housing.
The city's numbers are slightly lower than Coalition for the Homeless. According to the New York Department of Homelessness, its daily census for Oct. 8 found 37,912 total homeless individuals needed shelter in New York.
The shelter system costs $36,000 a year per family, according to the city.