Point-In-Time Count
Let’s Make Everyone Count!
National Street and Shelter Point-in-Time Count
People in our community who are living without housing need our help in many ways. They’re living on the edge, often unseen with no voice, and therefore ignored. Every year, social service agency staff and volunteers make an effort to raise awareness of the needs of the homeless through the Point-in-Time (PIT) Count.
During the last week in January, Okanogan County will gather information about people experiencing homelessness by going out into the community and talking to the homeless and gathering data. PIT data is used at the federal and state levels to make decision about funding and other support needed to assist this population. The PIT Count helps give a voice to the homeless.
“The Point-In-Time Count provides the homeless assistance community with the data needed to understand the number and characteristics of persons who are homeless at one point in time.” – U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development
We Need Your Help!
Volunteers make the difference in collecting an accurate count. We will be setting up tabling events at the nine Okanogan County Food Pantries and hitting the streets to interview people the last week of January, 2024.
If you can help, please watch the training video below and sign-up to volunteer by contacting:
Please fill out and return the day you volunteer:
PIT Count Training
Thanks to our friends at Kitsap County for the following training materials. Disregard the second to the last slide which pertains specifically to the Kitsap County PIT Count:
More Detail About the PIT Count
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Washington State Department of Commerce require communities to conduct a one-day Point-In-Time (PIT) Count to survey individuals experiencing homelessness. PIT Counts are one source of data among many that help us understand the magnitude and characteristics of people who are homeless in our community and in the United States.
The Point-In-Time (PIT) Count is a snapshot that captures the characteristics and situations of people living here without a home. The PIT Count includes both sheltered individuals (emergency shelters or transitional housing) and unsheltered individuals (those sleeping outside or living in places that are not meant for human habitation).
The annual PIT Count happens at the end of January and is carried out by volunteers who interview people using a standard survey form that asks people where they slept the night before, where their last residence was located, what may have contributed to their loss of housing, and what disabilities the individual may have. It also asks how long the individual has been homeless, age, and demographics, and whether the person is a veteran and/or a survivor of domestic violence.
Like all surveys, the PIT Count has limitations. Results from the Count are influenced by the weather, by availability of overflow shelter beds, by the nature of the volunteers, and by the level of engagement of the people we are interviewing. Comparisons from year to year should be done with loose limitation in mind.
Washington State Department of Commerce Annual Point in Time Count
2022 PIT Count Survey Results
PIT Results 2022.pdf | Powered by Box
2022 PIT Summary.pdf | Powered by Box
Contact Us
Okanogan County Community Action Council (OCCAC) serves as the coordinator for Okanogan County’s annual PIT Count, working with other agencies across the county that assist with the count. For more information, contact one of our Volunteer Leads organizing the PIT Count in your community.