According to Lee Tunstall, homelessness is a social problem that "has grown since the 1970s" (2009, para. 1) and has attracted attention both the Canadian government and the general public (Tunstall, 2009). Homeless people are primarily individuals or families without permanent residence who also lack the resources or capabilities to organize their own housing and adequate living arrangements (Stearman, 2010). This issue affects a diverse demographic of the Canadian population. In 2003, the Toronto Housing and Homelessness Report Card reported that of 32,000 people using homeless shelters, 15% were families, 22% were youth aged fifteen to twenty-four, 18 % were single women and 48% were single men (2003). Shelters, however, represent only a small percentage of homeless people. The hidden homeless, who make up the largest percentage of homeless people (Gerdes, 2007), are people who live in cars, abandoned buildings, with family or friends, and often with strangers ( Jencks, 1994). An official estimate was released by the National Secretariat that 150,000 Canadians were homeless (Think Student Canada, 2009). However, this estimate was primarily based on shelters. Most organizations and groups estimate that there are as many as 250,000 homeless Canadians, including the hidden homeless (Echenber and Jensen, 2005). This article examines the importance, causes and solutions to such a critically important problem and suggests that the government must fund a variety of long-term solutions to assist and rehabilitate homeless people in order to end this concern social. CAUSES Risk factors can be divided into three interconnected categories (Bradford, 2009). First, social selection, middle of paper......Background. Retrieved February 5, 2011 from http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/cic/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?displayGroupName=Reference&prodId=CIC&action=e&windowstate=normal&catId=&documentId=GALE%7CEJ2181600137&mode=viewToronto, Homelessness Bulletin. (2003). Toronto. Retrieved February 5, 2011 from www.toronto.ca/homelessness/pdf/reportcard2003.pdf Tunstall, L. (2009). Homeless: an overview. EBSCO Publishing Service Selection Page. Retrieved February 5, 2011 from http://web.ebscohost.com/pov/detail?hid=119&sid=d5f751fa-0d0d-4ed1-8deb-483e701af50c%40sessionmgr111&vid=3&bdata=Jmxhbmc9ZW4tY2Emc2l0ZT1wb3YtY2Fu#db=p 3h&AN=28674966Wells, E. (2009 ). Counterpoint: Solving homelessness requires more than housing. EBSCO host. Retrieved February 5, 2011 from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=p3h&AN=28674968&lang=en-ca&site=pov-can