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Family Breakdown and Domestic Violence

Topic: Pathways Into Homelessness • Last updated: February 2026

Family relationships and household dynamics play a critical role in housing stability. When these relationships break down—whether through conflict, divorce, rejection, or violence—the result can be homelessness, particularly for those with fewer economic resources or support networks. This pathway affects people across the lifespan, from youth fleeing unsafe homes to adults escaping abusive relationships to older adults facing late-life family dissolution.

Domestic Violence: A Leading Cause of Homelessness

Domestic violence represents one of the most direct pathways from family breakdown to homelessness, particularly for women and children:

The Scale of the Problem

  • Domestic violence is consistently identified as a leading cause of homelessness for women
  • Between 22% and 57% of all homeless women report that domestic violence was the immediate cause of their homelessness
  • Among families, approximately 80% of homeless mothers with children have experienced domestic violence

The Pathway from Violence to Homelessness

Several factors connect domestic violence to housing instability:

  • Immediate safety needs: Survivors often must leave home quickly, with little time to plan or secure alternative housing
  • Economic abuse: Many abusers control finances, damage credit, sabotage employment, or create debt in the survivor's name
  • Housing barriers: Evictions related to domestic violence incidents, despite legal protections
  • Limited options: Shelter capacity for domestic violence survivors is insufficient in most communities

The Impossible Choice

Many survivors face an impossible choice between remaining in dangerous situations or risking homelessness. This dilemma is particularly acute for survivors with children, disabilities, limited English proficiency, or immigration concerns.

Youth Homelessness: Family Conflict and Rejection

For young people, family breakdown is the primary pathway to homelessness:

Family Conflict

  • Approximately 46% of homeless youth left home due to physical abuse
  • 17% left due to sexual abuse
  • Family conflict is consistently identified as the most common reason for youth homelessness

LGBTQ+ Youth Rejection

  • LGBTQ+ youth make up approximately 40% of the homeless youth population, despite representing only about 7% of the general youth population
  • Family rejection based on sexual orientation or gender identity is a primary cause of homelessness for these youth
  • Many experience harassment, abuse, or conversion therapy attempts before leaving or being forced out

System-Involved Youth

  • Youth aging out of foster care often lack family support networks
  • Those involved in juvenile justice systems may face family rejection upon release
  • Without family safety nets, any housing instability can quickly lead to homelessness

Relationship Dissolution and Housing Loss

The end of relationships can create housing vulnerability, particularly when housing costs were shared:

Divorce and Separation

  • Housing costs that were manageable for two incomes become unsustainable for one
  • Legal costs of divorce can deplete savings
  • Credit may be damaged during contentious separations
  • One partner may have been economically dependent or out of the workforce

Death of a Partner

  • Loss of income from deceased partner
  • Potential loss of housing if the deceased partner was the leaseholder or owner
  • Grief may impact ability to work or manage finances

Gender Disparities

  • Women often experience greater economic impacts from relationship dissolution due to wage gaps, career interruptions for caregiving, and other gender-based economic inequities
  • Single mothers face particularly high rates of housing insecurity following relationship breakdown

Family Support Networks and Housing Stability

Beyond immediate household relationships, broader family support networks play a crucial role in preventing homelessness:

The Safety Net Function

  • Family often provides temporary housing during crises ("doubling up")
  • Financial assistance from family members can prevent eviction
  • Practical support like childcare can maintain employment and housing stability

When Family Support Is Unavailable

People without family safety nets face higher risks of homelessness when:

  • Relationships have been severed due to conflict, abuse, addiction, or other issues
  • Family members lack resources to provide assistance
  • Geographic distance makes immediate support difficult
  • Family members have their own housing instability

Intergenerational Patterns

Family breakdown and homelessness often follow intergenerational patterns. Children who experience family instability, violence, or homelessness face higher risks of similar experiences in adulthood, creating cycles that can be difficult to break without intervention.

Intersecting Vulnerabilities

Family breakdown interacts with other risk factors to increase homelessness vulnerability:

Economic Factors

  • Family breakdown alone rarely causes homelessness when sufficient economic resources exist
  • The combination of relationship dissolution and economic precarity creates highest risk
  • Housing affordability crises make it harder to maintain housing after family breakdown

Mental Health and Substance Use

  • Family conflict often involves or is exacerbated by untreated mental health conditions or substance use
  • These conditions can make it harder to secure new housing after family breakdown
  • Trauma from family violence or conflict can lead to mental health challenges that impact housing stability

Discrimination

  • LGBTQ+ individuals face housing discrimination that compounds family rejection
  • Racial discrimination in housing markets creates additional barriers for people of color experiencing family breakdown
  • Survivors of domestic violence may face illegal discrimination from landlords concerned about potential disturbances

Barriers to Resolving Homelessness After Family Breakdown

Once homelessness occurs following family breakdown, several factors can make it difficult to regain housing:

Safety Concerns

  • Domestic violence survivors may need to relocate to areas where the abuser cannot find them
  • This often means leaving behind jobs, support networks, and familiar resources
  • Safety planning adds complexity to housing searches

Legal Complications

  • Unresolved divorce proceedings can complicate housing applications
  • Joint debts or leases with former partners affect credit and rental history
  • Custody arrangements may limit relocation options

Emotional Trauma

  • Trauma from family violence or conflict can impact ability to navigate housing systems
  • Trust issues may affect relationships with service providers
  • Post-traumatic stress can interfere with employment and housing stability

Prevention and Intervention Strategies

Several approaches can help prevent homelessness related to family breakdown:

Domestic Violence-Specific Interventions

  • Flexible financial assistance: Helping survivors with security deposits, moving costs, and rent
  • Housing protections: Enforcing laws that prevent eviction based on domestic violence incidents
  • Coordinated safety planning: Integrating housing considerations into safety planning
  • Rapid rehousing programs: Quickly connecting survivors to new housing with short-term rental assistance

Youth-Focused Approaches

  • Family reconciliation services: Mediation and support to address conflicts when safe
  • Host home programs: Community-based alternatives to shelters for youth
  • LGBTQ+-affirming services: Specialized support for youth rejected due to sexual orientation or gender identity
  • Extended foster care: Allowing youth to remain in care beyond age 18

Broader Prevention Strategies

  • Affordable housing: Ensuring housing remains accessible on a single income
  • Economic empowerment programs: Building financial independence, particularly for domestic violence survivors
  • Legal assistance: Help with divorce, custody, and housing issues
  • Community support networks: Creating alternatives to family safety nets

Promising Model: Domestic Violence Housing First

The Domestic Violence Housing First model focuses on getting survivors into stable housing as quickly as possible, then providing flexible support services. Evaluations show that 96% of participants maintained housing stability 18 months after entering the program, demonstrating that with appropriate support, survivors can achieve housing stability even after experiencing violence and trauma.

The Role of Systems and Policies

Addressing family breakdown as a pathway to homelessness requires system-level changes:

Coordinated Systems

  • Better integration between domestic violence services and homeless services systems
  • Trauma-informed approaches across all services
  • Coordinated entry systems that appropriately prioritize safety needs

Policy Reforms

  • Stronger legal protections for domestic violence survivors in housing
  • Expanded affordable housing options for single-parent households
  • Improved economic supports during family transitions
  • Non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ individuals in housing and services

Conclusion

Family breakdown—whether through violence, conflict, rejection, or dissolution—represents a significant pathway into homelessness for many individuals. This pathway highlights how housing stability often depends on relationship stability and family support networks, particularly in a context of limited affordable housing and inadequate public safety nets.

Addressing this pathway requires both immediate interventions to support those experiencing family-related housing crises and longer-term strategies to create systems where housing stability is less dependent on family relationships. By understanding the connections between family dynamics and homelessness, we can develop more effective approaches to prevention and rapid resolution when family breakdown occurs.

Key Takeaway

Family breakdown becomes a pathway to homelessness when economic vulnerability intersects with relationship dissolution, violence, or conflict. Effective solutions must address both the immediate housing needs created by family breakdown and the underlying economic and social factors that make people vulnerable to homelessness when family relationships end or become unsafe.

References & Further Reading

  1. National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV). "Domestic Violence, Housing, and Homelessness." NNEDV, 2023. https://nnedv.org/content/domestic-violence-housing-and-homelessness/
  2. National Alliance to End Homelessness. "Domestic Violence and Homelessness." National Alliance to End Homelessness, 2023. https://endhomelessness.org/homelessness-in-america/what-causes-homelessness/domestic-violence/
  3. Mbilinyi, L. "The Washington State Domestic Violence Housing First Program: Cohort 2 Final Evaluation Report." Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 2015. https://wscadv.org/resources/dvhf-evaluation/
  4. Durso, L.E. and Gates, G.J. "Serving Our Youth: Findings from a National Survey of Service Providers Working with LGBT Youth Who Are Homeless or At Risk of Becoming Homeless." The Williams Institute, 2012. https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/publications/serving-our-youth-lgbtq/
  5. Bassuk, E.L., et al. "Intimate Partner Violence in Extremely Low-Income Women: Longitudinal Patterns and Risk Markers." Journal of Family Violence, vol. 21, no. 6, 2006, pp. 387-399. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-006-9035-1
  6. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. "The 2023 Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress." HUD, 2023. https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdf/2023-AHAR-Part-1.pdf
  7. National Center for Homeless Education. "Supporting the Education of Unaccompanied Students Experiencing Homelessness." NCHE, 2022. https://nche.ed.gov/unaccompanied-youth/
  8. Baker, C.K., et al. "Domestic Violence, Housing Instability, and Homelessness: A Review of Housing Policies and Program Practices for Meeting the Needs of Survivors." Aggression and Violent Behavior, vol. 15, no. 6, 2010, pp. 430-439. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2010.07.005
  9. National Child Traumatic Stress Network. "Families and Homelessness." NCTSN, 2023. https://www.nctsn.org/what-is-child-trauma/trauma-types/complex-trauma/effects