When Home Isn’t Safe: The Link Between Homelessness and Domestic Violence in Oregon

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 When Home Isn’t Safe: The Link Between Homelessness and Domestic Violence in Oregon


                    Image credit: AI-generated image created using OpenAI’s DALL·E (2026).


    In the Portland metro region, throughout Columbia County, and across Oregon, homelessness has tragically grown year after year. On a single night in early 2025, more than 27,000 Oregonians were counted as experiencing homelessness, a 35 % increase from just one year prior, and more than 60 % of them were living unsheltered in places not meant for human habitation like streets, vehicles, and campsites.

    These numbers don’t just represent housing insecurity, they represent families, neighbors, friends, and far too many survivors of violence with no safe place to rebuild their lives.

    At SAFE of Columbia County, we rarely see homelessness as just a housing issue. For countless survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, homelessness is a direct consequence of choosing safety over danger.



The Reality Survivors Face

Research from Oregon and national surveys shows that:

  • More than one-third of adults in Oregon experience domestic violence in their lifetime.
  • National studies estimate that at least 32 % of adults in families staying in shelters are survivors of domestic violence, and 15 % are currently fleeing unsafe situations.
  • In some reports, over half of unhoused women cite domestic violence as the immediate cause of their homelessness.

Abusive partners often isolate victims from support systems, control finances, sabotage employment opportunities, or interfere with housing, leaving survivors with impossible choices: stay and risk harm, or leave and risk homelessness.

Why This Matters

When someone escapes violence, their priority is safety, but without financial resources, stable shelter, or legal protections, survivors face barriers at every turn. Oregon consistently reports some of the highest rates of unsheltered family homelessness in the nation, especially among families with children, illustrating how deeply housing instability intersects with trauma and safety concerns.

The Power of CVSSD and Critical Grants

Programs administered through Oregon’s Crime Victims’ Services Division (CVSSD), such as the Oregon Domestic and Sexual Violence Services Fund (ODSVS), and Survivor Housing Funds,  play an essential role in addressing these overlaps.

These grants support community-based organizations like SAFE of Columbia County to:

  • Provide emergency shelter, safe housing access, and move-in support

  • Offer trauma-informed advocacy and safety planning

  • Connect survivors with legal, financial, and mental health resources

  • Help survivors maintain permanent housing stability after crisis

Survivor Housing Funds specifically help survivors maintain and access safe permanent housing — a critical step in ending cycles of violence and homelessness.

Without these funds, survivors often have nowhere to go but back to unsafe environments, or into unstable housing situations; conditions that threaten their well-being and long-term recovery.

“Every person deserves not only a roof over their head, but a home where they feel safe. When survivors of violence lose their housing, they lose more than shelter; they lose opportunity, stability, and peace. At SAFE of Columbia County, we fight to ensure that every survivor has a path to safety and stability, with community support and housing that truly protects them.”

- Nithish Thomas, Executive Director, SAFE of Columbia County

📞 SAFE of Columbia County 24-Hour Crisis Line: (503) 397-6161
🌐 Website: www.safeofcolumbiacounty.org

If you are in immediate danger, call 911.

You can also contact:

  • 📞 National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233)

  • 📱 Text “START” to 88788

  • 🌐 thehotline.org

All calls are confidential and free.

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