HMIS and point‑in‑time data: Nashville reports May counts and submits PIT count showing 2,180 people in January

Kelly Maldoon, presenting the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) report, told the Homelessness Planning Council that in May 2025 the database showed 3,334 individuals experiencing homelessness in Nashville. She reported 2,777 households (of which 239 were families including 435 children) and said more than 10,407 unique individuals experienced homelessness over the past 12 months.

Maldoon said the HMIS team expects to incorporate additional mission/provider data in the coming months and that May saw 158 individuals housed in the month (91 households, including 33 families). She also outlined demographic detail: in May, 50 percent of individuals experiencing homelessness were Black, 41 percent were white, and the remainder identified as Hispanic/Latino, multiracial or other; 59 percent of people counted were men, 40 percent women and 1 percent transgender.

On the point‑in‑time (PIT) count, staff reported that the PIT for Jan. 23 recorded 2,180 individuals — a 4.1 percent increase from the prior year’s 2,094 — and that unsheltered counts decreased by 123 people (17 percent) while sheltered counts increased by 209 people (15 percent). HMIS and PIT staff attributed the shift in part to weather and cold‑weather shelter availability on the night of the count.

HMIS staff explained the team piloted a new PIT mapping app that let volunteers record hotspot locations and, if the surveyor opted in, capture the surveyor's GPS when the survey was submitted. That mapping function gave outreach teams better pre‑count hotspot maps and is being used to target ongoing outreach. The presenter said exact GPS coordinates are not publicly shared; maps are distributed to outreach teams in controlled settings to protect privacy.

Council members asked follow‑up questions about how many new participants were entered into HMIS during the PIT, how Roadway Inn placements are reflected in the May report, and whether the report language could better explain categories such as "new" versus "returning" entries into HMIS. Maldoon and other HMIS staff agreed to provide clarifying tables and to work on wording for public materials.

Ending

HMIS staff said they will continue to incorporate additional provider data, refine public wording on report categories, and provide follow‑up tables on PIT survey location opt‑in counts and how encampment closures (such as Old Tent City) are reflected in monthly HMIS totals.