Mountain View’s homeless population spiked 56% over the past two years with the vast majority of unhoused people residing in vehicles, according to a report released by Santa Clara County this week.

The number of homeless individuals in Mountain View jumped from 562 in 2023 to 879 in 2025. Countywide, the homeless population also increased but less steeply, growing 8% from 9,903 individuals in 2023 to 10,711 individuals in 2025.

Called the “point-in-time count,” the report captures the number of sheltered and unsheltered homeless individuals on a single night in January. The data revealed that Mountain View now has the third-largest homeless population in the county, higher than larger cities such as Santa Clara and Sunnyvale. San Jose had the largest number of homeless individuals, at 6

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