“Counts can significantly increase a community’s ability to take action towards ending homelessness by:

• Identifying the characteristics of the local population.
• Increasing capacity to undertake a local needs assessment.
• Enhancing system planning and program development.
• Measuring progress towards ending homelessness.
• Increasing public awareness about homelessness.
• Enhancing the ability to test the efficacy of programs and interventions aimed at ending homelessness. “

- Excerpt from the COH Point-in-Time Count Toolkit