I wanted to add a (possible, additional) factor in that I didn’t see included, although I don’t know how you would test it. Guess: because of the size and interconnectedness/maturity of SF’s homeless network, it might be easier to be less isolated/more connected while homeless in SF than in other places. It seems clear that in some parts of SF (I’m thinking of particular streets in SOMA and the Tenderloin, and at Civic Center) the people who live on the streets are connecting with each other and also often enjoying each other’s company. They look like friends. And this may be part of what makes the homeless population more visible in SF than in other places—they’re hanging out together, often talking loudly, and they’re often in the same place all the time, every day. There is a social scene it is possible to be part of, and this might feel better than living alone somewhere much nicer.
(There are still many people who seem both isolated and homeless, too.)
I wanted to add a (possible, additional) factor in that I didn’t see included, although I don’t know how you would test it. Guess: because of the size and interconnectedness/maturity of SF’s homeless network, it might be easier to be less isolated/more connected while homeless in SF than in other places. It seems clear that in some parts of SF (I’m thinking of particular streets in SOMA and the Tenderloin, and at Civic Center) the people who live on the streets are connecting with each other and also often enjoying each other’s company. They look like friends. And this may be part of what makes the homeless population more visible in SF than in other places—they’re hanging out together, often talking loudly, and they’re often in the same place all the time, every day. There is a social scene it is possible to be part of, and this might feel better than living alone somewhere much nicer.
(There are still many people who seem both isolated and homeless, too.)