PALM SPRINGS, Fla. — According to a national foster care survey, the number of foster homes in Florida has taken a dramatic 23% drop in the last three years, and child advocates fear this trend could continue.
The decline could leave more at-risk kids without a safe place to call home.
Savannah Williams spent almost two years shuffling through four group homes for teens in Palm Beach County. The Florida Department of Children and Families could not place her in a foster home.
"My first group home I stayed in was a crowded home," Williams said.
"Six girls sharing one bathroom, that's annoying. It gets to a point that girls are going to start fighting," Williams said.
"And then the staff shortages, it's not enough staffs that want to come in and work with the girls and actually teach them about life," Williams said.
Williams fears even fewer at-risk children will see the benefits of living with foster parents.
"There should be more people who want to or willing to help the girls and the boys who are out there," Williams said.
"I would say that's very dangerous," Williams said.
I sorted through the results of a national survey on foster care from the advocacy group Fostering Media Connections, specifically for the state of Florida.
From 2023 to 2025, the survey, which gets its data from Florida's DCF, shows these numbers:
FLORIDA LICENSED FOSTER HOMES
2023: 8,712
2025: 6,699
FLORIDA CHILDREN IN FOSTER CARE
2023: 20,177
2025: 15,141
Colleen LaCosta is the executive director for Speak Up for Kids, a group that supports foster families and the children they care for.
"People are not getting the message of the need. People don't find it appealing," LaCosta said.
LaCosta said the drop in foster homes coincides with higher standards that include rigorous home inspections and long training hours for those wanting to be foster parents.
"You want to know that the child has what they need, but those safeguards are harder and harder for the people to do with busy lives," LaCosta said.
I asked the Florida Department of Children and Families why it believes the number of foster homes is dwindling and what it is doing about it. The agency has not yet returned my calls or emails.
Deborah Alvarez has been a foster parent for 32 years and cannot count the number of children she has fostered. She tells prospective foster parents it is worth the effort.
"It is hard to meet the children's needs because they come into your home, their needs haven't been met, most likely. Dental, medical, therapy," Alvarez said.
"When they go back home and it's a good, healthy situation and that they trust us to assist them in any needs that they have," Alvarez said. "And they remember, you know, things that I've done that just brought them up, and that's the success. It's setting them up for success."
Williams is setting herself up for success as she works to pay her way for college. She is also writing a book to help people like her who could not find a foster home placement.
"I'm going to school to become a criminal defense attorney so I can fight for the youth that's in foster care now currently," Williams said.
More children will need help if the number of foster homes in Florida shrinks.
If you are considering becoming a foster parent in Florida, you can call 833-678-3735 to get started. The process, which includes training, a background check, and other requirements, takes between three and five months.
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