Its late in the evening, your leaving the grocery store. You come across a someone who has obviously been homeless for a couple of days. Would you open your home to them for a night?

We have a shelter nearby so i would help them to get a place to sleep
And a hand up as well
But i am far too paranoid to trust a stranger to stay in my home
As bad as it makes me feel...
I could never get any sleep

I can offer him/her food but not shelter. I maybe rude but i will not lay my trust to anybody as easily as they came.

Sadly its true that some people make it difficult to enable trust and you are wise to keep your distance but you can do other things that can facilitate others needs just not putting yourself in possible harms way....

I understand . .you have to becareful. I have opened my home to strangers before, but im much more likely to give them food and direct them to the nearest homeless shelter.

I used to volunteer with a group that offers direct aid to people on the street. If I see someone who needs help, I simply call the city's hotline and explain the situation.
They then decide if police or ambulance need to be called and if not, will radio the nearest pair of volunteers and ask them to check up on the person and offer sandwiches/drinks/information.
Sadly though too many people just pass by and the person becomes part of the background.
As for opening my home...no never. Too much of a risk.

no, because people are more mentally unstable (there are less facilities for mentally unstable then there used to be) and I have a child

I have allowed someone to sleep in my car while I was at work though.

Having hitch hiked across the country in the distant past and the near past I noticed a difference in how churches and the police department have joined forces to help the needy. What was once called hobos then later transients evolved in what could be called the homeless now. The churches would have funds that they would donate to the police in a special setup voucher which could be awarded to homeless people who checked out okay. Once the police found out who they were and how they became that way to be really needed the money was given. But as the churches became hit with bogus characters they had to do something so they didn't get taken advantaged of.

It is hard to tell who truly needs help and who is pretending. Some people pretend to be homeless to get free stuff from people. Other chooses to sleep on the streets instead of homeless shelters.

Normally when someone comes to wanting money for food, I offer to either fix them something or buy the food for them.

I have a big heart but no way.... I might buy them something to eat or try to tell them where the nearest shelter is but never open my door. One never knows the mental issues they may have or their intentions...Better safe then sorry....

I would direct them to the nearest shelter.
And maybe take them there...

No........hell no!

I will support a dog or a cat.

Humans gotta be more than a big assed leech.

I would give him something to eat but would draw the line offering my home.

Ouch!
*smack on the nose*
Bad krupa...bad!!!!
Go do some volunteering and educate yourself about the situation before you make any more comments like that.

Doing such a thing would have to be a divine calling that one is prepared to answer. Not everyone has that kind of divine calling.

In Vegas we run into this a lot. More than other places, I don't know. I don't do it a lot but maybe 2 or 3 times a year I will take in someone if I feel I should. Mainly families though and not so much one person.

Same here and one can't fault the churches or aid-volunteer groups. In Europe it is much the same about the 'bogus' characters, but there is now one huge difference as far as seeing groups or individuals roaming the streets in search of a quiet doorway to sleep in or begging for money. Europe has declared housing a human right and countries are making the adjustments to implement that policy. It had been talked about for years and now it is being set into practice at long last. Shame the North Americans will never go along with that preferring to let everyone look out for themselves one would thing that the Republican Party sets all social policies...

No way!
I wouldnt even let them use my verandah,let alone the yard!!!
Here,if you meet someone like that,stay away......we have found,that many a time,even giving directions to a stranger leaves you without your handbag/purse/wallet/jewellery!!
I know,some may be genuinely needing that help,but,homelessness,beggers,handicapped and such disadvantages are just another way of earning a living!!
One time,an elderly woman came to our house,asking for some money so she could go back home to her parents,that her husband had chased her away,she hasnt eaten in days,etc,etc....the story was sooo touching and painful to hear,but when we started asking why her neighbors hadnt helped,why her ''grown up kids'' werent helping and such...we found she was just ON THE JOB!!
Soooo,
Heck no,i just walk on!

That'll Depend on My Mood and My Neighborhood

I have helped people in the past, once I understood what happened. But, doing this is unusual for me.