DataPoint: Older Adult Housing

In 2016, 55 percent of households nationwide were headed by adults age 50 and over, growing 9 percent since 2011, according to a new Harvard University study. The number of households age 80 and over continues to grow as well, rising from 4.4 million in 1990 to 7.5 million in 2016, representing a 71 percent increase. Housing for 2.4 million older adults occurred in group residences such as skilled nursing facilities (SNFs), which included 2.4 percent of the population aged 75 to 79 and 7.7 percent of the population age 80 and over. Nearly 79 percent of those age 65 and older were homeowners. Older adults who were renters were found more likely to live alone than homeowners, with 62 percent of renters aged 65 to 79 living alone, compared to 32 percent of homeowners. In New York City, which has the nation’s largest homeless population, the number of people age 65 and over experiencing homelessness nearly doubled between 2011 and 2015.

To view Harvard University’s Housing America’s Older Adults report, click here.

Contact: Ken Allison, kallison@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8820