Older Americans could face lack of affordable housing in years to come

Monday, Nov 26, 2018

By Elizabeth Zach, RCAC staff writer

Households headed by Americans in their 70s, 80s and 90s are expected to dramatically increase in the coming years, and the nation’s housing market is unprepared, according to a study from The Harvard Joint Center on Housing Studies (JCHS).

“There’s an absence of options,” Jennifer Molinsky, a JCHS senior research associate and lead author of the report titled ‘Housing America’s Older Adults,’ told Curbed. “It’s not just a lack of support for subsidized housing. I’m worried we won’t have the kind of housing and services for middle-income folks, as well.”

Between 1990 and 2016, the number of U.S. households age 80 and over increased 71 percent. By 2037, according to the report, that figure will double. Widening inequality and less affordable housing will exacerbate the problem of how best to provide safe, accessible and affordable senior housing.

“In general, I always like to come back to the planning and preparedness piece,” Sue Johansen, a vice president at A Place for Mom, an assisted living referral service, told Curbed. “There’s a lack of awareness and preparation for the dynamics of senior living.”