U.S. Ill-Prepared for Housing Aging Population, Harvard Report Warns

Federal housing assistance insufficient for a third of eligible renters aged 62 and over, with the population over 75 expected to increase by 45% in the next decade.

A new report from Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies warns that the U.S. is ill-prepared to house and care for its rapidly aging population.
The report highlights that federal housing assistance was only sufficient for a little over a third of the 5.9 million renters aged 62 and over who were eligible in 2021.
The U.S. population over the age of 75 is expected to increase by 45% over the next decade, growing from 17 million to nearly 25 million.
In 2021, nearly 11.2 million older adults were 'cost burdened,' spending more than 30% of their income on housing.
The report suggests creative housing solutions such as house or apartment sharing, accessory dwelling units, and cohousing communities.