Tuesday, February 24, 2026

When most people picture homelessness, they don’t picture a 72-year-old grandmother. Or a retired veteran. Or someone who worked for decades and thought they’d earned a stable retirement.

But today, older adults are one of the fastest-growing groups experiencing homelessness in America.

According to the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, nearly 1 in 5 people experiencing homelessness is age 55 or older.

Federal data shows more than 138,000 adults 55+ are homeless on any given night — and that number is rising.

Why is this happening?

Rents have far outpaced fixed incomes like Social Security. 

There is a severe shortage of affordable senior housing.

The loss of a spouse, a medical crisis, or a rent increase can push someone into homelessness for the first time at age 65 or 75.

Many older adults are doing everything they can to stay housed. Research from Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies shows that more seniors are now living with roommates — often strangers — simply to afford rent.

What once may have been a lifestyle choice is increasingly an act of survival.

Here’s one such story about Alan, an 87-year-old gentleman in New York, who needs a roommate to pay his rent.

Housing costs in Greater Cincinnati have risen faster than incomes, and without enough affordable options, older adults on Social Security or modest pensions may increasingly find themselves priced out of the housing market.

This is not just a housing issue. Older adults experiencing homelessness face higher rates of chronic illness and mobility challenges. Not to mention the health impacts of the stress of housing insecurity.

No one should spend their later years worrying about where they will sleep. No one who worked hard their whole life should have to live without a place to call home. Aging in our community should mean stability — not housing insecurity.

Thank you for caring about our neighbors and for those who deserve to age with dignity.

The post Seniors Are Losing Their Homes — Here’s Why appeared first on Strategies to End Homelessness.