Housing Cost Burden - Ages 65+

Housing Cost Burden - Ages 65+ in United States

United States

Households that spend more than 30% of their income on housing are considered to be cost-burdened. Cost-burdened seniors may have difficulty affording other basic needs such as health care, food and heat. One study found that individuals who had difficulty affording housing were more likely to report fair or poor health, certain chronic conditions and non-adherence to prescriptions due to cost. Men and women with lower incomes experience lower life expectancies when compared with wealthier individuals. 

Median rent costs in the United States increased by 15% between 2001 and 2019, while median income only increased 3.4%. In 2021, 40.6 million American households spent more than 30% of their income on housing. Many older adults rely on external programs to fund their housing — Social Security payments account for an average of one-third of the income for adults ages 65 and older. In 2017, the number of cost-burdened households headed by someone ages 65 or older reached a new high of nearly 10 million, an increase of more than 200,000 from the previous year.

The prevalence of cost-burdened seniors is higher among: 

• Women compared with men. 
• Black and Latino households compared with white and Asian households. 
• Metropolitan areas compared with non-metropolitan areas. 
• Homeowners with a mortgage compared with those who do not have a mortgage. 
• Those with an annual household income of $15,000 or less, compared with other income levels. 72% of renters and 79% of homeowners earning less than $15,000 were cost-burdened in 2017.

Research has found that older adults prefer to stay in their own homes for as long as possible, but many residences lack the accessibility features that aging adults need. Healthy Homes programs at state and local levels have been found to improve health by remedying unhealthy housing conditions, such as lead exposures, inadequate ventilation and excess moisture. For seniors, lack of accessible housing and support services are two of the biggest challenges that may be resolved through federal support programs, waivers and grants.

More collaboration between the housing and public health sectors is needed to promote healthy home environments and to better integrate health care into the housing systems — particularly for those with chronic health needs. County Health Rankings & Roadmaps has identified strategies for improving access and affordability of housing at all levels of community and government. Rental vouchers, subsidized housing and utility assistance programs can help cost-burdened individuals afford safe and healthy housing:

• Through the Section 202 program, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) subsidizes affordable rental housing, whose support services allow low-income older adults to continue living independently. Between 2000 and 2006, Section 202 funded the construction of over 35,000 supportive housing units and 839 facilities. 
• HUD provides other assistance specifically for or available to seniors, including housing choice vouchers.
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Housing Repair Program and the Department of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program can help older adults make necessary health and safety repairs to their homes.

The National Low Income Housing Coalition offers additional resources and policy recommendations for housing challenges.

Healthy People 2030 has a goal to reduce the proportion of families that spend more than 30% of their income on housing.

Airgood-Obrycki, Whitney, and Corrina Anderson. “Housing America’s Older Adults 2019.” The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, 2019. https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/reports/files/Harvard_JCHS_Housing_Americas_Older_Adults_2019.pdf.

Braveman, Paula, Mercedes Dekker, Susan Egerter, Tabashir Sadegh-Nobari, and Craig Pollack. “Exploring the Social Determinants of Health.” Housing and Health. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Commission to Build a Healthier America, 2011. https://www.rwjf.org/en/insights/our-research/2011/05/housing-and-health.html.

Gibson, Marcia, Mark Petticrew, Clare Bambra, Amanda J. Sowden, Kath E. Wright, and Margaret Whitehead. “Housing and Health Inequalities: A Synthesis of Systematic Reviews of Interventions Aimed at Different Pathways Linking Housing and Health.” Health & Place 17, no. 1 (January 2011): 175–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2010.09.011.

Pollack, Craig, Susan Egerter, Tabashir Sadegh-Nobari, Mercedes Dekker, and Paula Braveman. “Where We Live Matters for Our Health: The Links Between Housing and Health.” Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, September 2008. http://www.commissiononhealth.org/PDF/e6244e9e-f630-4285-9ad7-16016dd7e493/Issue%20Brief%202%20Sept%2008%20-%20Housing%20and%20Health.pdf.

Pollack, Craig Evan, Beth Ann Griffin, and Julia Lynch. “Housing Affordability and Health Among Homeowners and Renters.” American Journal of Preventive Medicine 39, no. 6 (December 2010): 515–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2010.08.002.

Pynoos, Jon. “The Future of Housing for the Elderly: Four Strategies That Can Make a Difference.” Edited by Robert B. Hudson. Public Policy & Aging Report 28, no. 1 (April 17, 2018): 35–38. https://doi.org/10.1093/ppar/pry006.

Sandel, Megan, and Matthew Desmond. “Investing in Housing for Health Improves Both Mission and Margin.” JAMA 318, no. 23 (December 19, 2017): 2291. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2017.15771.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Housing, Office of Multifamily Housing Programs. “Great Places to Call Home: A Representative Portfolio of HUD’s Section 202 Program.” Washington, D.C., 2009. https://www.hud.gov/sites/documents/DOC_12821.PDF.

Vega, William A., and Steven P. Wallace. “Affordable Housing: A Key Lever to Community Health for Older Americans.” American Journal of Public Health 106, no. 4 (April 2016): 635–36. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2015.303034.