Why Are So Many Seniors in Boston Becoming Homeless?

Boston seniors facing homelessness

A surge in homelessness among Boston’s seniors is attributed to a scarcity of affordable housing and inadequate support systems. With rent hikes and insufficient programs exacerbating the issue, the crisis demands legislative action to streamline affordable housing development and enhance support for vulnerable older adults.


New Report Shows Advanced Age Increases Likeliness of Homelessness

A growing number of people aged 50 and over are becoming homeless in Boston. According to a new study from Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, the lack of affordable housing is just the tip of the iceberg for many of these people.

Older adults and senior citizens face numerous challenges when it comes to maintaining their housing status. Rent increases can be onerous for these households, especially those living on a fixed income. Individuals who do not have living families or strong social networks can also face hurdles toward receiving care and managing everyday tasks.

These challenges are just a few of the reasons researchers found that the share of unhoused older adults in Boston grew from 15% in 2013 to more than 24% a decade later. According to city data, roughly 1,300 older adults experienced homelessness in Boston in 2023.

While affordable housing is often talked about as the panacea for these challenges, researchers found there is more that needs to happen to prevent older adults from becoming homeless.

“At a most basic level, there is not enough affordable housing that is also accessible and adequate for older residents seeking to move out of homelessness or from unsuitable to suitable housing,” the 65-page study reads in part.

Senior Homelessness on the Rise Nationwide

The number of older adults experiencing homelessness has been climbing across the U.S. over the last several years. Data from HUD shows that roughly 30% of the people experiencing chronic homelessness in the U.S. are over the age of 55, which speaks to the financial burdens that many low-income earning households are facing.

A concerning number of older adults are cost-burdened, meaning they pay more than the recommended 30% of their monthly income on housing expenses. The National Low Income Housing Coalition’s “The Gap report found that 31% of low-income earning households are headed by a senior citizen.

In Boston, NLIHC found that there are just 56 homes that are affordable for every 100 households earning up to 50% of the area’s median income, or roughly $52,000 per year for a single individual. That equals a shortage of more than 117,000 homes in the metro area for people in this income bracket, according to the analysis.

While that is better than the number of affordable homes available in nearby states like Vermont, New York, and New Jersey, the Harvard report found that the city’s unaffordability is still wreaking havoc on many low-income seniors.

Existing Programs Fail to Meet Low-Income Seniors Needs

One challenge that many older adults face is that Boston’s affordable housing plan did not mention the unique needs of seniors until 2024. This means that some programs launched under this guidance were sometimes unable to meet the needs of seniors, such as providing additional transportation and medical care.

The report mentions one instance where a survey respondent received multiple lease violations from their affordable housing apartment complex because they had a caregiver living with them. The apartment complex argued that the caregiver couldn’t stay with the respondent because of occupancy limits.

Older adults also face a compounding number of age-related health concerns, and some affordable housing developments are not equipped to help them manage these issues. One typical example is seniors with mobility issues. Unfortunately, there are many older buildings in Boston that don’t have modern amenities like elevators or wheelchair access. This makes it difficult for older adults to move around their housing complex comfortably.

Many of the shelters in Boston are also not designed to meet the needs of older adults, the report found. For instance, seniors are expected to stand in line for a bed just as individuals who are more able-bodied. They are also victimized once they’re inside the shelter because of their age, the report continues. 

“That’s why a lot of my seniors refuse to go to [shelters]. So, they will prefer to sleep on the streets, take their chances, or [sleep in] cars or couch surf, one survey respondent said. 

How You Can Help

The pandemic proved that we need to rethink homeless services and make them more inclusive for older Americans. We also need to rethink housing in America and provide adequate and affordable homes attainable for all. 

Poverty and homelessness are both policy choices, not personal failures. That’s why we need you to contact your officials and tell them you support legislation that:

  • Streamlines the development of affordable housing
  • Reduces barriers for people experiencing homelessness to enter permanent housing
  • Bolsters government response to homelessness

Together, we can end homelessness.


Robert Davis

Robert Davis

Robert is a freelance journalist based in Colorado who covers housing, police, and local government.

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