The Rise of Homelessness Among California’s Older Adults

Every Californian deserves an affordable, dignified, and accessible home, regardless of their age, ability, race, gender, or economic status. Yet thousands of Californians — increasingly composed of older adults age 50 and over — continue to fall into homelessness faster than our systems can house them. During the course of the 2022-23 fiscal year, local California homeless service providers made contact with over 215,000 adults without children needing to find a home or search for other life-sustaining services — and even more were likely served by the end of 2023.¹Adults without children, also referred to as single adults, are categorized by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development as being age 25 and over. This includes sole individuals, adult couples with no children, groups of adults, and may capture noncustodial parents. Sole individuals ages 18 to 24 are considered unaccompanied  youth. The terms homeless and unhoused are also used interchangeably. Of these, 85,310 — nearly 40% — were adults age 50 and over. While experiencing homelessness at any age is severely destructive to an individual’s well-being, older adults are the fastest-growing population experiencing homelessness and the largest share of individuals who are encountering homelessness for the first time in their lives. Without swift and intentional policy action, California faces a future with a growing number of unhoused older adults as the state’s population ages.

Understanding the diverse characteristics, circumstances, and tailored interventions unhoused older Californians need is key to effectively addressing their housing needs and solving homelessness across the state.

1. Older Californians Are a Large Share of the Unhoused Population

Unhoused Californians age 50 and over comprised 40% of adult-only households who connected with the homelessness response system in the 2022-23 fiscal year. Yet older adults account for only 34% of the state’s entire population.

Research identifies two main cohorts that are driving the growth in older adult homelessness:

Prolonged economic hardship and insufficient wages have also prevented many from building savings or retirement accounts, leading to economic insecurity among older Californians. Adults without children are also ineligible for many cash-based safety net programs as they typically target people with children.²For more on the shortfalls of safety net programs for low-income non-elderly adults see: Joseph Llobrera et al., A Frayed and Fragmented System of Supports for Low-Income Adults Without Minor Children (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, January 28, 2021), https://www.cbpp.org/research/a-frayed-and-fragmented-system-of-supports-for-low-income-adults-without-minor-children#state-general-assistance-programs-provide-cbpp-anchor. 

Available programs often have minimal benefit amounts that are even lower for adults without dependents. Some program benefits vary by county (particularly for General Assistance/General Relief), have time restrictions, strict asset limits, and may require an age threshold or a physical/developmental disability. Nationally, inadequate rental assistance funding also prevents more than 4 in 5 low-income, non-elderly adult households without children from obtaining the support they qualify for.³General Assistance/General Relief which is a state-mandated program that counties must offer to indigent adults. Each California county administers and fully funds its own program and sets their own benefits, payment levels, and eligibility requirements. Regardless of the circumstances leading to homelessness for older adults, it is clear that there is an urgent need for amplified, targeted safety net and housing interventions at various points to ensure aging Californians can remain in their homes.

2. Stark Racial Disparities Persist in California’s Unhoused Older Adult Population

Older Black, Indigenous, and Pacific Islander Californians disproportionately experience homelessness in California. While Black Californians age 50 and older make up roughly 5.4% of the state’s population, they comprised over 1 in 4 (26%) older adults who made contact with homeless service providers in the 2022-23 fiscal year. Disparities are also evident within Indigenous and Pacific Islander communities, with Indigenous individuals being almost six times as likely and Pacific Islanders twice as likely to connect with the homelessness response system. Separate data from the state’s point-in-time counts reflect homelessness increased among Latinx Californians across the whole population, which captures older adults as well.

The stark racial disparities parallel the broader racial disparities observed in California's unhoused population, underscoring that people of color bear the disproportionate and harmful impacts of homelessness. These disparities reflect the enduring effects of intentional racist policies that created educational, housing, economic, and health barriers for people of color — all of which directly affect an individual’s ability to obtain and sustain stable housing, especially at older ages.

Racist institutionalized practices, such as redlining, government-sanctioned displacement, and predatory practices, have placed generations in positions that make it harder to obtain housing and economic security.⁴For more see: Danyelle Solomon, Connor Maxwell, and Abril Castro, Systemic Inequality: Displacement, Exclusion, and Segregation: How America's Housing System Undermines Wealth Building in Communities of Color (Center for American Progress, August 7, 2019),  https://www.americanprogress.org/article/systemic-inequality-displacement-exclusion-segregation/ and California Department of Justice, California Task Force to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans, The California Reparations Report (2023), https://oag.ca.gov/ab3121/report.

Discriminatory practices have also caused Black and other communities of color to face the highest risk of justice system involvement, familial disruptions, and traumatic experiences which can cause and exacerbate homelessness throughout a lifetime.

3. Most Unhoused Older Adults Have a Disabling Condition

Most older adults experiencing homelessness reported having a disabling condition (72%) in the 2022-23 fiscal year. Disabling conditions include physical, mental, or emotional impairments that are long continuing, significantly impeding an individual’s ability to live independently, and could be improved with housing. It also captures people with developmental disabilities. Research demonstrates many unhoused individuals experience health conditions and mobility limitations prematurely, often decades before housed adults of the same age. The striking differences reflect the detrimental health effects experiencing homelessness has on the lives of Californians, especially as they age. This pivotal factor underscores the need for policy interventions to be both accessible and tailored to the diverse demographic of older adults starting at age 50.

Unhoused Californians face steep barriers to medical access, face daily safety concerns, and often have limited access to basic necessities such as consistent meals, proper medication storage, and sanitation. Even temporary homeless shelters are often not equipped to accommodate older individuals with complex medical or mobility conditions. Combined, the lack of access to care, medical support, and appropriate housing exacerbates negative health outcomes. Experiencing homelessness ultimately limits the opportunity to live a long, healthy life and reach older ages, which is reflected by higher mortality rates in unhoused populations when compared to their housed counterparts.

Ensuring older unhoused Californians with disabilities have appropriate housing and care is largely achievable through scaling supportive housing. This effective, evidence-based intervention combines robust housing interventions with wraparound supportive services to meet the medical, physical, and behavioral health needs of unhoused Californians with disabling conditions.

4. Most Unhoused Older Adults Have an Income Source —  But It's Not Enough

Most unhoused older adults who made contact with homeless service providers in the 2022-23 fiscal year reported having at least one source of income. These older adults had a median total monthly income of $1,000 —  an amount that cannot cover fair market rent for a studio apartment in nearly 70% of the state’s counties, let alone other basic living expenses like food, utilities, and transportation.

The top three reported income sources were Supplemental Security Income (SSI) (median = $1,037), Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) (median = $1,040), and General Assistance (median = $221). All of which reflect the very low incomes and high rates of disabling conditions among the unhoused older adult population. Additionally, nearly 25% of individuals with an income source reported having income from work.

The limited state and federal aid available to adults without children, low-income seniors, and people with disabilities cannot cover the high cost of housing and other basic needs in California creating vulnerabilities that can lead to homelessness. Benefit amounts are insufficient and often have strict asset limits, placing Californians who depend on these supports in severe economic hardship. In 2022, only 24 housing units were affordable and available for every 100 extremely low-income renter households, which older adults on fixed incomes often fall into. The misalignment between safety net income supports and housing costs highlights the urgent need for significant investments in accessible, affordable housing and cash supports to prevent homelessness among older adults.

5. High Housing Costs Drive Homelessness Among Older Californians

The severe shortage of affordable housing in California, leading to skyrocketing housing costs, is the primary factor pushing older adults into homelessness. In 2022, over half (52%) of all older adult California renters were housing cost-burdened, paying more than 30% of their total income in rent, and nearly 1 in 3 (29%) were severely cost-burdened, paying more than 50% of their income in rent. Older Black California renters faced the highest rates, with over 60% paying unaffordable housing costs. Older Californians of color broadly are especially vulnerable to housing insecurity as they are more likely to be renters and consequently do not have home equity to potentially fall back on. Nearly half (45.7%) of older Black Californians are renters, followed by older Latinx (37.1%), other Californians of color (29.6%), and Asian Californians (26.1%).

The increased share of Californians of color in renter households reflects discriminatory policies that have perpetuated the racial wealth gap and limited access to housing and other opportunities, leading to adverse outcomes in later life. As housing costs comprise a significant portion of their income, older adult renters — especially those with low or fixed incomes — are left with fewer resources for essentials like transportation, medicine, and food. This precarious situation can be the tipping point into homelessness due to minor financial setbacks, medical expenses, or rent hikes. Ultimately, California’s housing shortage places older renters in situations where they have to pay more than they can afford, exacerbating housing and economic insecurity.

Policymakers Can Ensure All Older Adults Have a Home

Older Californians are neighbors, parents, grandparents, and invaluable members of our communities who deserve access to an affordable, accessible, and dignified place to call home, regardless of their background or ability. As state and federal policymakers consider choices that will affect California’s unhoused and vulnerable communities, it is important to understand the unique housing, economic, and health conditions older unhoused adults face. By doing so, policymakers can act on proven policies and interventions that can help solve homelessness among older adults, including:

• Increasing affordable rental housing and supportive housing to ensure that all Californians have access to an affordable home that is designed to meet the needs of diverse types of households, including older adults, single workers, and people with disabilities.
• Expanding and targeting additional financial support for Californians without dependents, low incomes, and disabilities through boosting Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Payment, General Assistance, and refundable tax credits.
• Directing resources for rental assistance and homelessness services, including emergency and shallow rental subsidies, housing vouchers, and rapid-rehousing efforts to ensure people can remain in their homes during times of financial crisis or quickly exit homelessness.
• Continuing to strengthen California's aging network and initiatives to connect housing and healthcare systems by leveraging efforts such as CalAIM housing supports and California’s Master Plan on Aging.
• Protecting renters through expanding, enforcing, and funding legal aid and eviction protections.

Policymakers can work towards a California where experiencing homelessness is a brief and rare occurrence, and where everyone has a safe and stable home.