The population of Americans aged 65 and older is expected to surge from 48 million to 79 million over the next 20 years, and a new report from the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies says there may not be enough affordable and versatile housing for seniors in the coming decades
As Forbes reports, the report says only 3.5% of today’s housing stock has three key features of “universal design”: Zero-step entrances, single-floor living, and wide halls and doorways. What’s more, the study projects nearly 6.4 million low-income renters will pay more than 30% of their income for housing by 2035, when 11 million homeowners will be in the same boat.
“In general, regarding trends for affordability, new construction has not picked up at the rate of the early ‘90s, but we’re growing as a country,” Lukas Krause, the Salt Lake City-based CEO of Real Property Management, the largest property management franchise in the nation, tells Forbes. “The builders who remain are not creating enough supply and developers are skewing higher-end for greater returns on their investments. That’s exacerbating a rough condition.”
Krause calls the report a “scary forecast” and says the senior sector “will be one of the hardest hit for affordability.” He suggests more homes need to be retrofitted or built to accommodate seniors with single-floor living plans, wider doorways for wheelchairs, and walk-in showers with grab bars.
“We need to be tailoring homes to that segment of the population,” Krause says.
