Laura Golino de Lovato’s Post

Older adults are more vulnerable to experiencing homelessness 👉 Nearly 50 percent of all unhoused single adults in CA are 50 or older and 41 percent of unhoused older adults became homeless for the first time after age 50, according to a new study from the UCSF Benioff Homelessness & Housing Initiative. Here's what the study’s authors recommend to reduce and end homelessness among older adults: 💡 Increase the state’s dismal stock of affordable housing. 💡 Remove barriers for older adults navigating complex housing programs and processes. 💡 Strengthen eviction protections. 💡 Do more to prevent older adults who exit hospital stays or jails/prisons from ending up on the streets, as many in that population are entering homelessness “directly from institutional settings.” 💡 Increase incomes for older adults in extreme poverty. 💡 Prioritize racial equity within the systems that respond to homelessness (31 percent of older adults experiencing homelessness are Black, while Black older adults represent only 6 percent of the state's population). https://lnkd.in/g9KvdgT5 #housingendshomelessness Margot Kushel MD

As a society, we must confront the harsh reality of senior homelessness. Over the past decade, the number of homeless individuals over 60 has surged by 38%, highlighting a crisis demanding urgent attention and action. The primary causes are clear: unaffordable housing, inadequate healthcare, and a lack of social support. Senior homelessness is not just a moral failing; it's a public health crisis. Those living on the streets face increased risks of chronic illnesses, mental health issues, and vulnerability to abuse. It's time to address this societal failure by prioritizing affordable housing, healthcare, and tailored social services for seniors. It's crucial to shift our mindset and recognize that every senior deserves dignity and a safe place to call home. Let's come together to ensure that no senior is left without the support they need to thrive. The shame of senior homelessness is upon us, but through collective action, we can make a difference. #SeniorHomelessness #AffordableHousing #PublicHealthCrisis

New research from the Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative at UC San Francisco sounds a critical alarm when it comes to older adults and homelessness: “...the proportion of people age 65 and older experiencing homelessness in the United States [is] expected to triple between 2017 and 2030.” A Benioff Initiative report called “Toward Dignity: Understanding Older Adult Homelessness" explores the realities of people who are "experiencing homelessness in late life, how they lost their housing...and the barriers they face to regaining housing." It also outlines "evidence-based solutions and policy interventions to address the unique challenges faced by older adults experiencing homelessness." Click here to access the full report: https://lnkd.in/gZKTXbSW

The number of older adults experiencing homelessness is a growing concern: more than 100,000 of the approximately 650,000 people experiencing homelessness in the United States are 55 or older. Factors like rising housing costs and unmet health issues are just a few of the issues that have contributed to the increase in older adults experiencing homelessness. Economic and policy factors have created a challenging environment for older adults to secure stable housing and have exacerbated their vulnerability to homelessness. Addressing these factors is crucial in preventing and addressing homelessness among older adults, and we are committed to ensuring that those affected gain access to appropriate resources and quality health care services. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gWUyQc4q

In the midst of Pgh's broader housing crisis, here is an article of efforts across the country to address older adults' particular needs in an effort to prevent eviction: https://lnkd.in/e5rBEjH7

Did you know the average age of death for a homeless female is just 52 years old? Currently in the United States, 30% of the homeless population are women. Inflation and lack of affordable housing continue to grow, and domestic violence stands as the leading cause of homelessness in women. According to the National Library of Medicine, women enduring unsheltered homelessness are 12 times more likely to face violence, poor mental and physical health, and premature death than women experiencing homelessness in shelters. Rebecca McDonald, our Women's Program Intake Coordinator, said she receives up to 15-20 phone calls per day from women seeking safe shelter. The 16 beds in our Women's Shelter, and the 15 beds for the 2nd Step Program at Sally's House, are full, with 17 women on the waitlist. Rebecca said, "It’s hard for a person to have the willingness to call here and ask for the help we offer that can change their lives. That’s a scary thing. Sometimes, that willingness doesn’t last, and they continue to live the way they were living. It would be such a huge advantage to have extra beds to offer in that moment when they are willing to come into the program." In 2023, City Mission served 1,436 unique individuals, an alarming 25% increase from the previous year. To read more about the current state of homelessness in our country: https://lnkd.in/eMFtNzxs

Unhoused people are far more likely to have previously been our housed neighbors than to have moved here while experiencing homelessness (Metro Denver Homeless Initiative).🏔🏘 What would Mr. Rogers say?! With the costs of living continuing to increase while most wages stay flat - and people in our networks struggle alongside us without resources to spare - many of us are going from "just a paycheck away," to "experiencing homeless" for the first time. More people are newly homeless (44%) than chronically homeless (30%), especially among families (50% vs. 13%) according to the latest MDHI State of Homelessness Report that you can read here: https://lnkd.in/gPFs2Pss #StateOfHomelessness 📈 Evictions hit a record high in Denver not during the pandemic, but Last Year (Denverite); people are still feeling the economic effects of such a lopsided response to the crisis, and the biggest weights are disproportionately falling on the shoulders of our Black & Native neighbors who have been systematically prevented from accessing the right of housing for centuries. But people are realizing more & more lately that an injury to one is an injury to all, and the systems enforcing inequity are growing like a weed and branching out to reach a lot more demographics. It's beyond past time we examine & attack the root causes of homelessness and back up our actions and advocacy with the data we need to be equitable, accurate, and adaptive to the constant changes that the dynamic nature of homelessness accompanies. I'm so glad to be a part of MDHI's efforts to do just that (we hiring, y'all: https://www.mdhi.org/team 👀) // TLDR: People aren't moving here to experience homelessness for the legal marijuana and "more liberal" attitudes - lifelong residents are starting to experience homelessness at drastically higher rates than ever before because of multiple systems failing us all at once. But systems are perfectly designed to achieve the results that they get; we can absolutely reimagine & redesign these systems for a Colorado where everyone has a safe & stable place to call home. 🏡✊❤️ #HomelessnessIsSolveable

The number of elderly individuals experiencing homelessness is on the rise, and experts say the trend is likely to worsen. According to the 2022 State of Homelessness report by the National Alliance to End Homelessness, although 18 out of every 10,000 Americans are homeless, that number jumps to 52 for Black Americans, 45 for Native Americans and 109 for Pacific Islanders. The surge in the elderly homeless population is not attributable to a singular cause. Multiple factors, including deficient social safety nets, policies leading to mass incarceration, and a shortage of affordable housing, all contribute to this concerning phenomenon. Learn more: https://shorturl.at/aKPTV

One barrier to developing and implementing homelessness prevention strategies is the difficulty of measuring risk for homelessness beyond previous homelessness. I've even heard it said that previous homelessness is the 'only' way to predict risk of homelessness. Many people live in poverty, but not all of those people become unhoused--so what are the differentiating factors? The attached study provides an excellent start to answering this question as pertains to the rapidly growing number of older adults (particularly older women) facing first time homelessness after the age of 50. First, the history: "Until recently, homelessness among older adults in the United States seemed to be vanquished... The reduction in poverty among adults aged 65 and older in the United States from 35 percent in 1960 to 10 percent in 1995 is widely hailed as an accomplishment of Social Security." Since the mid-90s, the growing gap between social security and the cost of living has been driving a rapid increase in homelessness among older adults. Recent data indicates that nearly half of the unhoused population in the US are now 50+ (Kushel 2011), and the number of unhoused older adults is on track to triple by 2030 (Culhane 2019). (https://lnkd.in/gyHQzH6J, p. 4) That being said, many older adults live on social security and do not become unhoused--so what are the differentiating factors? The attached study analyzed a range of factors--disability, economic capital, human capital, social capital, and stressful life events--and found that human capital (ability to earn), social capital (support network) and stressful life events (e.g. the death of a spouse) were the most relevant factors that differentiate older adults living in poverty from older adults who become unhoused. The study also found that whereas older men often have a history of chronic homelessness, older women are more likely to face first time homelessness as the result of a traumatic life event. Here at Home Match, 'older women who are living on social security, lack human and social capital, and have recently faced a stressful life event' would be an effective way of describing the majority of our participants. There's more work to do in optimizing our capacity to effectively and equitably deliver prevention services, but we have a strong foundation to work from. Want to learn more? The American Society on Aging's Equity and Justice Advisory Council is hosting a panel titled 'New Models for Responding to the Unique Needs of Unhoused Older Adults' at this year's annual convention on March 26th at 10am in San Francisco. https://lnkd.in/gmfPwYzx #housing #homelessness #prevention #sharedhousing #shallowsubsidies Front Porch Communities & Services

The 2023 Santa Cruz County Point in Time Count showed significant progress in reducing homelessness across the county. Stay tuned as we unpack findings from this report! According to this year’s homeless census, almost half of those living unsheltered in Santa Cruz County are sleeping in their vehicles. This data emerges among the backdrop of continued city restrictions against RV sleeping and parking. While many scholars have studied unsheltered homelessness, the growing number of unhoused individuals living in vehicles is an often overlooked population. A recent study from Los Angeles found that people living in their vehicles are more likely to be women, to live in larger households with children, and less likely to be chronically unhoused. When you think of homelessness, you often conjure up the image of someone sleeping on the sidewalk. In reality, many people experiencing homelessness are staying on friend’s couches, sleeping in transitional housing or shelters, or living out of their vehicles. Because this portion of the population is not visible to the general public, misconceptions about homelessness emerge and present barriers to effectively addressing the core issue: the lack of affordable housing.