Tennessee’s older homeowners are facing a housing crisis.

According to a study from the Tennessee Housing Development Agency (THDA):

  • The number of Tennesseans age 65 and older is expected to increase to almost 22% of the overall population (an estimated 1.7 million people) by 2030.
  • Tennessee’s 80 and older population is estimated to almost double between 2020 and 2040, reaching 650,000.
  • Almost 230,000 senior owner households are low-income. The likelihood of falling below the poverty level tends to increase as seniors age.
  • As the overall senior population grows, assuming income levels and housing costs remain relatively constant, the number of cost-burdened seniors (regardless of income) is projected to increase by 2030 to almost 350,000 households statewide and to more than 385,000 households by 2040.
  • 88% of older Tennesseans live in homes built before 1980. Homes built prior to 2000 are five times more likely to need accessibility modifications, and aging housing stock often needs critical repairs. (The Need for Affordable, Accessible & Service Enriched Housing for Older Adults in Tennessee, THDA).
Habitat for Humanity of Greater Memphis has only just begun to address the issue, launching our Aging in Place program in 2015 and thus far providing home repair and modification services to nearly 1,000 senior homeowners in Fayette and Shelby Counties. In 2019, Memphis Habitat began a three-year project with 14 other Tennessee Habitat affiliates to launch Aging in Place programs that will, by the end of 2021, serve more than 1,200 older Tennesseans across 25 counties.
 
However, despite the thousands already served, there are still thousands of other older homeowners who need these services to keep living safely, comfortably and independently in the place they call home.
In January and February of 2021, The Tennessee Health + Housing Summit brought together leaders from the health care, community development, philanthropy, and government sectors for deep conversations and exploration of the intersection of health and housing — in particular as it relates to our aging neighbors.
 
During this webinar series, multiple sector experts, scholars and practitioners shared modern examples and trends that identify opportunities for collaboration and partnerships between housing agencies, social services entities, health care providers, public and private funders, and other stakeholders.
 
We learned about new resources to sustain current and future interventions, and identified opportunities to collaborate to improve the health of residents and the entire community.
 
For more information on how you or your organization can join Memphis Habitat to help older homeowners in our community, contact Julie Romine, director of programs and strategic partnerships, at jromine@memphishabitat.com.

TN H+H Summit Agenda & Resources pageClick Here to download the Summit's Executive Summary!

Thank you to our TN Health + Housing Summit sponsors!
 

Tennessee Housing

Wells Fargo

Methodist

For more information on how you or your organization can join Memphis Habitat to help older homeowners in our community, contact Julie Romine, director of programs and strategic partnerships, at jromine@memphishabitat.com.