Over the next 30 years, the number of American households headed by people age 65 and older will skyrocket. What are the housing needs, and how will they be met? What effect will the post-recession increase in older renters and mortgaged homeowners have over the long term? What does aging in place really mean, what is needed to make it possible, and what are alternatives?

Gary V. Engelhardt, professor of economics at Syracuse University and Christopher Herbert, acting managing director and research director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, discussed their respective papers: A Profile of Housing and Health Among Older Americans and Housing America’s Older Adults: Meeting the Needs of an Aging Population. Engelhardt and Herbert considered the characteristics of senior households, how they are housed, and what we can expect going forward. They focused on the effect of critical public policy issues on whether and how this country will meet the housing needs of older Americans, with special attention to health policy and the future of Social Security, Disability Insurance, and Medicare and Medicaid. 

Presenters

• Gary V. Engelhardt, professor of economics, Syracuse University
• Christopher Herbert, acting managing director and research director, Joint Center for Housing Studies, Harvard University

Moderator

• Ellen Seidman, senior fellow, Urban Institute

Event Resources

• Agenda
• Speaker Biographies
• Speaker Presentations
• Aging in Place: Facilitating Choice and Independence