Prevalence of Homeless Older Adults and Factors Causing Their Homelessness: A Review

Objectives: To examine the prevalence of homeless older adults and causes of homelessness among the elderly. Methods: Systematic review involving search of Medline, Cochrane Review and GoogleScholar, including homeless, homelessness, elder, elderly, aged and in old age. For prevalence, articles before 2000 were excluded, and samples had to be at least 50 ±5 years of age. Discussion: The prevalence of elderly homeless ranges from 8% to 55% (mean, 27%; median, 24%). Most-often cited reasons leading to homelessness were financial/employment problems, lack of social support, and mental health problems. Much of the data about elderly homeless is hidden within aggregate information about homeless populations in general, but the elderly homeless are likely significantly different from their younger counterparts in terms of factors including – but not limited to – demographics, pathways into homelessness, and unmet medical care needs. Given these differences, effective policies need to address this subpopulation more specifically; and a first step towards that involves gathering information about the prevalence and causes of homelessness among the elderly.