Seniors in one Bay Area community want to stay in their communities, but many find the cost of living and maintaining older homes prohibitive.
A survey of senior residents in Palo Alto, California found that “most respondents overwhelmingly desire to "age in place," or live in their own homes as they advance in age,” but the cost and variety of housing options is making it difficult for many Americans.
As Elizabeth Lorenz explains in Palo Alto Online, out of 52 areas compared to national benchmarks in the survey, the three that were sub-par in Palo Alto were all related to housing and cost of living, with only 10 percent of respondents saying affordable, quality housing is accessible in their community. “Close to 30% have ‘housing stress,’ meaning they spend 30% or more of their income on housing.”
Avenidas, a senior citizen center in Palo Alto, offers a program called Avenida Village that creates opportunities for social connection and provides resources to senior residents. They also created a home maintenance program aimed at helping seniors fix up aging homes and add accessibility retrofits.
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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
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Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
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Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
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