The annual Point In Time Count results earlier this month gave San Diegans concerned about the region’s homeless crisis reasons for optimism, but are also a call to action to help unsheltered seniors.
While homelessness dropped just 1% after a 7% drop in 2025, the number of unsheltered homeless individuals came down because of a 12% increase in people finding shelter.
However, the composition of this population remains troubling for us at Serving Seniors, San Diego’s nonprofit organization dedicated to serving low-income and homeless adults. The percentage of unsheltered individuals counted in San Diego County who are over 55 remains stubbornly high and increasing.
In the 2026 count, 33% were in this age group, up from 29% in 2025. Increasingly, this population is composed of more women than men, with more seniors living in vehicles.
While it is encouraging to see that overall homelessness has declined, the continued rise in homelessness among older adults is deeply concerning. And it’s not going to get better anytime soon without focusing on specific solutions to address the needs unique to the older adult homeless population.
This reality is largely a function of demographics. Americans are getting older. There are currently 105 million Americans over 55. According to the Population Reference Bureau, the number of Americans aged 65 and older is projected to increase from 58 million in 2022 to 82 million by 2050, a 42% increase.
The share of older Americans living in poverty is currently 15% according to a recent report from the U.S. Census Bureau. Poverty rates for every other age group have either decreased or remained steady.
Senior poverty has risen every single year since 2020. This percentage will continue to increase as older adults struggle with inflation and rising health care costs, compounded by federal budget cuts to food assistance, Medicaid and other benefits.
Increasing Social Security benefits would help reduce the older adult poverty rate. Older adult clients at Serving Seniors receive an average Social Security check of just $1,200 per month. Imagine having to pay for housing, transportation, groceries and healthcare from this alone. Anyone can see how easy it is to fall behind and eventually be unable to keep up with housing costs.
More than half (52%) of the unsheltered older adults surveyed in the 2026 count reported experiencing homelessness for the first time, an increase of four percentage points from 2025. There is often a triggering event such as a job loss, medical crisis, or loss of a spouse due to death or divorce. A job loss often involves the loss of healthcare insurance as well.
The continuing trend reinforces information first reported in the 2021 Serving Seniors Needs Assessment.
Every number in the annual count is a real person: somebody’s grandparent or parent, neighbor, or former co-worker who once contributed to society and now finds themself without a safe place to call home.
Keeping seniors housed is key
The overwhelming cause of older adult homelessness is economic hardship coupled with rising rents that outpace fixed incomes. Serving Seniors can help by providing meals and other supportive services. But affordable housing is the long-term solution for seniors who are struggling.
Proven prevention strategies like rent subsidies, one-time emergency assistance and family reunification programs can help stabilize housing for older adults. Not only are these programs proven to work, but the “shallow” rental subsidy pilot programs offered on a limited basis by the city of San Diego and San Diego County are especially cost-efficient.
These shallow rental subsidy programs offer a small monthly stipend, typically $500 per month, paid directly to a landlord. This small investment can keep an older adult housed.
Once someone has lost housing, local and state governments spend $42,000 to $47,000 annually per homeless individual on services, healthcare and emergency shelter, according to a 2024 Hoover Institution study. But keeping a senior housed with a rental subsidy can save taxpayers $36,000 per person.
Serving Seniors urges elected and community leaders to adopt these proven, cost-effect prevention measures to prevent older adults from losing housing. Often, a single bridge payment can provide a safety net to an older adult on the brink of eviction, allowing them to stay in their current homes.
From a taxpayer perspective, shallow rental subsidies and other supportive programs are the most cost-effective and efficient way to help people struggling to avoid homelessness. From a humanitarian standpoint, Serving Seniors sees these efforts as a must.
Melinda Forstey is president and chief executive officer of Serving Seniors.
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