What's old is new again: Affordable, community-based housing options for older women

Abstract

There are numerous innovative housing models designed to serve the needs of older adults. Yet, many such models are often unaffordable. Finding housing for older adults, especially older women, is important, as financial barriers accumulated over their life course can predispose them to poverty and contribute to housing instability.¹ In addition to affordability, maintaining social connections and reducing loneliness is particularly important for older adults. Amidst rising housing costs, previously common intergenerational living arrangements are making a comeback, turning what were once considered the old ways of living into new, affordable housing options. In this comment, we highlight three innovative resident-coordinated housing models that are gaining recognition for their financial affordability in addition to providing an increased sense of community, helping to reduce loneliness and supporting aging-in-place particularly for women.

Poverty is a key factor that contributes to housing instability. Women are more likely than men to encounter financial challenges due to cumulative disadvantages over the course of their lives, including gender wage and pension gaps. This trend is reflected in Europe, where 16% of women over the age of 65 face poverty compared to 12% of men, with higher percentages for aging women living alone.² Furthermore, in 2024, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reported full-time female employees in Canada earning 17.1% less in annual median earnings compared to men.³ Combined with other considerations such as a lower number of accumulated working years and gaps due to maternity leaves and caregiving duties, women aged 65 and older receive, on average, 26% less income from pension systems compared to men.³

A second factor related to housing for older adults is a need to address social isolation and loneliness among older women. Older women are more likely than older men to live alone, and 40% of those who live alone are lonely.⁴ Living alone can limit social connections, resulting in higher rates of loneliness; increasing the risk of experiencing loneliness-related adverse health outcomes, including heart disease, depression and cognitive decline.^{5, 6} The United States Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy, recognized loneliness and isolation as an epidemic and a public health crisis, calling for a National Strategy to Advance Social Connection.⁶ Poverty and loneliness are key factors to consider when exploring innovative resident-coordinated housing models, as lower pensions can be a barrier preventing older women from securing housing, ultimately reducing social connectedness and impeding aging-in-place.

Unique designs that build community within the home or around the home are needed to make housing more affordable and to help to increase social connectedness. Some examples of these housing arrangements include co-living and enhanced Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORCs), see Figure 1. Time-tested co-living housing models that bring community into the home include intergenerational housing, homesharing, and cohousing. Rooted in cultural family values, intergenerational housing arrangements were historically better known as multigenerational housing.⁷ This household type typically consists of at least two adult generations, often parents and children, cohabitating.⁷ Since the mid-20th century, North America experienced a societal shift toward independent living, causing a marked drop in multigenerational arrangements, to 7% among the United States population.⁷ In parallel, economic factors and evolving cultural norms encouraged young adults to establish independent households in Canada, reflected by a twofold increase in young solo-dwellers in 1981 as compared to previous decades.⁸

Multigenerational living has recently seen a resurgence, driven by the rising cost of living and a growing desire to support family members aging-in-place.⁷ The population living in multigenerational households in the United States has more than doubled since the 1970s, reaching 18% in 2021.⁷ Similarly, Canada has seen an approximate 9% rise between 2016 and 2021 and a major decrease in older women residing in solo-dwellings (60% to 53% in from 2001 to 2021).^{8, 9} This trend suggests that more older adults are able to age in place, while fostering stronger family bonds and a sense of community, to address potential social isolation.

Intergenerational housing has also evolved beyond families to include nonrelatives. This model originated from American activist Maggie Kuhn, founder of the National Shared Housing Resource Centre in 1980 in Philadelphia, setting the precedent for programs such as the Nesterly intergenerational homesharing project in Boston in 2017.¹⁰ Together, they paved the way for other international programs, including Nesterly's Canadian equivalent, Canada HomeShare.¹¹ This initiative, launched as a pilot in Toronto in 2018, provided a platform for older adults who wish to age-in-place to connect with university students. Intergenerational cohousing fosters a mutually beneficial relationship between students receiving affordable housing accommodations in exchange for providing support with housework and companionship to reduce the adverse effects of loneliness.^{12, 13} The program has since expanded to major cities across Canada including Vancouver, Winnipeg, Halifax, Calgary, and Montreal.¹² Canada HomeShare supports older women to age in place, with 88% of members experiencing improved financial security, and 72% crediting the program with helping them avoid needing institutional care.^{12, 13}

Cohousing, defined as a small intentional community of private homes clustered around a shared space, is a purpose-built option that brings community into the home.¹⁴ This resident-coordinated equivalent has served as a cost-effective way of student living and is gaining popularity among older adults. Legislative changes across North America—including 2024 HB 1998/SB 5901 in Washington and the 2019 Golden Girl Act in Ontario—streamlines the process for older adult co-living arrangements.^{15, 16} These changes enable organizations like Senior Women Living Together, a Canadian initiative that connects older women in Ontario with housemates as a cost-effective solution while promoting social connection.¹⁷ The grassroots initiative, born from a Facebook group in 2019, has evolved into a successful model with growing membership and prospective expansion beyond Ontario.¹⁷ A similar program is run by the Women's Rights Information Center in New Jersey, an organization that offers home-matching services to aging women looking to offer or find spaces to live.¹⁸ Co-living agreements can address some of the financial and social challenges older women may face. Shared rental arrangements reduce costs by dividing rent and utilities among housemates, while utilizing underused spaces in the home.¹⁷ The social aspects of co-living mitigate isolation through companionship with others with similar experiences.

While co-living arrangements offer a strong sense of community within a home, enhanced NORCs are another model that builds community around the home. Enhanced NORCs are an innovative resident-coordinated housing model. These are generally apartment buildings with 30% or more older adults where programming has been brought in to engage residents.¹⁹ They empower individuals to age within their existing communities.

Pioneered in 1986 in New York City and coined by Hunt and Gunter-Hunt, the enhanced NORC model has since evolved beyond the United States; including the Canadian OASIS programs, and more recently, the NORC Innovation Centre (NIC).^{19, 20} The OASIS program, originally from Kingston, Ontario, is the first enhanced NORC in Canada. Bringing programming into apartment buildings with high concentrations of older adults, OASIS prioritizes social connections, physical activity, and healthy eating to combat loneliness and improve well-being.¹⁹ Resident-led boards oversee local chapters, with coordinators organizing activities like social gatherings, exercise classes, and communal needs.¹⁹ All memberships are free, and all programs leverage existing resources, with landlords donating space and meals offered at minimal cost.¹⁹ The NIC leads the Ambassador Program, designed to empower residents and enhance NORCs from within. Through collaboration with older adults living in NORCs, the NIC team works to understand the necessary supports needed to enable and strengthen aging-in-place.²⁰ Enhanced NORCs foster a strong sense of community which, along with the other housing models discussed, demonstrate that sometimes the ideal solutions are a fresh take on traditional concepts, creating a supportive environment for older adults, particularly women to age comfortably.

Moving forward, the need for affordable housing can be fostered by gaining a better understanding on how to effectively develop, implement and sustain these models of care. On a community level, understanding these old housing models as new more affordable housing options is a crucial step in helping older women recognize these opportunities. Information hubs that provide a range of available community services can be utilized, including targeted brochures, promotion of the HomeShare app, and public bulletin postings. On a research level, empirical studies are crucial to assess the efficacy and cost–benefit implications of these resident-coordinated models. Their community-centric nature calls for on-the-ground assessments that capture the nuances of the residents' experiences, quality of life, financial well-being, and overall health outcomes, thereby increasing the visibility of older women in clinical research.

In summary, addressing the challenges of poverty and loneliness among older adults, particularly women, necessitates a reevaluation of traditional housing models. This commentary explored resident-coordinated housing models that help build community both within and around the home—co-living and enhanced NORCs—that prioritize affordability, social connection, and resident empowerment.

Concept and design: All authors. Drafting of the manuscript: Zoë Mohan and Mahnaz Khomamizadeh. Critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content: All authors. Creation of figure: Mahnaz Khomamizadeh and Zoë Mohan.

Mohan, Khomamizadeh, and Li authors declare no conflict of interest.

Dr. Rochon is a Deputy Editor at the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

Study funders/sponsors had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; nor the decision to submit the manuscript for publication.