{"id":20325,"date":"2022-12-14T09:00:50","date_gmt":"2022-12-14T14:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=20325"},"modified":"2023-05-04T07:50:24","modified_gmt":"2023-05-04T11:50:24","slug":"how-inflation-puts-seniors-disproportionately-at-risk-for-homelessness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/how-inflation-puts-seniors-disproportionately-at-risk-for-homelessness\/","title":{"rendered":"How Inflation Puts Seniors Disproportionately At-Risk for Homelessness"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;\" class=\"sharethis-inline-share-buttons\" ><\/div><p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Seniors are already predisposed to poverty for many reasons. Financial anxiety has not always been rampant among seniors. But now that it is, more seniors are finding themselves homeless. Fixed incomes are unforgiving\u2014they don\u2019t come with built-in provisions for things like steep and sudden inflation or economic downturn.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The recent rise in inflation is especially troubling for seniors. While many members of younger generations are scrambling to find side hustles or get an extra job to help counterbalance the sharply rising costs of food and housing, seniors rarely have such flexibility. Evictions among seniors are rising, and so are\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ahcancal.org\/News-and-Communications\/Press-Releases\/Pages\/Nursing-Homes-Face-Imminent-Closures-Without-Financial-Support-From-Congress.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">nursing home closures<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">. Without the flexibility to somehow make more money or find housing that supports their needs, <a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/population-of-homeless-seniors-expected-to-almost-triple-by-2030\/\">many seniors affected by these events become homeless<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Roughly\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2022\/09\/26\/as-poverty-among-elders-rises-resources-these-can-help-struggling-seniors.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">six million older adults<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u00a0are struggling financially right now. The number of adults aged 65 and older living under the poverty line rose dramatically during the pandemic. It jumped from 8.9% in 2020 to 10.3% in 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n<h4><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Many challenges disproportionately affect seniors, such as:<\/span><\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">High costs of health insurance<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Expensive prescription drugs<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Predatory landlords<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Shifting to a single income after the death of a spouse<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">There are also fewer protections for seniors from financial woes than there were for previous generations. Pensions are rarer than ever, and wage stagnation has made employees less able to save over time. More people are using up all their paychecks on living expenses, and fewer can put money into 401ks or other retirement plans.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">As a result, people are also working much later in life than their counterparts of previous generations. When people work into their sixties, seventies, and even eighties, their health suffers. This means they\u2019ll need to pay even more for healthcare, in addition to other expenses that already disproportionately affect seniors.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">It\u2019s a cycle that continues until that person dies. Life expectancies are\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/www.health.harvard.edu\/blog\/why-life-expectancy-in-the-us-is-falling-202210202835#:~:text=A%20dramatic%20fall%20in%20life,just%20over%2076%2C%20in%202021.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">shortening<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">, and factors like poverty play a significant role.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>How Does Senior Poverty Lead to Homelessness?<\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">When resources shrink enough, people have little money left for their mortgage or rent. Then when that goes up, too, people have no choice but to move out and find somewhere less expensive to live. Due to a\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/underproduction-is-driving-housing-instability-across-the-country\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">national shortage<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u00a0of affordable housing, frequently, there are no cheaper options.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">In the case of\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/got-an-eviction-notice-this-new-california-website-can-help-you\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">eviction<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">, there\u2019s no time to look for somewhere else. Landlords and banks have no more compassion for seniors than they do for anyone else. And, when it\u2019s time to evict, there\u2019s not much regard for where residents will go afterward.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Younger people may have family members to rely on after falling on hard times and could perhaps live with their parents or a sibling while getting back on their feet. Unfortunately, for many seniors, their parents have likely passed, and their siblings may have, too. The remaining family members may be in no better a position to support them or might not be willing or able due to having a family of their own to support.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Also, seniors\u2019 financial burdens are less likely to be temporary. The nature of retirement is that you have a set amount of money left for the rest of your life, and you hope it\u2019s adequate. If it turns out that it isn\u2019t, you simply don\u2019t have many options.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The result can be homelessness, and homelessness is particularly\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/homeless-seniors-age-faster-die-sooner-than-housed-counterparts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">dangerous<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u00a0for seniors. Harsh temperatures, exposure to illness and environmental hazards, and pre-existing health conditions like diabetes make homelessness all but a death sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>What Can We Do to Help Seniors?<\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Many programs and resources for poor people are just as available for seniors, including single-person households, as for anyone else. For example, programs like food stamps and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program provide seniors money for food, often a couple of hundred dollars per month. However, these programs need to be more utilized.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Some of this lack of utilization is due to the need for more information and understanding. If someone has never been in a tight financial situation before, these ideas may not come to mind, even if they\u2019re aware of their existence. Learning exactly what it means to receive food stamps and how to apply for them is a service commonly provided by social workers, who are not available to everyone. This puts greater responsibility on us to reach out and offer resources and help to our loved ones struggling, if possible.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Another barrier to services is the negative stigma around asking for help. Again, if someone has not previously been desperate, they may not have needed to ask for help before. They may also have held a negative view toward people who used social services. These obstacles can be enough to keep someone from accepting a resource, no matter how desperate they are.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Now more than ever, we need to de-stigmatize asking for help. Nearly all of us have experienced firsthand the effects of inflation. That should allow us to be more compassionate.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">We should also show willingness and patience in our efforts to reach seniors. There are sometimes significant barriers that exist in terms of accessing services, such as technology. Additional barriers like memory difficulties or physical disabilities can play a role, too. We need to be mindful of these and help however we can.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Make Sure You\u2019re Asking the Right Questions<\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">None of these points will help if you don\u2019t know that your loved one, neighbor, friend, co-worker, etc., is struggling. You can\u2019t always ask directly if someone is having financial hardship. However, there are questions you can ask that prompt further conversation and allow others to open up if they want to. Even simple questions like \u201cHow are you doing?\u201d can have this effect if you are sincere enough.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">And if you see someone whom you know, beyond a doubt, is struggling, don\u2019t be afraid to\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/four-ways-to-help-homeless-people\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">help directly<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">. De-stigmatization starts with being unafraid to look at a problem closely and do the work it takes.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Seniors are already predisposed to poverty for many reasons. Financial anxiety has not always been rampant among seniors. But now that it is, more seniors are finding themselves homeless. Fixed incomes are unforgiving\u2014they don\u2019t come with built-in provisions for things &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/how-inflation-puts-seniors-disproportionately-at-risk-for-homelessness\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":20326,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[241],"tags":[8893,253,832,10951,962,515,508,899,17310,17309],"coauthors":[9291],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20325"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20325"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20325\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21240,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20325\/revisions\/21240"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20326"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20325"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20325"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=20325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}