Aging in place is both a preference and a housing challenge. In the United States, studies summarized in 2024 found that 90% of older adults want to remain in their homes as they age, while Census data show that only 10% of housing units met a specific aging-ready definition in 2011.
Key Aging in Place Statistics
The following figures summarize the scale, risks and housing conditions associated with aging in place:
- 90% of older adults wanted to remain in their homes as they aged in studies conducted over the past 30 years and summarized in 2024 for the United States.
- About 52 million U.S. adults were age 65 or older in 2018.
- The U.S. population age 65 or older was projected to reach about 73 million by 2030.
- About 11 million U.S. housing units, or 10%, met the Census definition of aging-ready in 2011.
- 48.7 million U.S. housing units, or 42.4%, had a step-free entry in 2011.
- Only 1.7% of U.S. housing units had all three bathroom features measured by the Census table in 2011.
- About 8 million households with an adult age 65 or older had difficulty using some element of the home in 2011.
- 28% of households with an adult age 65 or older reported home-use difficulty in 2011.
- Nearly 11% of U.S. households with older adults reported difficulty living in or using their home in 2019.
- 14 million U.S. adults age 65 or older, or 27.6%, reported falling in 2020.
- 38,742 older adults died from unintentional falls in the United States in 2021.
- Medical costs attributed to nonfatal and fatal falls among older adults were approximately $50 billion annually in the estimate cited in a 2023 CDC report.
- 27.5% of U.S. adults age 65 or older reported at least one fall in 2018.
- 33.8% of U.S. adults age 85 or older reported a fall in 2018.
- Older adults reported an average of 714 falls per 1,000 older adults in the preceding year in 2018.
- External housing modifications were associated with a 3% lower probability of falls among English adults age 60 or older with severe mobility impairments during the longitudinal study period.
Contents
- Older adults’ aging in place preferences and population context
- Aging-ready home statistics and accessibility features
- Unmet home-accessibility needs
- Aging in place falls, injuries and costs
- Aging in place trends by age, sex and geography
- Home modifications and measured outcomes
Older Adults’ Aging in Place Preferences and Population Context
The federal Interagency Coordinating Committee on Healthy Aging and Age-Friendly Communities reported in 2024 that studies over the past 30 years consistently point to a strong preference for staying at home. Its synthesis found that 90% of older adults want to remain in their homes as they age in the United States, but this is a synthesis of multiple studies rather than one new survey. Report to Congress – Aging in the United States: A Strategic Framework for a National Plan on Aging
Population growth increases the number of households that may need accessible homes, services or modifications:
- The U.S. had about 52 million adults age 65 or older in 2018, according to a CDC discussion.
- The population age 65 or older was projected to reach about 73 million by 2030; this is a forecast, not an observed count.
- Adults age 85 or older were less than 2% of the total U.S. population in 2018, and their share was projected to rise to 5% by 2050.
- One in six older adults were severely housing-cost-burdened, paying more than 50% of income on housing; the 2024 framework passage does not specify a single survey year for this estimate.
The population context matters because aging in place depends on more than preference. Housing costs, the age of residents and the physical design of the home can all shape whether remaining at home is practical.
Aging-Ready Home Statistics and Accessibility Features
The Census Bureau’s 2011 American Housing Survey analysis distinguishes between a home with at least one accessibility feature and an “aging-ready” home. The aging-ready definition requires a step-free entry, a bedroom and full bathroom on the first floor, and at least one bathroom accessibility feature. Old Housing, New Needs: Are U.S. Homes Ready for an Aging Population?
| 2011 housing characteristic | Units or share | What the measure means |
|---|---|---|
| At least one basic aging-accessible feature | 108 million of 115 million; 94% | At least one listed feature, not a fully aging-ready home |
| Aging-ready under the Census composite definition | 11 million; 10% | All required entry, room-location and bathroom conditions |
| Single-floor home | 43.8 million; 38.1% | One floor alone does not establish full accessibility |
| Multiple floors with bedroom and bathroom on entry level | 40.4 million; 35.2% | Does not by itself establish step-free access or bathroom features |
| Multiple floors without bedroom or bathroom on entry level | 30.6 million; 26.7% | A housing-unit estimate |
Specific features were much more common than the complete composite standard, but still varied considerably. In 2011, 48.7 million units, or 42.4%, had a step-free entry, and 32.4 million, or 28.2%, had at least one basic bathroom accessibility feature.
Bathroom features were less prevalent when measured together: built-in shower seats were present in 9.5% of units, elevated toilets in 7.7%, and all three bathroom features measured in the Census table in only 1.7%. Feature presence does not show whether residents needed or used them.
The same 2011 analysis counted about 28.5 million households with at least one adult age 65 or older and about 4.4 million households with at least one adult age 85 or older. These are household counts, not counts of individual older adults.
Aging in Place Data on Unmet Home-Accessibility Needs
Housing supply and household experience are different measures. In 2011, about 8 million households with an adult age 65 or older had an older adult who had difficulty using some element of the home, including tasks such as using stairs, entering a bathtub or using the kitchen.
The 2011 household-level measures included:
- 28% of households with an adult age 65 or older had an older adult reporting difficulty using some home element.
- About 2.1 million households with an adult age 85 or older had an oldest-old adult with home-use difficulty.
- 49% of households with an adult age 85 or older had an oldest-old adult with difficulty using some home element.
- 23% of households with an adult age 65 or older had an older adult with walking difficulty while lacking handrails or grab bars.
- 16% had an older adult with difficulty bending or kneeling while lacking an elevated toilet.
The 2019 Census analysis used a different survey year, updated household totals and different definitions, so it should not be treated as a simple continuation of the 2011 series. In 2019, 37 million U.S. households had older adults, and nearly 11% of those households reported difficulty living in or using the home; about 24% of the oldest households reported difficulty. Aging-Ready Homes in the United States—Perception Versus Reality of Aging-Accessibility Needs: 2019
The 2019 report also found that relatively few older homeowners planned renovations to improve aging accessibility, even though about one in ten reported difficulty living in or using the home. The conclusion does not provide the exact renovation-planning percentage.
Aging in Place Statistics on Falls, Injuries and Costs
Falls are a major outcome relevant to home design, but fall statistics do not measure aging-ready housing directly. CDC Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System percentages are self-reported for noninstitutionalized adults, while mortality rates come from death records.
| Measure | Period and population | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Adults reporting a fall | 2020, U.S. adults age 65+ | 14 million; 27.6% |
| Fall-related injury | 2018, U.S. adults age 65+ | 10.2% |
| Falls reported | 2018, per 1,000 older adults | 714 |
| Fall-related injuries reported | 2018, per 1,000 older adults | 170 |
| Unintentional fall deaths | 2021, U.S. adults age 65+ | 38,742 |
| Fall death rate | 2021, age-adjusted per 100,000 age 65+ | 78.0 |
In 2018, the survey estimates corresponded to approximately 35.6 million falls and 8.4 million fall-related injuries in the United States. Among adults age 85 or older, 33.8% reported a fall and 13.9% reported a fall-related injury that year. Trends in Nonfatal Falls and Fall-Related Injuries Among Adults Aged ≥65 Years — United States, 2012–2018
In 2021, the age-adjusted unintentional fall death rate was 91.4 per 100,000 for older men and 68.3 per 100,000 for older women. The CDC estimated medical costs attributed to nonfatal and fatal falls among older adults at approximately $50 billion annually; this is an economic estimate, not a direct estimate of home-modification savings. Nonfatal and Fatal Falls Among Adults Aged ≥65 Years — United States, 2020–2021
Aging in Place Trends by Age, Sex and Geography
The 2018 CDC data show descriptive differences across demographic and household conditions:
- Older women reported a fall at a rate of 29.1%, compared with 25.5% for older men, and reported fall-related injuries at 11.9% versus 7.9%.
- Older Black adults reported falls at 22.5%, compared with 28.3% among older White adults; 15.6% of older Asian/Pacific Islander adults reported a fall.
- Older adults in rural areas reported falls at 29.5%, compared with 27.0% in urban areas.
- Older adults reporting physical activity in the past month reported falls at 24.9%, compared with 33.1% among those reporting no activity.
These are descriptive, cross-sectional comparisons and do not establish why groups differ or show that physical activity prevented falls. In a comparable-state trend series, the share reporting a fall rose from 27.9% in 2012 to 29.6% in 2016, then declined to 27.4% in 2018; Michigan, Oregon and Wisconsin were excluded because their 2012 question differed. Trends in Nonfatal and Fatal Falls Among Adults Aged ≥65 Years — United States, 2012–2018
State results also varied. Older-adult fall reporting ranged from 19.9% in Illinois to 38.0% in Alaska in 2020, while older-adult fall death rates ranged from 30.7 per 100,000 in Alabama to 176.5 per 100,000 in Wisconsin in 2021; CDC advises interpreting small counts cautiously. Nonfatal and Fatal Falls Among Adults Aged ≥65 Years — United States, 2020–2021
Home-Modification Statistics and Measured Aging-in-Place Outcomes
Evidence on outcomes is narrower than evidence on preferences or housing features. A longitudinal study in England analyzed 32,126 repeated observations from 10,459 adults age 60 or older across six waves from 2002/03 to 2016/17, with an average follow-up of 11.3 years.
Among older adults with severe mobility impairments, external housing modifications were associated with:
- A 3% lower probability of falls, with a reported interval of 1%–6%.
- A 6% lower probability of pain, with a reported interval of 4%–8%.
- A 4% lower probability of poor self-rated health, with a reported interval of 2%–5%.
External housing modifications were also associated with a 6% lower probability of having no social activities among older adults without mobility impairments, with a reported interval of 5%–7%. These are fixed-effects model associations from England, not randomized causal effects or a national intervention count. Home modifications and disability outcomes: A longitudinal study of older adults living in England
Taken together, the measures describe a substantial gap between the desire to remain at home, the number of homes with individual accessibility features and the smaller share meeting a complete aging-ready definition. They also show why period, geography, population and measurement type must stay attached to every aging in place statistic.