Street Spirit May 2005

Who Lives in U.S. Public Housing?

The following figures are from the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities.

1. Public housing is home to almost three million seniors, disabled people and low-income families with children.

2. Approximately one million children live in public housing.

3. More than half of all public housing residents are elderly or disabled people.

4. More than 315,739 seniors rely on public housing and supportive services.

5. Elderly households represent 31 percent of all public housing households, and 27 percent of seniors in public housing are 80 years of age or older.

6. Among elderly households in public housing, 72 percent rely on Social Security as the primary source of income.

7. Public housing is home to 295,211 households in which one or more members are living with a disability, representing 31 percent of all public housing households.

8. There are 17,963 public housing households with a disabled child.

9. Public housing is severely underfunded. The cumulative shortfall in operating subsidies between 1993-2003 to PHAs adds up to more than $1.9 billion. The cumulative shortfall in capital improvement funding for the same time frame is more than $20.3 billion.

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