Elderly homeless population are on the rise in Maryland and officials are starting to get concerned

EASTERN, Shore Md. – Homelessness continues to be a challenge in Maryland, according to the Maryland Department of Housing and Community, from 2018 to 2024 there has been a 77% increase in homelessness.

This increase has officials concerned, but local groups and shelters remain hopeful they can provide the support to help elderly people find a place to call home. Ken Argot, Diakonia’s Executive Director, thinks it’s been difficult in recent years.

“For us to house homeless persons using government funds, they need to meet the fair market rental value, at $1,050 for a one-bedroom apartment and $1,200 for a two-bedroom apartment. Well, it’s very hard to find those things anywhere.”

The older homeless population only makes up a portion of the overall homeless population, and while the overall numbers have fallen, the elderly homeless population has only gotten higher. Pastor Anthony Dickerson from the Christian shelter believes it’s due to unaffordable housing.

“We have seniors that have worked all their lives, and they cannot, it’s like they can’t get a return on their investment.”

Senior housing isn’t a viable option either, Argot has had to help a person in a similar situation. “Our goal is to get people housed within 90 days; we had a senior a year ago who was in our shelter for an entire year because we had to wait for a waiting list bed that came up within senior housing.”

The Christian Shelter had a success story though, they were able to help a man transition into a home. “Wow, I’m giving back to the community, it was a sense of belonging, we were able to connect them with Pine Bluff Village and he was able to acquire the property and the rest was history.”

You can donate here to Diakonia here.

You can donate to the Christian Shelter here.