Brian Ellicott-Cook (SAGE): LGBTQ+ older adults housing
Brian Ellicott-Cook of SAGE testifies that 40% of LGBTQ+ older adults live below poverty, older adult homelessness has surged 250% since 2004, and affirming housing supply remains extremely limited. He warns HUD proposals threaten progress and recommends safety signals for self-identification.
Good afternoon, chairs, members of the committee.
Thank you for this opportunity to speak on housing instability among LGBTQ plus New Yorkers, particularly LGBTQ plus older adults.
My name is Brian Ellicott-Cook, and I serve as the Director of Government Relations at SAGE.
SAGE is the country's oldest and largest organization dedicated to improving the lives of LGBTQ plus older adults here in New York City.
We provide housing, supportive services, and community-based program to thousands of older adults each year, including through our LGBTQ plus affirming housing developments like Stonewall House in Brooklyn and Cortona Pride House in the Bronx.
And yet LGBT New Yorkers are far more likely to experience housing instability.
Nationally, approximately 40% of LGBT plus older adults live below the poverty line.
And fewer than half, just 49%, own their own homes, compared to 65% of the general population.
These disparities are driven by a lifetime of discrimination in employment, housing, and access to benefits, combined with higher rates of social isolation and the greater likelihood of aging without traditional family support.
Here in New York City, broader homelessness crises among older adults underscore the urgency of these challenges.
The number of individuals age 55 and older in the shelter system has increased approximately 250% between 2004 and 2017.
With those aged 65 increasing more than 300%.
Without intervention, that population is projected to continue to grow significantly in the coming years within the already vulnerable group of LGBTQ plus older adults who face greater risk.
of housing insecurity, discrimination, and unsafe placement.
At this time, there are very limited affirming housing options available, while New York City has allowed us to make those developments at Stonewall House in Brooklyn and Crotone in the Bronx.
The total supply of affirming housing for LGBT holder adults remains extremely limited and very much needed.
However, HUD's recent proposal to eliminate the extra access tool threatens to reverse all of this progress, and we must be prepared to fight for that.
As this committee examines housing insecurity among LGBT plus individuals, there is one thing I want to recommend.
The agency's idea of safety signals for more people to self-identify in those first moments to an ally or a community member would make all the difference.
Thank you very much.