Oklahoma’s Aging Population Deserves a Place in the State’s Housing Priorities

Oklahoma’s Aging Population Deserves a Place in the State’s Housing Priorities

Oklahoma is getting older. State housing officials now face the question of whether policy is keeping pace.  Oklahomans can weigh in on whether older adults—specifically households age 62 and older—should be formally recognized as a special needs population in the state’s HOME program priorities.

The demographic case is straightforward. Oklahoma Human Services projects the state’s older adult population will increase by 21.3 percent by 2034, and for the first time, residents age 65 and older are expected to outnumber children. The state’s Aging Our Way initiative identifies housing as a central challenge in this shift, emphasizing the need for affordable, accessible housing options that meet older adults’ needs.

Housing affordability pressures are already widespread across Oklahoma. Using the federal standard, a household is considered cost-burdened when it spends 30 percent or more of its income on housing. In 2024, 26.9 percent of all Oklahoma households met that definition, according to U.S. Census Bureau data analyzed by America’s Health Rankings.

Older renters are disproportionately affected. An analysis by the Oklahoma Policy Institute found that more than half of Oklahoma renters age 65 and older spend over 30 percent of their income on housing, making them the most cost-burdened renter age group in the state.

Local data from Okmulgee County reflect similar challenges, particularly in rural communities where incomes are lower, and housing options are more limited. In Okmulgee County, a significant share of older households are cost-burdened, with many seniors spending 30 percent or more of their income on housing costs such as rent, utilities, and maintenance. While precise county-level breakdowns vary by dataset and year, regional housing analyses consistently show that older adults in Okmulgee County face affordability pressures that mirror or exceed statewide trends, especially among fixed-income renters and single-person elderly households.

These figures matter because older adults often have limited ability to adjust to rising housing costs. Unlike working-age households, retirees typically rely on fixed incomes and have fewer opportunities to increase earnings. At the same time, they are more likely to need housing that is affordable, accessible, and located near health care, transportation, and essential services.

Oklahoma has already acknowledged this demographic shift in its broader aging strategy. The state’s Multisector Plan on Aging identifies housing as a core area of need and prioritizes older adults facing the greatest economic and social challenges in state planning efforts.

The issue, then, is not whether older Oklahomans have significant housing needs. The data make that clear. The question is whether state HOME program priorities should explicitly reflect those needs by designating seniors as a special needs population eligible for targeted attention in funding decisions.

Public input can help shape that answer. The Oklahoma Housing Finance Agency (OHFA) administers Oklahoma’s allocation of the federal HOME Investment Partnerships Program, a major block grant that supports affordable housing for low-income households. While OHFA distributes these funds to develop and preserve housing across the state, it also sets policy priorities in its application process that determine how those dollars are targeted—including which populations are identified as having “special housing needs.”

Residents, senior advocates, housing organizations, local governments, service providers, families, and older Oklahomans themselves are encouraged to submit written comments urging OHFA to include persons age 62 and older as a special needs population under the State HOME Program.

Submit your comments requesting that seniors 62+ be added as a special need population by Monday, September 14 at 5 p.m. to Emily Myers, Housing Development Allocation Supervisor, Oklahoma Housing Finance Agency, at Em*********@**FA.org and Corey Bornemann, co*************@**fa.org.  You may also post comments online at https://www.ohfa.org/2027-home-program-and-national-housing-trust-fund-input/.

Oklahoma is already planning for an aging future in health care, transportation, and community services. Housing policy is a critical part of that same equation—and now is the time to ensure it reflects the realities facing the state’s growing older population.

Sources: OHFA HOME Investment Partnerships Program, Oklahoma Human Services, Aging Our Way, Oklahoma Policy Institute senior housing analysis, Oklahoma State Plan on Aging, and U.S. Census ACS data as reported by America’s Health Rankings. America’s Health Rankings

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