From a broken hip to homelessness: One senior's fight for shelter in Ontario

A sudden fall down the stairs left 71-year-old Joan Alexander homeless for three months. After breaking her hip and losing her job, she ended up living in her car through the autumn cold. Her story sheds light on a growing but often overlooked crisis: older adults facing homelessness in Ontario.

Alexander's ordeal began when her injury forced her out of work. With no income, she could no longer afford housing and resorted to living in her car. She spent nights huddled under a sleeping bag, struggling to stay warm as temperatures dropped.

Her situation changed when My Sisters' Place offered her a cot and helped secure subsidised housing. Yet her experience is far from unique. In Toronto, 17% of shelter users over the past three months were aged 55 or older.

MPPs Lee Fairclough and Aislinn Clancy have noticed a rise in older people battling housing insecurity. Dr. Samir Sinha, a geriatrician, warns that governments and housing providers often ignore the struggles of older adults. Skyrocketing rents, fixed incomes, and evictions after hospital stays are pushing more seniors into homelessness.

In Toronto, rent can swallow over half of federal income support for low-income seniors. Many are forced to work, only to lose critical benefits in the process. Despite the growing problem, no Ontario organizations have recently focused on the housing burden for older people or the risk of homelessness they face. The issue remains poorly documented, particularly for older women.

Alexander's case shows how quickly a health crisis can lead to homelessness. With housing costs rising and support systems stretched thin, more older adults in Ontario are at risk. Advocates stress the need for targeted solutions before the problem deepens.