Each person experiences the aging process differently.

Some people are able to maintain lifelong health and

independence, while others find that they face increasingly more difficult challenges to their ability to take

care of themselves. The difficulties that aging can bring

are felt not only by elderly people but also by their children and grandchildren, making the question of how to

address these issues one of intergenerational importance. Adding urgency to this question is the fact that

America’s elderly population is growing rapidly: the

U.S. Census Bureau forecasts that the proportion of

people age 65 and older will grow from 12.5 percent in

1990 to 17.7 percent in 2020, a 41.6-percent increase.

USDA Rural Development recognizes the importance

of providing rural seniors with a wide range of living

options. We invest heavily in programs that help elderly

people live with as much independence and dignity as

possible. These include the Section 504 Loan and

Grant Programs, which make vital home repairs for

very-low-income seniors; the Section 515 Rural Rental

Housing Program, which provides affordable rental

housing to seniors and people with disabilities (as well

as families); the Section 521 Rental Assistance

Program, which makes rents in the Section 515

Program affordable to tenants with very low incomes;

and the Community Facilities Program, which finances

a variety of elder-care facilities. Following are descriptions of how each of these programs serves elderly

people.

Section 504 Loan and Grant Programs

The Section 504 Loan and Grant Programs allow

elderly people with very low incomes to maintain their

independence by allowing them to remain in their own

homes and improving the quality of their lives. The loan

program is available to any rural person with a very low

income, but most program beneficiaries are elderly. The

504 Loan Program helps qualifying applicants repair,

improve, and/or modernize a home, make it safe and

sanitary, or remove health and safety hazards.

The 504 Grant Program is available exclusively to verylow-income rural seniors aged 62 or older. Both programs provide funds to make such major repairs or renovations as removing electrical and fire hazards,

replacing roofing, installing or improving water and

waste-water disposal systems, and installing insulation

and heating and cooling systems. 

Rural Housing Options for Elderly People

Rural Housing and Community Programs

Quick Facts

Q Median annual income of Section

504 borrowers: $8,055; 

Q Average annual adjusted income of

USDA multi-family tenants: $7,627; 

Q 42 percent of USDA multi-family tenants are elderly; 

Q 47 percent of Section 515 funds in

1999 were invested in housing for

the elderly; 

Q Total Community Facilities Program

investments in facilities that directly

benefit seniors: $657 million; 

Q 14 percent of Community Facilities

funds in 1999 were invested in facilities for seniors.
Section 515 Rural Rental Housing Program

Section 521 Rental Assistance Program

“Before moving [to Section 515 Rural Rental

Housing] I lived alone in a two-room cabin [with] no

foundation, no plumbing and [which was] heated by

a small wood-burning stove. I had a long walk to the

rural mailbox over a rough dirt lane. If this [Section

515] complex did not exist, I would still be living

there. Many other low-income elderly people in

Maine are living under those conditions, or worse.”

(letter from Betty C. McAfee of Belfast, Maine)

Many relatively independent rural seniors find that they

cannot keep up with the yard work and structural maintenance that homeownership requires. Others find that

they need to live closer to vital services, such as doctors, pharmacies, and grocery stores. For these elderly

people, the Section 515 Rural Rental Housing program

is an attractive option. In addition to being virtually

maintenance-free, these apartments for elderly and disabled people are equipped with special amenities, such

as strategically placed handrails and emergency call

buttons or lights with which to signal for help. Many of

them are wheelchair accessible. Managers of these

complexes often arrange for services such as transportation, grocery and pharmaceutical delivery, Meals

on Wheels, health screenings, and entertainment. They

make sure that the community rooms stay in constant

use. In addition, a small percentage of Section 515

complexes offer congregate care facilities in which

seniors receive two cooked meals per day.

To make Section 515 housing available to tenants who

cannot afford market rents, USDA provides assistance

through the separately appropriated Section 521 Rental

Assistance Program, which brings tenants’ rent down to

30 percent of their adjusted incomes and makes up the

difference to the landlords. 

Community Facilities Loan and Grant Program

Through the Community Facilities Loan and Grant program, USDA finances a range of service centers for

elderly people, including nursing homes, boarding care

facilities, assisted care, adult day care, and a few intergenerational care facilities which serve both elderly

people and children at the same time.

In addition, the program invests heavily in hospitals,

clinics, and emergency services, which benefit people

of all generations.

For more information

on USDA Rural Development housing programs, see

see our website at www.rurdev.usda.gov 

Detailed information and applications for financial assistance are available through your nearest USDA Rural

Development State or local office. To locate an office near

you, visit the USDA Service Center Locator on the Web

at:http://offices.usda.gov/scripts/ndISAPI.dll/oip_publicUS

A-map

PA 1662

September 2000

Slightly revised December 2004

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits

discrimination in all its programs and activities on the

basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age,

disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital

or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all

programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact

USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and

TDD). 

To file a complaint of discrimination write USDA,

Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten

Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW,

Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964

(voice or TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider

and employer.