A narrative-based exploration of aging, precariousness and housing instability among low-income older adults in Canada

In this article we focus upon low-income older adults’ lived experiences of aging, precariousness and housing instability/homelessness in Hamilton, Canada. Precariousness includes involuntary or incentivized displacement, as well as ‘health discounting’ in the face of rising shelter costs, inappropriate housing, periods of homelessness and involuntary housing immobility. The lived experiences of aging, precariousness and housing instability were collected through arts-based methodologies, whereby participants were given tablets to record their photos, videos and written diaries of their housing-related experiences. Additionally, participants took part in individual semi-structured interviews and participant observation in community-based settings. The recounting of participant experiences through a sensemaking frame allows for an exploration of the question of what it means to be ‘devalued’ as one ages to the extent that securing shelter is an overwhelming and stressful journey. Participant narratives provide compelling counter stories contesting popular notions that older adults will be taken care of as they age by the state or private savings. In sharing these stories, we are attempting to bring ‘recognizability’ to the experiences of aging, precariousness and housing/homelessness in order to contribute to the conditions through which low-income older adults’ experiences can be folded into policy co-design geared towards affordable housing.