No Place to Land: Housing Insecurity among Caregiving College Students
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| Title: | No Place to Land: Housing Insecurity among Caregiving College Students |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Allyson Cornett, Carla Fletcher, Richard Davis, New America, Trellis Strategies |
| Source: | New America. 2026. |
| Availability: | New America. 740 15th Street NW Suite 900, Washington, DC 20005. Tel: 202-986-2700; Fax: 202-986-3696; Web site: https://www.newamerica.org |
| Peer Reviewed: | N |
| Page Count: | 22 |
| Publication Date: | 2026 |
| Sponsoring Agency: | Imaginable Futures Annie E. Casey Foundation |
| Document Type: | Reports - Research |
| Education Level: | Higher Education Postsecondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Parents, Child Rearing, Caregivers, Housing, College Students, Financial Problems, Age Differences, Racial Differences, Institutional Characteristics, Safety, Barriers, Student Needs, Student Financial Aid, Racial Discrimination, Federal Government, State Government, Government Role, College Role |
| Abstract: | Caregiving students--those who are parenting, caring for other dependents, or providing financial support for family members--face housing insecurity at rates and in ways that the higher education system in the United States has yet to fully reckon with. Until recently, the data needed to understand their experiences simply did not exist. The Student Financial Wellness Survey (SFWS) is an established survey developed and administered by Trellis Strategies. For the fall 2025 survey, New America's Higher Education program partnered with Trellis to add a set of questions on housing insecurity for caregiving students, producing some of the only data available that directly examines how this population experiences housing insecurity. What those students reported reveals a set of challenges that are urgent, underappreciated, and actionable for institutions, states, and federal policymakers willing to act. Housing insecurity for caregiving college students extends beyond access alone. Students who moved three or more times in the past year most commonly did so out of necessity, not choice. While some moved to be closer to school, many moves were driven by unaffordable rent or unsafe living conditions. The data also show disparities across age, race, and institution type. Older caregiving students aged 25 or more were more than twice as likely as younger students to move because they could not afford rent. Black and Hispanic caregiving students reported moving for affordability and safety reasons at higher rates than their white peers, and students attending two-year colleges had higher rates than those at four-year institutions. A major barrier to stability is both a lack of awareness and a shortage of available resources. Nearly three-quarters of caregiving students did not know they could request additional institutional assistance for housing costs. Just 3 percent of caregiving students asked for and received aid to support their housing needs. Awareness gaps were more pronounced among first-generation students, women, and those experiencing basic needs insecurity. Housing discrimination also remains a real and racialized barrier. Nearly one in 10 caregiving students experiencing basic needs insecurity reported facing discrimination in the housing market. Black caregiving students were nearly twice as likely as white students to experience discrimination, further limiting their access to safe and stable housing. These survey findings point to opportunities for action at every level of the higher education system. At the federal level, policymakers should invest in emergency aid for caregiving students, establish standardized data collection on parenting students so that this population is counted and not overlooked, and target policy interventions for these students. States can address the resource gap by investing in emergency aid programs and reforming cost of attendance policies to more accurately reflect what caregiving students across a state actually spend. And institutions, operating within the constraints that federal and state policy define, can close the awareness gap around available aid and ensure that housing is explicitly integrated into basic needs strategies. |
| Abstractor: | ERIC |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | ED680444 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | Caregiving students--those who are parenting, caring for other dependents, or providing financial support for family members--face housing insecurity at rates and in ways that the higher education system in the United States has yet to fully reckon with. Until recently, the data needed to understand their experiences simply did not exist. The Student Financial Wellness Survey (SFWS) is an established survey developed and administered by Trellis Strategies. For the fall 2025 survey, New America's Higher Education program partnered with Trellis to add a set of questions on housing insecurity for caregiving students, producing some of the only data available that directly examines how this population experiences housing insecurity. What those students reported reveals a set of challenges that are urgent, underappreciated, and actionable for institutions, states, and federal policymakers willing to act. Housing insecurity for caregiving college students extends beyond access alone. Students who moved three or more times in the past year most commonly did so out of necessity, not choice. While some moved to be closer to school, many moves were driven by unaffordable rent or unsafe living conditions. The data also show disparities across age, race, and institution type. Older caregiving students aged 25 or more were more than twice as likely as younger students to move because they could not afford rent. Black and Hispanic caregiving students reported moving for affordability and safety reasons at higher rates than their white peers, and students attending two-year colleges had higher rates than those at four-year institutions. A major barrier to stability is both a lack of awareness and a shortage of available resources. Nearly three-quarters of caregiving students did not know they could request additional institutional assistance for housing costs. Just 3 percent of caregiving students asked for and received aid to support their housing needs. Awareness gaps were more pronounced among first-generation students, women, and those experiencing basic needs insecurity. Housing discrimination also remains a real and racialized barrier. Nearly one in 10 caregiving students experiencing basic needs insecurity reported facing discrimination in the housing market. Black caregiving students were nearly twice as likely as white students to experience discrimination, further limiting their access to safe and stable housing. These survey findings point to opportunities for action at every level of the higher education system. At the federal level, policymakers should invest in emergency aid for caregiving students, establish standardized data collection on parenting students so that this population is counted and not overlooked, and target policy interventions for these students. States can address the resource gap by investing in emergency aid programs and reforming cost of attendance policies to more accurately reflect what caregiving students across a state actually spend. And institutions, operating within the constraints that federal and state policy define, can close the awareness gap around available aid and ensure that housing is explicitly integrated into basic needs strategies. |
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