Jump in aging LIers living in single-family homes

Daily Point

As Long Island's population ages, share of older residents aging in their homes is growing too

Long Island's housing inventory is 79% single-family homes, and a third of those are owned and occupied by residents ages 65 years and older. With largely paid-off mortgages and homes lived in for decades, many older adults in the region control a significant share of the housing market on Long Island.

Those 65 years and older make up 18% of Long Island’s adult population, up from 14% in 2010. Around 238,012 seniors owned and occupied more than 17% of all 739,866 owner-occupied single-family homes in the region in 2024, according to latest estimates from the Census Bureau. That is a significant 37.7% jump from 2010, when older adults owned and occupied 12.5% of all similar 713,383 single-family homes, indicative of a growing share of seniors owning the single-family housing market.

In the same period, the number of adults between ages 35 and 64 who owned and lived in single-family homes declined roughly 8% from an estimated 488,952 in 2010 to about 449,776 in 2024 — largely a result of the limited housing inventory on Long Island.

Aging in place can be what a lot of older adults hope for. There are many federal, state and local programs in place to support seniors who want to age in place, such as at-home healthcare, and property tax benefits such as Enhanced STAR for those who meet the income requirements.

But for seniors who no longer want to live in houses that demand regular maintenance, the alternatives are bleak. Only 13,547 apartments have been built on Long Island in the last two decades — that's 1.7% of all housing built in the period — which makes downsizing difficult.

— Karthika Namboothiri karthika.namboothiri@newsday.com

Pencil Point

Weaponized AG

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Final Point

Nassau Leg candidate got $500 from fire department

Nassau Republican legislative candidate Anthony Capone's campaign hit a rough patch last week when a Newsday news division story detailed Facebook posts he made as a teen using derogatory comments about Black people and women. Capone, now 31, at first pushed back but then apologized.

But Capone, who has been the fundraising star of the candidate field in all 19 legislative races, has another possible issue. In June, Capone received a $500 check from Tally-Ho Chemical Engine Co. 3 Inc. of the Lynbrook Fire Department. The item is listed on the New York State Board of Elections campaign finance database from its July 15 filing deadline. In the description, the $500 check is listed as a "Campaign Donation."

According to filings, Capone, the former chief of the Valley Stream Fire Department, has raised $52,720, more than any other candidate of either party in any of the 19 Nassau County Legislature districts.

The donation from Tally-Ho raises eyebrows because community organizations generally try to remain nonpartisan since they solicit donations and can receive taxpayer money for operations.

Capone last year was part of a team of Republicans that collected absentee ballots for then-GOP candidate Sheharyar Ali, who lost to Democrat Cynthia Nuñez. Capone, who is facing Nuñez this year, collected 43 absentee ballots for Ali, according to an item in The Point last November. The process, called harvesting, is legal.

Governmental entities like fire departments that are supported by tax dollars are generally prohibited from making campaign contributions to political candidates, although two government sources told The Point there are carveouts in some instances.

Nassau GOP leaders denounced the comments but stood by Capone, an easy move since the district is likely to remain under Democratic control. There are 26,500 registered Democrats in LD14 compared with 11,900 registered Republicans and 15,200 unaffiliated voters.

Still, Capone's community connections as a volunteer firefighter and small business owner — coupled with his obvious fundraising prowess — mean the chance of a Republican upset can't be discounted.

— Mark Nolan mark.nolan@newsday.com

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