Every major U.S. metropolitan area has been growing older over the last several decades, and the Bay Area is the tip of the cane.
The San Francisco metro area has long been one of the oldest in the U.S. And then during the pandemic the metro’s median age grew faster than any other major region, shifting from a little over 39 in 2020 to almost 41 in 2024. The typical metro has a median age in the mid-30s.
Our special series The Graying Bay explains the impacts of this “demographic bomb,” which will manifest differently in every community in the region. For instance, there are exceptionally old areas that may see huge disruptions in their local economies and will face rapidly increasing demands for senior housing and care. At the same time, some neighborhoods are quite young and will have their own unique needs as the rest of the region ages…