Louisville, KY
Housing | 2025
Analyzing the gap between the supply of and the demand for accessible, affordable housing for residents with disabilities.
National data and local anecdotal evidence reveal a critical shortage of affordable and accessible housing for people with disabilities—but no one has fully measured how big the problem is in Louisville, Kentucky. This lack of reliable data prevents meaningful policy action to address the city’s accessible housing gap. With data on the supply of and demand for accessible housing, housing funders, developers, and policymakers can understand the need and begin to address the issue. To this end, Louisville-based disability advocacy organization Gathering Strength will produce the first comprehensive study of the city’s accessible, affordable housing landscape.
Gathering Strength is partnering with the Community Foundation of Louisville. The disability-led research team will analyze population and housing data to determine disability prevalence across demographic factors, assess current accessible housing supply, forecast future needs, and identify racial and economic disparities. This analysis will enable the team to estimate the gap in the accessible housing supply facing people with disabilities in Louisville. The housing needs assessment will be presented in a final report to affordable housing developers and the wider Louisville community.
Gathering Strength and its partners will publish the findings in a final report and use the analysis to develop a policy strategy to expand accessible housing in Louisville. The timing is crucial, as Kentucky’s housing finance agency prepares to establish criteria for funding and priorities for allocation of affordable housing resources in 2027 and beyond. The goal is to provide hard data that cannot be ignored—showing that accessible housing is not just a legal requirement, but a health, equity, and human rights issue. With this research, Louisville can start to remove long-standing barriers and build a more inclusive future for all.