In France, 1.6 million people live in collective households

In France, 1.6 million people, or one out of forty inhabitants, were living in collective households in 2009 compared with one out of thirty-one in 1990 (including conscripts at the time). Collective households include a wide variety of categories, from retirement homes to university residences, boarding schools, worker hostels, prisons, and religious communities. One-third of the population of collective households consists of young people aged 15-24, mostly male; another third consists of people aged 75 and over, of whom three-quarters are women. Between 1990 and 2009, the share of the youngest residents of collective households declined while that of the eldest increased. The main types of facilities are retirement homes, which accommodate 30% of people living in collective households, and boarding schools, which accommodate 26%.