The majority of long-term, non-transient homeless people in Detroit, Michigan are elderly. An understanding of the elderly homeless population in terms of demographic characteristics, family relationships, economic and health status, and other factors is a prerequisite to determining appropriate courses of action for those who provide services to the aging. This document presents the final report of such research. A literature review is included which reveals that the homeless elderly represent a highly variable population according to gender, education, mental and physical health, family relationships, and other issues. Development of a 61-item questionnaire used in completed interviews with 85 homeless elderly individuals in Detroit is described. Sections on research findings focus on characteristics of Detroit's elderly homeless population; the fear and reality of criminal victimization; and the sub-minimally housed elderly. A section on "notes from the field" is followed by conclusions and recommendations and final comments. Descriptive statistics and contingency tests are presented in the tables and appended materials. References are included. (NB)