Older people fret less about aging in place: AP-NORC Poll

The older you are, the less you fret about aging in place.

That's one of the primary findings of a recent Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research study, which revealed that Americans aged 65 and up feel significantly better equipped to age in their own homes than those aged 50 to 64, who are mostly still working.

 

The poll also found that older Black and Latino Americans are more concerned about aging in place, which is likely due to a large income disparity that favors white people.

 

In a previous AP-NORC poll, 88 percent of respondents 50 and older said that aging in one's own home, with family or a close friend, is a generally held ambition.

 

But doubts creep in for those ages 50-64. Among that group, the majority who rate themselves as extremely or very prepared shrinks to about 6 in 10, according to the poll.

 

This relatively younger group is especially likely to say their financial situation is the main reason they don’t feel very prepared to age in place. And they’re also more likely to feel anxious about being able to stay in their communities, get care from medical providers and receive backup from family members or close friends, the poll found.

 

Part of it may be due to fear of the unknown among people who’ve relied on a paycheck all their lives.

 

“When you’ve never done it before, and you are only going to do it once, you’re sort of flying by the seat of your pants,” said Leigh Gerstenberger, in his late 60s and retired from a career in financial services. “I spent a lot of time talking to people ahead of me in the journey,” says the Pittsburgh-area resident.

 

Also, as people reach their 60s, they may wonder if Social Security and Medicare will be there for them. Stacy Wiggins, a nurse specializing in addiction medicine who lives near Detroit, estimates she'll work for at least another ten years until her late 60s, possibly part-time after that. Friends who are older are already receiving Social Security benefits.

 

"In my group, we're wondering if it'll be available," Wiggins said of government assistance programs for the elderly. "Perhaps it isn't. People who are less likely to have a typical pension can be found. Those are the kinds of things that make you nervous about the future."

 

According to Sarah Szanton, head of the Johns Hopkins University nursing school, some people in their 50s and early 60s may still be grappling with the effects of the 2007-09 recession, when unemployment peaked at 10% and foreclosures skyrocketed. She remarked that, for an aging culture, the United States does comparatively little to prepare older persons for the transition to retirement.

 

"We've always romanticized youth as Americans, and we're notoriously unprepared to think about aging," Szanton added. "It often takes people by surprise." Her participation with aging-in-place concerns began when she made house calls to elderly individuals early in her career.

 

People aged 50 and up said their communities do a poor job of addressing basic necessities, according to the poll. While health care, nutritious food, and high-speed internet were all highly ranked, just 36% thought their city does a good job of providing affordable housing. Only 44% were happy with their access to transportation and services that help elderly people stay in their homes.

 

Kym Harrelson-Pattishall hopes that as more people retire to her coastal North Carolina neighborhood, additional health care facilities and other amenities will be available. Currently, a significant medical emergency can need a one-hour automobile trip to the hospital.

 

Pattishall, a real estate salesperson in her early 50s, shares the ideal of aging at home, but she lacks confidence. She explained, "I fear it would just eat away at any funds I have."

 

Another small-town citizen, nearly 20 years Pattishall's senior, believes it's all about adjusting. Shirley Hayden lives near the Louisiana border in Texas, where hurricanes from the Gulf of Mexico are a regular occurrence. She claims to have no assets and very modest money, but she considers herself to be well-prepared to age in place.

 

Hayden explained, "You have to learn to live within your means." "I don't charge for stuff I can't afford."

 

“My biggest thing I have to work around as far as expenses is insurance,” she added. “I don’t really need any new clothes. In Texas, you live in jeans and T-shirts and they don’t go out of style. Yeah, your shoes wear out, but how often do you buy a pair of shoes?”

 

Not so easy to work around is the well-documented racial wealth gap that constrains older Black people in particular. A Federal Reserve report notes that on average Black and Latino households own 15% to 20% as much net wealth as white households.

 

In the poll, 67% of Black Americans and 59% of Latino Americans ages 50 and older said they felt extremely or very prepared to stay in their homes as long as possible, compared with the 73% share of white Americans saying they feel confident.

 

Wiggins, the Detroit area nurse, is Black and says it’s a pattern she’s familiar with. “Part of it is generational wealth,” she said. “I have friends who are white, whose dad died and left them settled. I have friends who are Black whose parents died, and they left enough to bury them, but nothing substantial.”