Most Seniors Say They Want to Age at Home

Three-quarters of adults ages 50 or older want to stay in their current homes as they age and nearly as many want to remain in the communities where they live, according to new data in AARP’s 2024 Home and Community Preferences Survey.

“We need to find ways to make it easier to age in place,” said Deb Whitman, executive vice president and chief policy officer for AARP. “The ideal living situation is not only about health and safety, but also about joy, purpose and connection—whether aging in place means staying in your home, remaining in your community or simply living anywhere but a nursing home, having options is what matters most.”

Whitman said that although the country’s senior population is booming, homes and communities are not ready to meet the demand. For example, fewer than 1% of single-family homes are fully wheelchair accessible and fewer than 4% can be easily modified for people with mobility challenges.

“As our nation ages at a historic rate, the stakes couldn’t be higher,” Whitman said.

AARP last compiled its Home and Community Preferences Report in 2021. The numbers from the 2024 survey, released in December, came from both online and telephone surveys of 3,090 U.S. adults, which took place between June 17 and July 1, 2024. HomeCare has pulled out some of the key data points from the survey below.