Senior Economic Security
For senior citizens, especially single women or senior citizens of color, economic developments in recent years have put their financial security increasingly at risk. Seniors at risk of outliving their resources have increased by nearly 2 million households in just the past four years. IASP’s researchers study the long-term economic stability and risk of seniors, and explore policies that can help advance the asset security and financial stability of older Americans.
In 2011 the Institute published three new reports in the "Living Longer on Less" series, released in collaboration with Dēmos. This research has been shared through a Housing and Urban Development (HUD) sponsored webinar and the American Society on Aging’s yearly Aging in America conference.
The three most recent "Living Longer on Less" reports include:
Rising Economic Insecurity among Senior Single Women (October 2011). This study indicates that nearly half (47%) of all senior single women in America do not have adequate retirement resources to meet even their most basic needs for the remainder of their lives, and this number is rising.
The Crisis of Economic Insecurity for African-American and Latino Seniors (September 2011). New research from IASP and Dēmos reveals crisis levels of economic insecurity among current African-American and Latino seniors—52% of African-American and 56% of Latino seniors do not have adequate retirement resources to meet their basic needs throughout their expected life-spans. Driven by extremely low levels of asset wealth and high housing costs, most seniors of color are struggling financially during their elder years.
From Bad to Worse: Senior Economic Insecurity on the Rise (July 2011). This report shows a troublesome trend of increased economic insecurity among senior households in just four years (2004-2008). Economic insecurity among seniors increased by one-third during this period, from 27% to 36%.
Previous "Living Longer on Less" reports include: