Urban Americans Want to Age in Their Neighborhoods

Plenty of retirees still dream of retiring to a sun-soaked southern locale—witness the still-vigorous growth of cities like Phoenix, Arizona, and Fort Myers, Florida. But the vast majority of older Americans—more than 70 percent of those over 50, according to a 2014 AARP survey—plan to “age in place,” or stay in their homes or communities. And the desire to stay put persists across urban, suburban, and rural residents—even in Snow Belt cities and among those with the financial resources to buy that condo in Boca or Scottsdale.

“Across the country, people are getting older, living longer, and staying in their communities,” says Rodney Harrell, the director of AARP’s Livable Communities program. “People move to where they like to live, they stay awhile, and then they don’t want to leave.” In cities, Harrell says, people often focus on remaining in their neighborhood—an area where for decades they may have walked through the same park, purchased groceries at the same store, and attended the same place of worship.