Black, Hispanic, and Asian and Pacific Islander Older Adult Households Move to Higher Poverty Areas, On Average, than Non-Hispanic White Counterparts

A recent study published in the Journal of Planning Education and Research, “Disparities in Residential Mobility Outcomes Among Older Adults in the United States,” considers if residential relocation patterns among older adults aged 65 and older differ by demographic types. The authors found significant disparities in residential mobility outcomes across racial and socioeconomic lines. Between 2011 and 2019, Black, Hispanic, and other non-white older adult households were more likely than their non-Hispanic white counterparts to relocate to higher-poverty neighborhoods. The study’s findings suggest that increased funding for affordable housing options for older adults and greater consideration for aging-friendly infrastructure is essential to promote racial and socioeconomic equity as the population of older adults in the U.S. increases.   

The authors used confidential microdata from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) between 2011–2019 to compare the characteristics of older adult movers’ origin and destination neighborhoods. Census tracts were used as a proxy for neighborhoods. In addition to examining neighborhood poverty rates, the study explored other neighborhood characteristics such as educational attainment rates, median household income, median gross rent, and access to neighborhood amenities such as grocery stores, hospitals, libraries, and senior centers.  

The sample examined included approximately 7.8 million older adult households that moved to a different neighborhood during the study period. Black, Hispanic, and Asian and Pacific Islander households were significantly more likely to move to higher poverty neighborhoods than non-Hispanic White households. Specifically, Black older adult households experienced an average increase of 6.4 percentage points in neighborhood poverty rates, Hispanic households an increase of 3.6 percentage points, and Asian and Pacific Islander households an increase of 1.8 percentage points.  

Older adult householders with a college degree moved to neighborhoods with poverty rates about 3.9 percentage points lower, on average, than householders without a high school diploma. However, racial disparities persisted across educational attainment levels. Black college-educated householders still on average moved to higher-poverty neighborhoods than white college-educated householders and even white householders without a high school diploma. While data availability limited this study to examining older adult moves between neighborhoods – not within neighborhoods – the authors believe that their findings underscore the role of systemic inequalities from current and past urban planning decisions in shaping residential mobility outcomes for older adults. 

They encourage planning and housing policy interventions that promote housing stability and equitable access to neighborhood resources for older adults across the country, such as expanding affordable and accessible housing options, improving neighborhood infrastructure, and supporting community-based aging-in-place strategies and programs to help alleviate the disparities in residential mobility. 

This article can be found at: https://bit.ly/3GQFHmR.