America's Senior Citizens Wealthier Than Previous Generations Of Seniors

In my earlier post, I wrote about the phenomenon of middle-aged adults moving home with their parents, most of whom are at or near retirement age. While this is not a practical solution for all families, in many cases, it's doable. Perhaps playing role is that U.S. government researchers released a report yesterday which found that, "older Americans have more money and are expected to live far longer than prior generations," according to Reuters.

Data from 15 federal agencies on population trends, economics and health issues were combined to create a report called Older Americans 2008.

"The average net worth of older Americans—those 65 or older—has increased almost 80 percent over the past 20 years," according to Reuters. "And those who reach the age of 65 are now expected to live an average of 19 more years, or seven years longer than people who had reached age 65 in the year 1900."

Medical advances are largely to thank for this increase in life expectancy. And the increasing wealth of senior citizens makes quality health care more accessible to them.

One final finding of the report? "Older adults in the United States are far better educated than prior generations. In 2007, 76 percent of those over 65 had high school diplomas, and at least 19 percent had a bachelor’s degree, up from 24 percent with high school diplomas in 1965 and just 5 percent with bachelor’s degrees."