With the oldest baby boomers now becoming seniors the country will see a senior explosion throughout the decade. According to William H. Frey, senior fellow, Metropolitan Policy Program, in a statement from the Brookings Institution, “The pace of this aging will vary widely across the national landscape due to noticeable geographic shifts in the younger population, with implications for health care, transportation, and housing, and possible impacts upon our ability to forge societal consensus.”
Baby boomers, born between 1946 and 1965, total over 80 million and make up over 25 percent of the population. The 45 and older demographic is the largest growing population in the country.
The Brookings Institution analyzed census data from 1900, 2000, and 2010, and found that the 45 and above population grew 18 times as fast as the under-45 demographic between 2000 and 2010.
The areas experiencing the largest growth in seniors, age 65 and up, are located across the Sun Belt, while the West is relatively younger.
Florida, the Northeast, and the Midwest currently have the highest concentration of seniors. Maine, Vermont, West Virginia, New Hampshire, Florida, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut have the highest median ages. All those state’s median ages are over 40 with Maine’s the highest at 42.7. Utah, Texas, Alaska, Idaho, California, and Georgia have the lowest median ages. All their median ages are under 35, with Utah leading at a mere 29.2.
The 55–64 group increased by 50.3 percent from 2000 to 2010, while the 35–44 group decreased by 9 percent due to the declining birth rates in the 1960s. But the “echo boom,” or the group of people born when baby boomers began having children, combined with immigration numbers has resulted in an 11.3 increase of 15–24-year-olds in the last 10 years. However, the median age has still gone up from 32.6 in 1990 to 37.2 as of 2010.
The areas with the highest increase of the above-45 age group also gained more of the younger demographics, whereas areas showing little growth in the above-45 age group also showed declines for the under-45 age group.
The Brookings study notes that suburbs tend to have low populations of seniors while gaining rapid growth in younger people.
But people who migrated into metropolitan areas when they were younger have now “aged in place,” leading to high concentrations of seniors outside of typical retirement areas. This may present a challenge in upcoming years, as these areas are unaccustomed to serving senior populations.
Pre-seniors, or those just turning 65, are growing the fastest in college towns like Austin, Texas; Raleigh, North Carolina; Provo, Utah; and Madison, Wisconsin. Suburbs are aging much faster than cities. Cities are seeing fewer of the younger demographic than the suburbs.
Metropolitan suburbs are seeing sharp differences in the degree that they attract younger people, but those gaining the most have senior populations lower than 40 percent. One-third of total suburbs have seen an absolute decline in child populations.
While the average age of voters is increasing, policymakers and voters are concerned with the future of services like health care, transportation, and retirement programs.
Friends Read Free