Fact for Features from the Census Bureau
Older Americans Month Celebrated in May (June
Note: The estimates in this fact sheet should
not be confused with Census 2000 results.
Population Distribution -- 34.9 million
The estimated number of Americans 65 and over on Nov. 1, 2000,
comprising about 1 in every 8 Americans. The total number of Americans
in this age group, which includes 14.5 million men and 20.4 million
women, is 12 percent higher than on Census Day, 1990.
The estimated number of men 85 and over on Nov. 1, 2000,
for every 100 women this age. There were 85 men for every 100
women ages 65 to 69.
Estimated number of centenarians on Nov. 1, 2000, nearly
double the total on Census Day, 1990.
Projected number of centenarians in 2050.
Projected life expectancy at birth in 2000.
Grandchildren -- 1.1 million
Number of grandparents 65 and over who actually lived with
their grandchildren in 1997.
Income, Poverty and Wealth - $22,812
Median household income for householders 65 and over in
1999, which compares with a median of $40,816 for all householders.
Median net worth in 1995 for householders 65 and over, which
compares with $40,200 for all householders.
The poverty rate in 1999 for people 65 and over, the lowest
for this group ever measured by the Census Bureau. There were
3.2 million people in this age group who were poor in 1999, down
from 3.4 million in 1998.
Jobs - 19%
Proportion of men 65 and over in the civilian labor force
in 2000; 10 percent of women in this age group were working.
Education - 75,000
Number of people 65 and over enrolled in college in October
Marriage -- 77%
Percentage of men 65-to-74 years old who were married and
living with their spouse in 2000.
Proportion of men 85 and over who were married and living
with their spouse in 2000. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-96.html
Percent of women ages 65 to 74 married and living with their
spouse in 2000.
Percent of women 85 and over married and living with their
spouse in 2000.
Voting - 60%
Proportion of people 65 and over who voted in the 1998 congressional
elections, higher than the voting participation rate of
any other age group.
Mobility - 5%
Proportion of people 65 and over who moved to a new residence
between March 1998 and March 1999, which contrasts with the 32
percent of people in their 20s who did so.
Homeownership - 81%
Proportion of householders 65 and over who owned the home
they lived in as of 2000.
Coming to America - 3.1 million
Number of U.S. residents 65 and over in 2000 who were
The preceding facts come from the Current Population
Survey, Survey of Income and Program Participation, population
estimates and projections and the Statistical Abstract of the
United States. The data are subject to sampling variability
and other sources of error.