Designing for the Life Span Segment 4

Slide 68 Content

Conclusions Related to Disability and the Older Adult Market:

There is a strong relationship between disability and lower levels of discretionary income as well as poverty, carrying forward from the developing trends of the 20th century;
The "Age Wave" of middle-old "baby-boomers" may bring with it the development of a market segment of adults experiencing disability but possessing sufficient resources to address their needs;
Many older adults with limited means and experiencing moderate to severe disabilities barter for home modifications and other forms of assistance;
There is a potential problem with home modifications that do not conform to specifications that are either the result of residential and commercial building codes or the product of research and development;
Health care systems are consuming the resources of older adults with disabilities and are not currently meeting the needs of older adults;
70% of all older adults own their own home - but that home may be a deteriorating property requiring significant maintenance that the older resident is either unable or unwilling to provide.