Recap: Wealth Gaps in the Golden Years
May 1, 2025
Massachusetts elders are wealthier on average than their peers in other states. But that wealth is unevenly distributed. Comparing the top, middle, and bottom thirds of the income distribution (or terciles, in research parlance) reveals that the wealthiest senior households average $3.5 million, while the lowest tercile averages $55,000.
This was just one striking finding revealed at the May 1, 2025, online Boston Foundation forum and Boston Indicators report release focused on the financial health of older adults in the Commonwealth. In her presentation, co-author of Wealth Gaps in the Golden Years, Laura Quinby, Associate Director of Research at the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, also shared that their study found a similar but more muted dynamic in terms of income. Overall, older residents in Massachusetts have more income than those in other states, but the advantage is not as large as with wealth comparisons. The difference between the terciles within Massachusetts is also less drastic.
Because Massachusetts is such an expensive place to live, the study looked at populations in light of the Elder Index, a benchmark developed at UMass Boston’s Gerontology Institute that quantifies a level of income needed to meet basic needs. The Index value varies with life conditions such as household size and homeowner status, but across the state, 41 percent of older households fall below the Elder Index. Of the lowest tercile, 80 percent do not meet the Elder Index. This is driven mainly by high housing costs.
Researchers further examined differences between racial/ethnic groups, finding particularly stark disparities in wealth, even compared to the rest of the U.S.
With so many older Massachusetts households falling below the meet-basic-needs level of income, the question naturally arises: How do they manage? Anticipating this, the report authors pursued a substantial qualitative investigation. Boston Indicators Senior Research Manager Kelly Harrington presented the approach and outcomes, revealing “the day-to-day reality of how people below the Elder Index cope.”
This included 29 one-on-one interviews in English and Spanish. Participants were nearly all Black or Latina, and most had been recruited via outreach from three community-based organizations. The relatively narrow sample offered a deep slice of experience, though Harrington acknowledged the limitations in it; all respondents were from Greater Boston, most from Boston itself, so the western Mass experience is not covered; most were women, so the male experience is underrepresented; most were on the younger side of older, so while the age range was 66 to 90, the median was 69.
Welcome
Luc Schuster, Executive Director, Boston Indicators
Research Presentation
Laura Quinby, Associate Director of Research, Employee Benefits and Labor Markets, Center for Retirement Research at Boston College
Kelly Harrington, Senior Research Manager, Boston Indicators
Reflections on the Research
Jacqueline Linton, Director of External Affairs, Central Boston Elder Services
Audience Q&A
Luc Schuster, Executive Director, Boston Indicators (Moderator)
One immediately clear takeaway, especially pertinent in an era of heedless demolition of federal programs, is the heavy role Social Security plays in these seniors’ lives. It is essential. Yet not enough. Many still have to work somewhat or rely on state subsidies for health care, rent, or food. Only two of the 29 interviewees had a 401(k) savings account, and one had an IRA. A few others had had such retirement savings but had needed to draw them down early to meet emergency needs.
Another invaluable public resource: subsidized housing. Most who were interviewed are renters, with housing set at a percentage of their income, a key strategy to maintain stable housing and avoid homelessness. Some, however, are caught in an income gap—they make too much for subsidized housing but cannot afford market rate. The homeowners interviewed appreciated the stability of a mortgage, but all expressed anxiety about rising real estate taxes threatening their ability to stay in place. Universally, maintaining housing is the top economic priority for low-income seniors, and they will ignore food or medicine needs to pay for it.
These older residents also live more modestly than in their working years out of necessity. Many newer retirees noted that retirement isn’t merely a financial adjustment but a psychological and identity adjustment, which also brought many changes and challenges around family relations.
Jacqueline Linton, Director of External Affairs at Central Boston Elder Services (which referred some of the interviewees) spoke next, offering another frontline view. “The report captured the reality of our community members. Retirement isn’t what they thought it would be. They thought they could manage on their retirement, but find they need subsidies, especially on housing. Many receive just the minimum Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefit of $29. That is not enough to last the month, and we get calls saying, ‘I have no food…’.” Linton went on to note that many residents don’t know there are resources available. Or where to find help for needs less obvious than food and shelter. “There are people suffering incontinence but can’t afford diapers; people who can’t sleep in bed because their 40-year-old mattress is hurting their back. One elderly gentleman called to say his microwave was broken and he needed a new one because he’s not allowed to cook for medical reasons. Where else could he go to ask for that?” She emphasized the importance of expanding resources and making sure people know where and how to get help. “And we need to teach them how to advocate for themselves. When they tell their own story to legislators, it makes a much bigger impact than when I share their story.” (By the way, Older Adult Lobby Day is May 13….)
Boston Indicators Executive Director Luc Schuster started further conversation with Linton, Harrington, and Quinby, exploring how money flowed intergenerationally, potential policy focus areas, and Social Security outlooks.
Linton observed there are cultural differences on generational support—for some the expectation is the older generation will leave some kind of inheritance for the younger; for others it’s expected that adult children will care for aging parents. “We try to push that it’s not a shame for anyone to ask for help, especially resources outside the family. It’s what it's there for, you should tap into it.”
Indeed, Schuster noted that from a policy perspective, the ideal would be to support seniors systemically so they don’t have to strain other family members, and asked Quinby what policies we should focus on.
The most powerful levers are at the federal level, she said, especially Social Security. “Unfortunately, right now, policy is uncertain, so it’s really important for the state to step in and do what it can to support older adults.” She highlighted two ongoing efforts: expanding the property tax deferral program for low-income homeowners and making it more flexible; and creating a statewide auto-IRA program targeting people in their working years whose employer doesn’t offer a retirement savings plan. These are meaningful policy changes, though they won’t solve the immediate needs of today’s seniors.
The federal landscape and Social Security loom top of mind for many. Quinby said, “It is facing two major challenges. One is longstanding: The Social Security Trust Fund is projected to deplete reserves in the 2030s. That triggers a 20 percent reduction for everyone. We anticipate policy changes before depletion is reached, but we won’t know what that’ll look like until the grand bargain happens. And that’ll probably be at the 11th hour.” However, a more acute challenge comes in recent and ongoing disruptions to the Social Security Administration (SSA) itself. “It was already understaffed and is even more so now. This means longer wait times when you call. Closing field offices means people will have to travel farther. Social Security is such a lifeline for so many people, just making sure SSA has the resources to do its job is critically important.”