Determinants of Future Housing Preferences of Portuguese Ageing Adults

According to the WHO (World Health Organization), between 2000 and 2050, the world population aged over 60 years will increase from 605 million to 2 billion individuals. The elderly, when asked about where they want to age, express the desire to remain in their homes, so we must give individuals the opportunity and conditions so that they can age where they want and manage to prepare for their ageing. In this context, Ageing in Place emerges as the first option due to the advantages of social inclusion and emotional reward that, in most situations, it brings with it. The main objective of this study is to analyse which sociodemographic characteristics and factors justify the choice of older people and future older people from an inland region of Portugal to age at home. This is a quantitative, cross-sectional, descriptive and exploratory study aimed to analyse the data collected through two questionnaire surveys, which were applied in people living in the community (N = 484), in several municipalities of the districts of Castelo Branco, Guarda and Portalegre, under the PerSoParAge Project. In a sample with an average age of 71.28 years, ranging from 55 to 99 years old, it was found that age, education, the existence of someone who can help in case of illness/disability and the best state of health are related to the option of wanting to stay at home during aging.