Most older people continue to live in own homes, new stats show

NEW FIGURES REVEAL TRENDS ON THE GROWING NUMBER OF OLDER PEOPLE AND THEIR LIVING SITUATIONS Almost a third of people aged 65 or over in France live alone in their own home, as do almost half

of those aged 85 or over, show newly-released figures from statistics bureau INSEE. The figures, released on February 13, and based on 1990-2021 census data, show: * 32.4% of people aged 65

or over live alone in their own home (a slight increase from the 31.1% who did so in 1990) * 29.8% of people aged between 65 and 84 live alone in their own home * 45.4% of people aged 85 or

over do the same Read also: What help is there to adapt homes in France for old age? Read more: What are options for older people and ‘wearable’ alarms in France? OLDER PEOPLE LIVING WITH

RELATIVES Only 5.9% of people aged 65 or over live at home with one or more relatives (not including a spouse). This greatly depends on location, however. Those aged 85 or over are more

likely to live with relatives (not including a spouse) in: * The French overseas departments: 29% * Corsica: 22% * The south-west, particularly in Gers: 14%. Read more: House sharing in

France can benefit retired people and the young  OLDER PEOPLE LIVING WITH SPOUSES When spouses are taken into account, men are much more likely than women to live at home as a couple in

their older age. * 71% of men aged 65 or over live in a couple * 45% of women aged 65 or over live in a couple * 55% of men aged 85 or over live in a couple * 14% of women aged 85 or over

live in a couple CARE HOMES AND INSTITUTIONS The figures also showed how many older people live in a care home or elderly institution, with those aged over 95 much more likely to do so.

Living in a care home or institution under the age of 85 is very rare, INSEE said. * Just 5% of people aged 80-84 do so * 12% of people aged 85-89 do so * 25% of people aged 90-94 do so * In

contrast, 42% of those aged 95 or over live in a care home or elderly institution Yet, people aged 85-89 are less likely to live in an institution as of 2021, than they were in 1990. On the

other hand, those aged 95 or over are now more likely to live in institutions.  MORE OLDER PEOPLE IN FRANCE The number of people aged 65 or over in France is increasing overall, the figures

also show.  As of 2021, there were: * 13.9 million people in France aged 65 or over  * This is 21% of the population, a sharp increase compared to the 14% in 1990.  INSEE predicts that the

number of people aged 65 and over could rise to 27% by 2050. Read also: How do new French life expectancy stats compare with US and UK? Read more: People in France living longer in good

health - and for longer than in UK and US As of 2021, of the people aged 65 or over, INSEE states: Read also: More than 31,000 in 2024: Spectacular rise in centenarians in France Read more:

Long life: Which areas of France are set to have many centenarians and why? There are more women than men in the over-65s category, with men representing 43% of the age group, with 32% of

those aged 85 or over. This is because women still tend to live longer than men, INSEE said.