Homeowners above the age of 55 are making up an increasing share of those who have remodeling work done on their homes, according to a report by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. However, many existing homes lack accessibility for people with mobility issues and few homeowners are addressing these issues in their renovations.

Abbe Will, a research analyst at the Joint Center for Housing Studies and author of the report "Aging in Place: Implications for Remodeling," says many older homeowners wish to remain in their home rather than move out. Will says this trend will result in an increased demand for remodeling in existing homes, while an increase in older populations will drive the construction of new homes with accessible features.

The Joint Center for Housing Studies previously projected that the number of households in the United States with adults over the age of 65 will increase by 35 percent, or 9 million, between 2010 and 2020. These households are also expected to increase by 75 percent, or 19.3 million, by 2030.

This increase in older households is driven by the aging of the Baby Boomer generation, defined in the report as those born between 1945 and 1964. The Joint Center for Housing Studies anticipates that there will be a corresponding increase in demand for homes that are affordable, accessible, located near amenities and transportation, and coordinated with support services.

Some homeowners seek to move to a smaller or more accessible home as they age, but the recent preference has been to retain independence and familiar surroundings by staying in the one's current home. A 2005 AARP report determined that 84 percent of people over the age of 50 wanted to remain in their home as long as possible. A more recent survey by the organization of people over the age of 45 found that 86 percent wanted to remain in their home as long as possible, and three-quarters of the respondents strongly agreed with this statement.

However, the Joint Center for Housing Studies estimates that a large number of older homeowners are living in housing that is inadequate for their needs. It estimates that 44 percent of the 25 million homeowners over the age of 65 require accessibility features to get around the home or use the kitchen, bathroom, or other home features without assistance.

Will says that only 9 percent of households under the age of 35 have home accessibility needs, but the share increases significantly with age. Half of households between the ages of 75 and 84 have accessibility needs, along with almost 70 percent of households ages 85 and older.

More spending

Remodeling for aging in place is most likely to take place when an older homeowner is still working and after adult children have moved out. At this time, they are also more likely to have disposable income and significant home equity to draw on for renovations.

Homeowners between the ages of 35 and 55 have usually accounted for the majority of spending on home renovations, but they were eclipsed by homeowners over the age of 55 in 2013. In that year, this age group made up 47 percent of home improvement spending, or $90 billion. Will says that while some of this growth is due to an increasing number of people entering this age group, the average spending per owner has also increased from $1,800 to $2,300 between 2001 and 2013.

Factors contributing to this spending include more people continuing to work later in life, a lower average loss in net worth among older households during the Great Recession, increased homeownership rates, and a general preference to age in place.

Popular projects

While a 2013 survey by the Demand Institute found that 45 percent of homeowners over the age of 55 said one reason for undertaking their renovations was to make it easier to live in the home, other motivations took higher priority. These reasons included increasing the value (78.9 percent), upgrading home components (76.8 percent), improving energy efficiency (63.4 percent), and updating the home's style (61 percent).

Will says kitchen and bathroom remodels are often the focus of remodels that improve accessibility, along with wider hallways and doors, no-step entries, and locating the bedroom and bathroom on the first floor. In the Demand Institute survey, 54.5 percent of homeowners over the age of 55 were planning to remodel the bathroom and 45.4 percent were planning to remodel the kitchen.

However, few older homeowners were focused specifically on accessibility in their home improvement projects. Eighty-eight percent said they considered it very important to be able to stay in their home as they grow older, but only 36 percent said it was very important that their home be accessible to people with disabilities or special health needs.

For existing accessibility features, homeowners were most likely to have a full bathroom on the first floor. Eighty-nine percent of respondents in the 2011 American Housing Survey said they had this feature, while 73 percent said they had a bedroom on the first floor. Sixty-two percent said they had no steps between rooms or a wheelchair-accessible bathroom.

Accessible entrances were less common, with only 42.5 percent saying they had a no-step entry. Thirty-two percent said they had a wheelchair-accessible kitchen, and 19 percent said they had grab bars in the bathroom.

Combinations of multiple features were rarer. About one-third of homes had a bedroom and full bathroom as well as a no-step entry, but the share of homes with these features and no steps between rooms fell to 22.8 percent. Only 6.8 percent of homeowners said they had those features as well as a wheelchair-accessible kitchen or bathroom.

Homeowners who said aging in place is a motivation for their renovations were prepared to spend more on these improvements, with 78 percent saying they expected to spend more over the next three years on remodels compared to the prior three years. Will estimates that this will result in a cumulative increase in spending on remodeling among homeowners age 55 and older by almost $17 billion through 2016.

The expense of aging in place remodels depends on the extent of the work. Will says a major renovation to the kitchen or bathroom can cost $40,000 or more, while projects such as widening doorways and installing a raised toilet typically cost less than $1,200.

Older homes

Aging homes are adding another layer of complexity to home renovations, as the median age of owner-occupied housing stock in 2011 was 35 years old. Older homes are much less likely to include basic accessibility features, with only 13 percent of homes built before 1920 including a no-step entry and a bathroom and bedroom on the first floor.

Will says older homes are disproportionately located in the Northeast and Midwest. Sixty-four percent of the housing in the Northeast was built before 1970, while only 13 percent was built after 1990. The report says 71.3 percent of households over the age of 65 in the Northeast are living in inaccessible homes, compared to 50.6 percent in the South and 51.6 percent in the West.

For this reason, Will says new construction in the Northeast and Midwest is less likely to meet the demand for accessible housing. The report estimates that 40 percent of new households over the age of 65 in these regions will not have their needs met by new construction. As a result, homeowners in these regions will be more likely to rely on retrofitting their current property to meet accessibility needs.

Will says additional research will be needed to present a larger picture of the effect of an aging population on home improvement. These issues include the amount of new construction and remodeling done specifically to meet accessibility needs, the share of older homes being improved for accessibility, the share of older homeowners moving to more accessible housing, and how accessibility features affect the resale value of a home.