Residential Reasoning and the Tug of the Fourth Age

Where to grow older occupies the minds of many aging adults. This study examines how anticipation of the fourth age influences third-age residential reasoning. It also investigates the role of social relationships in choosing housing for later life.

Analyses were based on semi-structured interviews with 30 community-dwelling retirees aged 67-97 who were asked about preparations for the future, including housing.

Replies about future housing fell into two categories: preemptive and contingent. In preemptive reasoning, participants anticipated that their current homes would be suitable over the long term and explained why, while those engaged in contingent reasoning could imagine a possible future move to more supportive housing and even had destination places in mind. Both types of responses reflect residential reasoning that is ongoing and driven in large part by anticipation of fourth-age vulnerabilities. Peers influenced participants' thinking about whether, when, and where to move. Relationships with spouses and offspring were also factors commonly mentioned in residential reasoning, both in terms of sources of support and perceived obligations.

The fourth age is generally conceived as an experience of loss, but it also functions as a social imaginary. Our study suggests that the fourth age, both as a potential personal destiny and a social construct, influences housing decisions among those firmly in the third age. More attention in housing research to prudential anticipation of the fourth age as well as the relational aspects of residential reasoning would enhance understanding of late-life housing choices.