Income and living arrangements among poor aged singles

It is generally agreed that income plays an important part in determining the living arrangements of unmarried old persons. Numerous studies of later life have concluded that large numbers of old persons live with their friends, adult children, and other relatives simply because they cannot afford to maintain separate homes of their own. The literature contains few references, however, to the effect of income change on the living arrangements of persons after they have become old and poor. This article focuses on the correlates of living arrangements among unmarried older welfare recipients in 1973, and then examines the effect of income change on living arrangements in 1974. Logit analysis identifies several patterns of household change associated with income increase and decrease but, overall, the capacity to care for oneself was the best predictor of living arrangement in 1974.