Over 50s worry to ‘make ends meet’
Rising energy, health and home maintenance costs are taking the joy out of Christmas for many older Australians, a new over 50s life sentiment measure has found. While the majority of older Australians report overall satisfaction with their lives, rising living costs have them worrying about making ends meet.
Rising energy, health and home maintenance costs are taking the joy out of Christmas for many older Australians, a new over 50s life sentiment measure has found.
While the majority of older Australians report overall satisfaction with their lives, rising living costs – from home maintenance to the weekly food shop – have them worrying about making ends meet, both now and into the future.
The biggest concern is the rising utility charges, with 83% of respondents reporting they are ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ worried about them.
The joint National Seniors Australia and Challenger project, the inaugural Seniors Sentiment Index, draws its findings from a survey of about 2,000 people, aged over 50 years.
National Seniors Australia chief executive, Michael O’Neill, says the findings confirm that despite growing societal wealth, times are tough in some quarters.
“Retirees on small, fixed incomes have little or no capacity to cover ballooning power bills or unexpected health care costs,” he says.
“This is particularly so at Christmas when they’re buying presents for grandchildren and spending time with friends and family.”
Challenger retirement incomes chairman, Jeremy Cooper, says the Index also confirms the impact of market conditions on the incomes of the over 50s.
“Shares remain volatile and bank deposit returns are heading south, making life an uphill battle for older Australians,” Mr Cooper adds.
Overall, almost 60% of respondents claim they are finding it more difficult to cover basic household expenses now than five years ago and 56% are not confident they can pay their bills five years from now.
“The onus is on governments to ensure state and federal concessions keep up with rising living costs, particularly basics such as utilities,” Mr O’Neill says.
He adds an interesting finding is that social wellbeing, rather than financial, reportedly has the greatest influence on overall life satisfaction.
The next Seniors Sentiment Index results will appear next year.
Read this year’s full Seniors Sentiment Index – A report by National Seniors Australia and Challenger.
