For many, when it comes to retirement, aging in place is the big dream. Last year, the AARP surveyed thousands of older adults in the U.S. with 75% responding that they want to spend their golden years at home, rather than an assisted living facility.
Unfortunately for Georgia’s aging population, according to recent rankings, retirement facilities might be better bets.
The best states to age in place for 2025
Aging in place refers to a style of golden year living. Instead of moving into an assisted living facility, people that age in place stay in their own homes to live more independently.
To determine the 50 best states to age in place this year — as well as Washington, D.C. — Seniorly first rated each area across 10 metrics. Using data from the Census Bureau, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Meals on Wheels and more, the company scored for things like quality of home care, road safety and walkability.
Georgia, for instance, ranked highly (16th) for the total home health agencies with 4.5 or higher ratings metric. It’s going to be a hefty trip for Georgia’s older adults looking to settle down in the country’s best state to age in place overall this year though. Utah took the top spot.
“Seniors in Utah face some of the lowest risks of social isolation, with only 35.7% living alone — ranking 3rd nationally,” according to the rankings report. “The state also enjoys minimal precipitation, averaging just 10.1 inches of rain and snowfall per year (No. 3), and leads the nation in smart technology use, with 37% of residents interacting with household equipment via the internet.”
North Dakota, New Jersey, Idaho and Texas finished out the top five overall rankings.
Where does Georgia rank?
The Peach State came in 48th, ranking it in the bottom 6% of the country for aging in place. Georgia scored especially low across a few different metrics: home-delivered meals (50th), seniors per home health care aide (46th) and average walk score across the largest cities (43rd).
Florida ranked worst in the country overall mostly because of high housing costs, followed by Kentucky, North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama.
“Kentucky has one of the highest rates of fatal car crashes involving seniors, with 28.2 deaths per 100,000 drivers,” according to the report. “In North Carolina, older adults spend an average of 195 minutes in the emergency room, longer than in most other states.
“Georgia struggles with meal delivery for seniors, providing services to only 957 per 100,000 older adults under the Older Americans Act. Meanwhile, in Alabama, just 14.6% of the population has adopted smart home technology, potentially making it more difficult for seniors to age in place.”
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