Survey: Most Americans Plan to Keep Homes in Retirement

Over 70 percent of American retirees say they will hang on to their homes rather than sell, according to the latest Principal Financial Well-Being Index.

Most retirees included in the survey have their homes completely paid off (60 percent). While the trend of reverse mortgages to fund retirement may be catching on somewhat, the majority of retirees (78 percent) and working American homeowners (76 percent) surveyed for the Index said they have not considered taking out a reverse mortgage or selling their home to help fund retirement.

The Principal Financial Well-Being Index revealed that 67 percent of workers and 52 percent of retirees are concerned about their long-term financial future. Top financial concerns of workers were being able to enjoy the same quality of life during retirement (39 percent), the ability to afford good medical care (39 percent) outliving their savings (32 percent), and the rising cost of inflation reducing their purchasing power (28 percent).

As for retirees, the ability to afford good medical care (29 percent) was their chief concern, followed by outliving savings (24 percent), and the ability to pay for basic necessities (21 percent).

Harris Interactive conducted The Principal Financial Well-Being Index survey online among 1,214 American workers and 554 retirees from August 1 - 7, 2007.