Best Cities for Successful Aging | Ann Arbor, MI
Ann Arbor, MI
NO.
7
SCORE: 91.82
FOR AGES 65-79
NO. 7
SCORE: 91.23
FOR AGES 80+
NO. 9
SCORE: 92.00

Percent of Population 65+:  10.13%
Population 65+:  34,951
Total Population:  344,791

Indicator Rank Score Average
Score		 Percent
+/-
General 226 68.15 73.42 -7.18 %
Health Care 5 89.61 44.52 101.28 %
Wellness 89 83.13 81.83 1.59 %
Financial 34 80.83 73.98 9.26 %
Employment 52 68.58 60.67 13.04 %
Living Arrangements 240 45.43 57.25 -20.65 %
Transportation 7 86.49 71.36 21.20 %
Community Engagement 165 59.27 64.17 -7.64 %
(Three-tier color code: 1-50 Green, 51-208 Black, 209+ Red)

Nailed It: Nailed It!


Plethora of health-care services
  • The metro has a large pool of nurses, doctors, physical therapists, and orthopedic surgeons.
  • Many young professionals reside here, providing a steady flow of resources to fund senior services.
Excels in transportation
  • It has one of the highest rates of annual ridership on public transportation.
Learning environment
  • College enrollment is high.

Needs Work: Needs Work

Tough economy for seniors
  • Income growth has been slow for the five-year period.
  • Overall employment growth is slow, and the percentage of seniors employed is relatively small.
  • Small-business growth has stalled in the past five years.
Unhealthy choices
  • The metro has many fast-food outlets and high soda consumption.

Take Away:

The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor is one of the best in the nation and offers a raft of cultural and educational opportunities for residents. But living arrangements are expensive, and the economic environment makes it less than ideal for seniors in the market for a second career.
Indicator Drill-down graph load here Indicator Average graph will load here

General Indicators

General
Indicators
Indicator Rank Score Average
Score
Cost of Living 185 42.25 50.73
Crime Rate 90 32.29 29.75
Employee Growth 185 82.62 85.38
Unemployment Rate 89 48.04 45.11
Income Distribution 192 81.96 85.69
Weather 209 41.82 50.74
Fatal Car Crashes 27 31.19 19.95

Financial Indicators

Financial
Indicators
Indicator Rank Score Average
Score
Number of banks and financial institutions 160 44.39 50.04
Total bank deposits 66 4.23 4.22
Tax burden 112 75.11 72.8
Dependency Ratio 16 82.99 63.79
Index Growth of Small Businesses (2004-2009) 224 68.42 72.19
% of 65+ below poverty 21 58.74 40.17
Capital Gains as % of AGI 248 18.61 38.75
Indexed Income Growth 254 68.83 79.27
Amount of Reverse Mortgages 28 52.09 26.63

Transportation Indicators

Transportation
Indicators
Indicator Rank Score Average
Score
Mean Commute Time to Work 196 58.41 64.26
Number of Passenger Trips 6 60.14 11.84
Investment in Public/Senior Transportation 150 58.98 60.59
Number of Grocery, etc. 134 50.04 51.60
% of Households with Proximity to Grocery 78 98.60 97.85

Community Engagement Indicators

Community Engagement
Indicators
Indicator Rank Score Average
Score
% of Population over 65 237 29.70 40.08
Number of Museums, cultural, etc. 39 42.38 29.72
Senior Volunteer Rates 151 51.69 56.19
Number of Public Libraries 234 10.99 24.52
Number of YMCAs 204 5.46 15.76
Funding for Seniors 151 25.86 27.84

Employment Indicators

Employment
Indicators
Indicator Rank Score Average
Score
Number 65+ Employed 257 38.04 51.84
65+ Unemployment Rate 110 30.93 34.24
Employment growth in health,education,leisure and hospitality 212 64.20 67.87
Output of service/manufacturing 84 10.43 11.1
College Enrollment 16 66.04 29.38

Housing Indicators

Living Arrangements
Indicators
Indicator Rank Score Average
Score
Median House Price 207 33.63 45.08
Median Rental Price 226 47.78 62.99
% of Houses with 65+ Residents 244 37.11 50.14
Number of Nursing Beds 226 .48 2.52
Median Price Semi-Private Nursing Room 165 63.68 72.26
Number of People Providing Home health-care services 36 14.88 9.6
Continuing Care Facilities 143 12.42 17.11
Assisted Living Cost 109 70.27 69.79
Nursing-home rating 181 10.26 24.98

Medical Indicators

Health-care
Indicators
Indicator Rank Score Average
Score
Number of Doctors 3 71.42 14.13
Availability of Hospital Beds 33 43.36 27.86
% of Hospitals with JCAHO Accreditation 98 71.43 66.14
Expenses per Inpatient Day 135 51.70 56.66
Number of Long-Term Hospitals 259 .00 6.55
% of Hospitals with Geriatric Services 24 51.62 22.08
% of Hospitals with Rehabilitation Services 65 42.22 33.47
% of Hospitals with Alzheimer's Units 14 36.98 5.00
% of Hospitals with Hospice 14 49.80 15.49
% of Hospitals with Medical School Affiliation 28 48.98 21.94
% of Magnet Hospitals 259 .00 7.64
Number of Orthopedic Surgeons 6 47.16 14.15
Number of Mental Health Professionals 11 23.39 10.01
Number of Service Professionals (Nurses) 3 71.59 26.52
Number of Physical Therapists 4 80.57 36.34

Wellness Indicators

Wellness
Indicators
Indicator Rank Score Average
Score
Medicare Enrollment 215 86.99 90.36
Medicaid Eligible 29 79.29 61.72
Obesity Rate 80 49.46 48.33
Diabetes Rate 156 41.72 45.85
Alzheimer's Cases 124 36.69 36.22
Number of Caregivers 53 70.66 65.69
Life Expectancy at 65 84 70.49 69.25
% of Seniors Living in Family Households 160 75.40 77.26
Number of Fitness Centers 70 54.07 46.01
Number of fast food outlets 191 41.09 48.84
Soda Consumption 187 69.01 75.30
Number of Golf courses, skiing, marinas, bowling 71 25.78 21.57