Senior real estate specialists want everyone to know: it’s not just about 30-year fixed mortgage rates.

For a number of years now, the shortage of homes for sale in New Hampshire and across the nation has been partly blamed on fewer senior citizens opting to put their long-time homes up for sale.

The common refrain: many seniors who obtained low mortgages rates years ago would prefer to hang on to what they currently have rather than downsize to a new home with significantly higher mortgage rates.

In addition, many seniors – as well as non-retired empty nesters and late-stage Baby Boomers getting up there in age – are hesitant to sell if it means purchasing a new home amid fierce competition for what few homes are currently on the market, some say.

While those two factors – higher interest rates and a tougher environment to buy – are true, there are many other factors contributing to elderly residents’ decision to stay put and not sell their homes, said local real estate officials.

‘What People Want and Need’

They include a simple desire to remain in a familiar home and community, near family and friends; increased home services that make it easier for older citizens to live independently; lack of affordable assisted-living and other senior-housing options; fear of change and a possible decline in the quality of life in new settings.

“It’s definitely about more than interest rates,” said Karen Kulberg, a senior real estate specialist at Better Homes and Gardens-Masiello Group. “It’s about so many other things. It’s about what people want and need.”

To be clear, today’s high mortgage rates and high demand for homes are indeed major factors for seniors opting to stay in their current homes.

Despite the widespread image of elderly people living in mortgage-free homes, an increasing number of homeowners 65 to 79 years old do in fact have mortgages on their properties, said Samara Scheckler, a senior research associate at the Harvard University Joint Center for Housing Studies. She noted about 40 percent of such residents had mortgages on their single-family homes and condos as of 2022.

And with the median price of a single-family home in New Hampshire now topping $500,000, today’s higher mortgage rates can easily make new purchases financially unfeasible for many elderly residents on fixed incomes.

In addition, not only is there an overall shortage of homes for sale in New Hampshire amid high demand for all types of properties, there’s an acute shortage of homes suitable for elderly people, industry officials say.

Such properties include single-story ranch homes, ground-floor condos and upper-floor units in condo buildings with elevators.

Kulberg said a ranch home across the street from where she lives in Hampton was recently put up for sale – and the open house was packed with elderly people eager to buy. The home later sold for 50 percent above asking price.

In addition to elderly people competing against each other for suitable homes, young first-time homebuyers have their eyes on the very same properties, Kulberg and other industry experts said.

“It’s very competitive out there,” Kulberg said. “It’s first-time buyers versus seniors.”

High Cost of Assisted Living

Kathy Baldridge, a senior real estate specialist at Coldwell Banker Realty and owner of Lifetime Estate Liquidations and Transitions LLC in Nashua, said another factor leading to elderly people staying put in their current  homes is the high cost of assistant-living and other senior-housing options.

She noted that assisted living today can cost anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000 per month. So even if seniors want to sell their current homes, the assisted-living and other senior-housing numbers simply don’t pencil out.

“Most can’t afford (assisted-living) prices,” she said. “It’s much cheaper for them to stay in their current homes.”

And if seniors can indeed afford pricy assisted-living, there’s yet another obstacle: years-long waiting lists to get into some desired units.

“The waiting lists have gotten worse over time,” Baldridge said, noting the large number of older people living in New Hampshire. “There’s not enough housing even for people who can afford assisted-living and community-living.”

Prepping Homes for Sale is Difficult and Expensive

Aside from the various financial concerns associated with changing homes, there’s also emotional barriers to selling off houses.

“They get overwhelmed by what needs to be done for a sale,” said Kathy Kaklamanos, a senior real estate specialist at Better Homes and Gardens-Masiello Group in Nashua. “It’s a lot of work to prepare a house for sale. At that age, many don’t have the willpower and energy to clean out the house.”

It’s not just all the clutter accumulated over the years. There’s also all the physical upgrades that need to be done to make a home more attractive to sell.

“In some cases, they have to spend money to make money – and they don’t always have the funds to pay (for those improvements),” she said.

The bottom line: many senior homeowners who initially think they’ll get high prices for their properties discover they may get considerably less unless they make major improvements at a time of escalating construction costs.

“So they decide to wait and stay where they are,” Kaklamanos said.

Another reason for seniors to stay in their long-time homes: the proliferation of a wide variety of home services that make it easier for them to live independently in their houses and condos.

Such services range from visiting-nurse care to grocery and pharmaceutical home deliveries.

Of course, there’s also the wide variety of every-day home products sold and delivered by Amazon and other e-commerce firms.

“And don’t forget elderly people are generally healthier today than they were (generations) ago,” Kulberg said. “They’re able to live longer in their homes.”

Support for Aging in Place

Christina FitzPatrick, state director of AARP New Hampshire, said for her group and others have long supported increased home services as a way to keep elderly people in their long-time homes and communities.

It’s all part of the “Aging in Place” concept that argues the best alternative for many seniors is often to remain at, or near, where they’ve been living for years, surrounded by people and places they know and love.

“Social isolation is a really big issue in the country and this state,” she said. “(Seniors) need social connections. And that’s one of the reasons why they want to stay in their homes and communities. It’s important for them.”

Sam Lattof, reporter at The Registry Review’s sister publication Banker & Tradesman, contributed to this report.