Elderly's Income and Rural Development: Some Cautions

Attracting older immigrants is often suggested as a way to stimulate local economies. The applicability of this strategy is limited, however, by the number of elderly of adequate means who are willing to move. Providing services to the local elderly poor may be a more pressing issue for some rural areas than attracting additional elderly. A further caveat: areas where migrating or local elderly are concentrated may be vulnerable to changes in the government programs on which the elderly rely for income