Baby Boomer Generation Urged To Invest In Stairlifts

Many of us have heard the phrase “yeah boomer,” from millennials resentful at the living standards the older generation enjoyed, which they believe have not been passed down to those coming after them. But if many boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964) are indeed coming up to retirement age with significant assets, how should they use them?

According to an article by US-based website Markets Today, boomers who have reasonable means should include stairlifts among the things they invest in. This, it advises, should be undertaken alongside other steps to maintain independence at home in later life.

This was a recommendation given by Dennis Shirzikov, a professor of finance, accounting and economics at the City University of New York. He said: “Items like stairlifts, walk-in tubs, and ramps are not just conveniences; they are essential for safe ageing in place.”

Some parts of the article were specific to American boomers, such as advice about investing in the right health insurance schemes, not something so relevant to the UK except for a minority who have the means and desire to go private instead of using the NHS.

Others, however, would appear to be entirely relevant to those approaching retirement age wherever they live, with an investment in stairlifts – even if they don’t need them just yet – future-proofing a home to ensure those in their 60s and still quite mobile now can go on living there when they may not be able to handle the stairs in their 70s and 80s.

This is, of course, a benefit of home ownership, one of those areas of inter-generational contention due to this declining over recent decades, but it may also mean that if some people now will only get to own a property when they inherit it from their parents, at least they could be fitted with stairlifts and other devices to make them good homes to retire to.