A new report from the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies discusses how Black-White disparities in income, wealth, and homeownership have led to major inequities in the current economic conditions for Black seniors.
According to the report, some 18 percent of African Americans ages 65 and older lived in poverty in 2022 — over twice the rate of their White counterparts, at roughly 8 percent. This is partly due to disparities in Social Security benefits. In 2024, Black men age 60 and older had a projected median monthly Social Security benefit of $1,685, compared to $2,179 for White men. The same figures for Black and White women were $1,557 and $1,692, respectively. For Black women, this projected Social Security benefit remains only modestly above the 2024 federal poverty threshold for an elderly individual.
Economic disparities among American seniors is also attributed to prior access to wealth-building opportunities. Black workers ages 51 to 64 are the least likely among all racial and ethnic groups to hold a retirement account. When they do have such an account, their median balance is far below that of similarly aged White workers ($35,000 for Black Americans versus $80,000 for White Americans). Disparities in savings exists even among households with relatively high incomes. Among Americans with incomes of $75,000 or more, 77 percent of Black Americans have saved for retirement, compared to 87 percent of non-Black Americans. Furthermore, Black Americans are significantly less likely than White Americans to receive an inheritance. A study from 2023 revealed that 17 percent of White households expected to receive an inheritance, compared to just 6 percent of Black households.
There are also structural barriers impacting the economic security of Black seniors. Among retirees who left the workforce earlier than planned, a prior study found 44 percent of Black adults did so because of a health problem or disability, compared to 32 percent of non-Black retirees. Additionally, among retirees who worked for pay after retiring, 66 percent of Black adults did so because they needed to make ends meet, compared to 35 percent of their non-Black counterparts. Black retirees are also likely than White retirees to have a financial advisor (36 percent versus 47 percent).
“Black retirement insecurity reflects the cumulative effects of the racial wealth divide, lower earnings, lower homeownership, reduced financial buffers, greater debt burdens, and unequal access to intergenerational wealth transfer,” the authors write. “A stronger conversation about retirement must therefore begin with a broader understanding of how economic security is built over time. Retirement is not just about what happens at the end of a person’s working life. It is shaped by whether households had the opportunity to build wealth, withstand shocks, and pass resources across generations long before retirement begins.”
