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Fraud, Personal Health Crises Top Terrorism as
Senior Citizen Fears
Sept. 9, 2004 - When asked to rank a list of fears,
Americans aged 62 –75 ranked fraud ahead of a health crises and
terrorism, according to a study commissioned by Financial Freedom, the
nation’s largest lender and servicer of reverse mortgages.
The results from the survey show that 37% of
seniors say they are afraid or at risk of fraud such as a con or
identity theft. A higher percentage of females -- 40% vs. 34% of males
-- indicated a fear of fraud. In addition, 46% of those who have not
developed a specific plan indicated a concern about fraud versus 36% who
used the help of a financial advisor to plan for retirement. Of the
seniors interviewed, 33% said they were afraid of fraud when they
planned their future themselves; while 28% of the seniors indicated a
fear of fraud when they had help from a friend or relative.
Following fraud, 28% of those surveyed indicated
that they feel unsafe from a health crisis such as a stroke or a heart
attack. Again, more women reported concern about a health crisis than
men, 33% and 24% respectively. The study also revealed that the less
seniors planned for retirement the more likely they are to be concerned
about a health crisis; 42% of those who have not planned for retirement
said they were afraid of a health crisis. By contrast, only 25% of the
seniors who indicated they had a retirement plan in place were concerned
about a health issue.
In addition, seniors were also asked if they felt
there was a general threat of attack on Americans and the United States
due to the increased attention surrounding terrorism.
Despite all the attention given to terrorism by the
media, seniors ranked it third with 27% of the group surveyed indicating
it is a fear. A higher percentage of females -- 31% vs. 22% of males --
indicated terrorism was a worry.
In addition, of the seniors surveyed in late March,
57% believed a terrorist attack on Americans outside of the United
States was very likely within the next three months. By contrast, 18% of
the seniors said an attack on American soil is very likely during the
same time while only 1% believed such an attack would occur in their
communities.
When asked to identify locations where they felt
the least safe from a terrorist attack, 47% of seniors said large
tourist locations during a major holiday and 45% said major
transportation hubs. By contrast, 61% of seniors felt safe visiting
their local church, 53% felt safe at their local shopping mall and 46%
felt safe at community gatherings.
The study commissioned found that while Getting
Struck by a Bolt of Lightning, was at the bottom of the list of fears,
9% of those surveyed still indicated that it is a concern.
These findings come from the Senior Sentiment
Survey, a study done last Spring for Financial Freedom that explores the
financial, social and quality of life aspects of older Americans.
“Since our market is exclusively older Americans,
it’s crucial for us to continually seek to gain a better understanding
of the issues that are important to them,” said James Mahoney, CEO of
Financial Freedom. “Armed with fresh information, our team will be
better positioned to help seniors make informed decisions about their
retirement and life planning.”
The findings presented in this report are based on
an online survey of 1,370 U.S. seniors aged 62-75 conducted from March
15-19, 2004 by Harris Interactive. Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity,
education, region and income were weighted where necessary to align them
with population proportions. Propensity weighting was done to adjust for
respondents’ propensity to be online. In theory, with probability
samples of this size, one could say with 95% certainty that the results
have a statistical precision of ±3 percentage points of what they would
be if the entire U.S. senior population (aged 62-75) had been polled
with complete accuracy. This online sample was not a probability sample.
The survey also assessed seniors’ attitudes about
the U.S. economy, measured their views about their own financial
situation, and considered their level of satisfaction with their
personal lives, work, children and communities.
-- View the complete Senior
Sentiment Study -- (PDF
document)
About Financial
Freedom™
Financial Freedom™
is a founding member of the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders
Association. NRMLA is a nonprofit trade association, based in
Washington, DC, whose mission is to support the continued evolution of
reverse mortgages as an important financial option for senior homeowners
while educating both its members and consumers about the varied
applications of this unique loan. For more information, visit the
Financial Freedom Web site at
www.financialfreedom.com.
Members sign a Code
of Conduct pledging to abide by guidelines that assure fair, ethical,
and respectful practices in offering and making reverse mortgages to
seniors. For more information, visit the NRMLA Web site at
www.reversemortgage.org.
Financial Freedom™,
based in Irvine, California, is the largest originator of reverse
mortgages in the United States. Financial Freedom™ originated $1 billion
of home value in reverse mortgages in 2002 and has made more than 30,000
reverse mortgage loans totaling more than $5 billion in home value.
Financial Freedom™ is now the largest servicer of reverse mortgages with
a servicing portfolio of approximately 32,000 loans. Lehman Brothers
Bank, FSB is a subsidiary of Lehman Brothers, the global investment
bank. The Bank provides a full range of community banking services to
individuals in Delaware, as well as consumer financial services and
products, such as mortgage and deposit products, to high-net-worth
clients. Headquartered in Delaware, the Bank is expanding its
capabilities through the Internet to provide banking services
nationally, and plans to offer its products through strategic
partnerships with retail and financial organizations throughout the
country. Additional information on Lehman Brothers Bank and its services
can be found by visiting its website at
www.lehmanbank.com.
About Harris
Interactive®
Harris Interactive®
(www.harrisinteractive.com)
is a worldwide market research and consulting firm best known for
The Harris Poll®,
and for pioneering the Internet method to conduct scientifically
accurate market research. Headquartered in Rochester, New York, Harris
Interactive combines proprietary methodologies and technology with
expertise in predictive, custom and strategic research. The Company
conducts international research from its U.S. offices and through wholly
owned subsidiaries—London-based
HI Europe (www.hieurope.com),
Paris-based Novatris
and Tokyo-based Harris
Interactive Japan—as well as
through the Harris Interactive Global Network of independent market- and
opinion-research firms.
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