88% of Seoul Citizens Support Extending Retirement Age
Majority Consider "Elderly" to Begin at Age 70
It was found that 88% of Seoul citizens agree with extending the retirement age. Under current law, the standard age for elderly is 65, but the majority of citizens responded that they consider people elderly starting from age 70.
Seoul City announced the results of the "2024 Seoul Survey" containing these findings on the 9th. This survey was conducted over one month from August 16 to September 15 last year, targeting 20,000 households, 5,000 citizens, and 2,500 foreign residents living in Seoul.
The survey results showed that the average age citizens consider as "elderly" was 70.2 years. In particular, more than half, 51.7%, answered that people aged 70 to 74 are elderly. Among respondents aged 65 and older, the average age considered elderly was 72.3 years.
Regarding perceptions of extending the retirement age due to aging population, 87.8% responded that they "agree." This means that 9 out of 10 Seoul citizens support extending the retirement age. Among those aged 65 and above, the agreement rate was even higher at 92.7%.
The most appropriate retirement age was 65 to 69 years, accounting for 40.5%. For the appropriate monthly living expenses after retirement, "2.5 million won or more" accounted for 53.3%, exceeding half. This is a rising trend compared to 45.6% in 2022 and 47.1% in 2023.
According to the survey of 20,000 households and 36,280 household members in Seoul, the proportion of single-person households was the highest at 39.3% among all households in Seoul. Among single-person households, those aged 60 and above accounted for 40.6%, followed by those in their 20s to 30s at 34.9%, and those in their 40s to 50s at 24.5%.
Households living with pets accounted for 19.5%. Among these, single-person households were 36.4%, two-person households 29.5%, three-person households 19.9%, and households with four or more members 14.1%. Among households living with pets, 77.8% raised dogs, and 19.2% raised cats.
The report analyzing the 2024 Seoul Survey released this year can be found on the Seoul Open Data Plaza website.
Kang Ok-hyun, Director of the Digital City Bureau of Seoul City, stated, "We will utilize the Seoul Survey results, which can grasp the quality of life and living conditions of Seoul citizens, as basic data for city administration and policy formulation to provide citizens with a better daily life while creating a sustainable and competitive Seoul."
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