Retirees Hanging a Shingle For Their Own Business

Four out of 10 people in business for themselves are older than 50, AARP data shows. This as the number of older people who are self-employed has been inching up for several years, even as the overall number of self-employed Americans has declined, according to StartupJournal.com.

Examining the numbers behind a startup business shows why this option may be so attractive to those contemplating retirement. According to the AARP study, the self-employed have higher household incomes and financial wealth than their wage and salary counterparts. Among those age 51 and older, financial wealth averages about $740,000 among the self-employed, compared with $240,000 for wage and salary workers. At the median, the contrast is for the self-employed-$312,000 compared with $119,000 for wage and salary workers.

At the same time though, t he self-employed are less likely to have employer-provided health insurance than their wage and salary counterparts. Among self-employed workers age 51 and older, 34% have employer-provided health insurance compared with 67% of wage and salary workers of the same age.

“The growing number of self-employed older people is being propelled by the number of Baby Boomers heading into retirement,” says Tony Lee, editor in chief of StartupJournal.com. “Older workers may be attracted to self- employment as a transition to retirement or to supplement retirement income.”