Baby Boomer numbers growing as grandparents

April 21, 6:36 AMBaby Boomer ExaminerPaul Briand

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A growing number of today's grandparents are Baby Boomers and are more financially secure than in generations past, according to a first-of-its kind demographic study.

The information comes from noted demographer Peter Francese for Grandparents.com that was a surprise, they said, because "no prior study has fully explored the grandparent consumer segment."

The report detail offers a startling statistic for the "never grow old" Baby Boomers in how many are becoming grandparents and the pace at which that is happening.

"In 1990, the oldest Baby Boomer was just 44 years old and Boomer grandparents were few in number. However, by 2015 more than half of U.S. grandparents (59 percent) will be members of the Boomer generation," said the study.

Here is some information from the study on the age make-up of today's grandparents:

• Today, the median age of first-time grandparents is 50 for a woman, 54 for a man;
• 54 percent of all grandparents, almost 38 million, are younger than 65 years old;
• 51 percent of the grandparent population will be Baby Boomers by 2010.

Equally revealing was information relative to financial security of these Baby Boomer grandparents:

• This year the study estimates grandparents will spend $2 trillion. Of this, approximately $52 billion will go toward goods and services for their grandchildren;
• Spending by grandparents on their grandchildren has grown an average 7.6 percent per year since 2000, nearly double the average annual growth rate for consumers overall;
• Grandparents make 45 percent of the nation’s cash contributions to nonprofit organizations and account for 42 percent of all consumer spending on gifts.

"Today more than ever before, young families may need help with the expenses that come with raising children," said the study. "Fortunately, many grandparents have the resources (and seemingly the desire) to help with those expenses."