FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Baby boomers planning an active, independent retirement need to consider bathrooms and bus stops as well as stocks, bonds and health care plans, researchers at the University of Arkansas say. A recent survey funded by the Universal Design Project, an outreach program of the UA School of Architecture, shows that the next generation of retirees is overlooking a key factor to aging ­— housing.

Arkansas leads the nation in poverty, aging and disability statistics, making it a window into the nation’s future.

The survey, conducted through randomly selected phone interviews with 600 Arkansas households last May, found that an overwhelming 95 percent of boomers (those born between 1943 and 1963) believe that they will maintain an independent lifestyle, although 81 percent acknowledge that their health will decline as they age. Only half believed that neighborhood design would impact their lifestyle, and one in four dismissed the importance of home design on their ability to live independently.

“With all of the media’s focus on health care and retirement, there appears to be a lack of awareness about housing and neighborhood design for older adults,” said Kory Smith, an architecture professor who directs the Universal Design Project. Smith developed the survey with Nann Miller and Jennifer Webb, both professors of interior design in the UA School of Human Environmental Sciences.

Neighborhoods matter, Smith says. In the car-oriented culture of the United States, the loss of driving privileges isolates many seniors. Shopping, socializing and visiting doctors and clinics are difficult for those living in suburban and remote areas with limited access to bus lines.

With the number of people over 65 expected to double in the next 25 years, small design changes could translate into major savings. Consider the bathroom. An elderly person in a wheelchair whose home is equipped with a standard tub may need costly home health assistance to bathe. If the bathroom has a roll-in stall, that person can live independently.

Brent Williams, a professor in the UA rehabilitation education and research program who assisted in data analysis, noted that grab bars and other relatively inexpensive items available at hardware stores extend the time that seniors can live independently.

“An extensive $5,000 retrofit that could install a walk-in shower would only be around the cost of one month of nursing home care,” he said. “You’re looking at exponential savings for taxpayers, and people get to stay in their home. It’s a win-win situation.”

“Nursing home care is more than double the cost of independent living. Long-term care is costing the federal government more than $150 billion per year as the first wave of boomers enter retirement,” Smith said.

The survey found that baby boomers’ responses were much more varied than other groups, making it challenging to anticipate their retirement needs. A few themes emerged, including a strong interest in outdoor activities and exercise. Of the groups surveyed, women were most aware of housing and neighborhood design on independent living.

“You know, many women are pregnant at some point,” said Jennifer Webb. “After that, you’re aware that the toilet stall isn’t wide enough, that it’s really difficult to walk up that flight of stairs.” Piloting strollers, caring for the elderly and running family errands — tasks traditionally undertaken by women, especially in the boomer generation — also may heighten women’s awareness of the role environment plays on lifestyle, Webb said.

The University of Arkansas’ Universal Design Project seeks to create better housing options for an aging population.

Of the households surveyed, 59 percent reported a family member having one or more long-term disabilities. This statistic has troubling implications for the rest of the United States. Arkansas is something of a canary in the coal mine: It has the highest rate of poverty, the third highest disability rate, the fifth highest percentage of Social Security disability recipients and the seventh highest percentage of residents 60 and older.

“A lot of the demographic trends that we anticipate on the national level due to the aging population are already happening in Arkansas,” Webb said. “We’re a little window into the future.”

Though the statistical picture painted by the survey is somewhat bleak, Smith is confident that good design now will change lives later on.

“This survey will allow us to design housing for middle income and lower income groups with specific information on their preferences and needs,” he said. “And that’s important, because they are the groups with the fewest choices in housing.”

To access the survey report, visit http://studioaid.org/ and then follow the link titled “publications.” Ultimately Smith, Webb and Williams plan to publish a book, tentatively titled Inclusive Housing, Arkansas: An Interdisciplinary Primer on Housing and Disability in the South.  The book will couple the survey findings with field research by Smith and five architecture students, who canvassed the state with cameras and sketchpads last summer to document regional housing styles and ad hoc modifications made by residents to accommodate disabilities. Using this data, they have generated prototypes for single-family and multi-family housing that promote aging in place. These prototypes will be showcased in the book and eventually, constructed as models for the building industry.

The Arkansas Health and Housing Survey is one of the initiatives of the UA Universal Design Project, which the School of Architecture established in 2004 to promote affordable, inclusive design in Arkansas. The UA Universal Design Project is sponsored by Arkansas Rehabilitation Services; the Arkansas Department of Health and Human Services, the Division of Aging and Adult Services; and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences’ Partners for Inclusive Communities.