MOST OF US can expect to live longer than ever before. This longevity bonus gives us more time to build the society we want, and we must start by considering how we’ll live as we grow old.

But for starters, we need to shift our thinking about what it is we really desire if we want to age affordably and live well.  We need to stop thinking about aging in place, but instead shift our thinking and planning towards aging in community.

There are two disturbing trends we need to consider:

First, most people have insufficient income and savings to meet ever-growing housing and medical costs as they get older. According to Fidelity Investments, the average baby boomer will need after-tax income of $4,800 per month starting at age 67 and will live to 92. Income from social security, pensions, and savings is projected to make up $2,700 of this amount. That leaves a monthly income gap of $2,100, a shortfall of 44 percent, with housing and health care costs key contributors to this family budget deficit. In Massachusetts, high housing costs have resulted in our ranking 49^th among the states in elder economic security.