BEIJING, April 16 (Xinhua) -- Compared with staying in nursing homes, over 84 percent of Chinese senior citizens said they prefer to stay at home and receive elderly-care services in their own communities, a research report said Tuesday.

The research, jointly carried out by the China Research Center on Aging and Internet company Tencent, found that elderly people in the country's rural areas showed an even stronger will to stay in their homes in their old age.

It said that despite the rapid growth of nursing institutions in China, most people still see community-based services as their first choice, suggesting taking the development in this regard as a focus in the future.

Official statistics revealed that as of the end of 2018, China has a population of 249 million aged 60 or above.

The report suggested a growing consumption power of China's aging population and a narrowing gap between urban and rural areas in this regard.