Older folks are buying more items from catalogs but middle-aged people are ringing up the bills, according to Abacus Direct’s just-released Consumer Catalog Buying Trend Report. Abacus studied U.S. catalog-buying households from May 1999 to May 2000.

Households run by people age 66 to 75 have the most transactions, making four catalog purchases a year. Those in the youngest age group, 18 to 25, make the fewest

Annual report analyzes consumer catalog-buying habits by age group OLDER FOLKS are buying more items from catalogs but middle-aged people are ringing up the bills, according to Abacus Direct’s just-released Consumer Catalog Buying Trend Report. Abacus studied U.S. catalog-buying households from May 1999 to May 2000.

Households run by people age 66 to 75 have the most transactions, making four catalog purchases a year. Those in the youngest age group, 18 to 25, make the fewest – only 2.2 per year.

The older group, though, spends less on catalogs – just $338 per household. The biggest spenders are those 46 to 55 years old, at $415 annually.

From then on, as the age range drops, the average dollar amount spent per household falls accordingly.

Consumers age 56 to 65 spend $412; 36- to-45-year-olds lay out $373; and 26- to-35-year-olds spend $311. Households with the youngest members buy the least ($206).

Catalogers use the report as an industry benchmark, said Riad Shalaby, Abacus Direct’s vice president of research, who headed the study.

The company’s report also revealed that 25- to 65-year-olds tended to make more transactions, spend more for each transaction and buy more per household than in the previous year.

Not surprisingly, as household income increases, the number of purchases does too, with those in the $125,000-plus range buying 4.8 items a year.

The report is based on information from Abacus’ database of 3.5 billion transactions from 90 million households. Broomfield, CO-based Abacus is a division of DoubleClick Inc., New York.