The family is an important resource in elderly care. It is of great interest if persons who might be in need of care in the future would use this resource. Our study assessed wishes and expectations regarding family care in a representative sample of the general population (≥ 45 years, N = 1,445) using questionnaires. Logistic regressions were performed to analyze the potential impact on the willingness to use or provide family care. One quarter of the participants reported experience in family care. In case of own need 62.9% of participants would prefer care provided by relatives and 56.7% would prefer professional care. Participants are more likely to use family care if they report having relatives, are experienced in care of relatives or do not associate old age with being a burden, e.g. report low values in the image of age "being a burden/demanding". Perceived willingness of the relatives to provide care is more likely if there is little regional distance to the relatives, in male participants and if participants talked about future care with their relatives. Besides structural factors, negative images of old age might have a negative influence on the willingness to use family care. Talking about care in old age seems to have a positive impact.