Where Are All The Baby-Boomers Retiring?
I was afraid of something like this. I mean, really afraid of it. Now, it may be happening. Drip by drip. Inch by inch. Dollar by dollar.
Just like me, deep down in their financial planning programs a great many of my friends have an underlying long term belief that their real estate investments are going to pay off handsomely because ultimately all of those baby boomers are going to want to retire to some place warm and sunny, like Florida. So, there will always be a market for Florida property, like mine. It may be a bit of a long term investment, but it's always going to be a rock-solid, can't miss, absolutely certain long-term investment.
Maybe. Maybe not.
Word out now is that it may not be quite as rock solid as we think because baby boomers may not be able to retire to Florida in as large a set of numbers as we had been led to believe. Plus, now there's competition and reasons for them to stay at home.
Active adult communities for retired baby boomers are being developed in states which are not normally associted with sun-n-fun active retirements. As property values in Florida, Nevada and California skyrocket to the point where only the very well healed can afford such a retirement lifestyle, many baby boomers appear to be opting to remain at home and stay close to the old hometown, children and grandchildren.
Developers, like Pulte Homes' Del Webb division, are playing right into the hands of stay-at-home retirees. They are now developing retirement communities that are jam-packed with great amenities, like golf courses and community centers, and urging baby boomers to look no farther than their own home towns for that active lifestyle formerly found only in sunbelt states. During a recent trip to Missouri, I was very impressed with the retirment living communities being deveoped along large lakes in the central and southern parts of that state -- and the prices were very, very affordable compared to similar properties in good ol' St. Pete.
Pulte now has retirement communities catering to baby boomers in 17 states and expects to establish additional communities in New Mexico, Minnesota, Indiana, New York, Delaware, Tennessee and Georgia by 2008. With prices now so very high in traditional locations such as Florida, California and Nevada, many baby boomes are opting to stay close to home and hearth rather than packing up and heading south and west.
In addition, local muncipalities are showing support for these new developments. After all, active adult communities add value to the local tax base without overburdening such infastructure matters as schools, sewer, water lines and roadways. For cities, its a win-win situation and they are starting to take active steps to keep baby boomer retirees at home.
So, if you are like a lot of people heavily invested in Florida real estate thinking it is a great long term investment because of the popularity of the Sunshine State as a retirement center, well, you may want to give that just a bit of a second thought. Sure, Florida will always have a great draw among retirees, but with high prices, high taxes, high insurance, hurricanes and competition from other states it may not be quite the pull it has been in the past, and that may impact you in your personal retirment pocketbook.
If you'd like to keep pace with what's going on in real estate in the Tampa Bay area, visit my website at www.thestpeterealestatesite.com.
Just like me, deep down in their financial planning programs a great many of my friends have an underlying long term belief that their real estate investments are going to pay off handsomely because ultimately all of those baby boomers are going to want to retire to some place warm and sunny, like Florida. So, there will always be a market for Florida property, like mine. It may be a bit of a long term investment, but it's always going to be a rock-solid, can't miss, absolutely certain long-term investment.
Maybe. Maybe not.
Word out now is that it may not be quite as rock solid as we think because baby boomers may not be able to retire to Florida in as large a set of numbers as we had been led to believe. Plus, now there's competition and reasons for them to stay at home.
Active adult communities for retired baby boomers are being developed in states which are not normally associted with sun-n-fun active retirements. As property values in Florida, Nevada and California skyrocket to the point where only the very well healed can afford such a retirement lifestyle, many baby boomers appear to be opting to remain at home and stay close to the old hometown, children and grandchildren.
Developers, like Pulte Homes' Del Webb division, are playing right into the hands of stay-at-home retirees. They are now developing retirement communities that are jam-packed with great amenities, like golf courses and community centers, and urging baby boomers to look no farther than their own home towns for that active lifestyle formerly found only in sunbelt states. During a recent trip to Missouri, I was very impressed with the retirment living communities being deveoped along large lakes in the central and southern parts of that state -- and the prices were very, very affordable compared to similar properties in good ol' St. Pete.
Pulte now has retirement communities catering to baby boomers in 17 states and expects to establish additional communities in New Mexico, Minnesota, Indiana, New York, Delaware, Tennessee and Georgia by 2008. With prices now so very high in traditional locations such as Florida, California and Nevada, many baby boomes are opting to stay close to home and hearth rather than packing up and heading south and west.
In addition, local muncipalities are showing support for these new developments. After all, active adult communities add value to the local tax base without overburdening such infastructure matters as schools, sewer, water lines and roadways. For cities, its a win-win situation and they are starting to take active steps to keep baby boomer retirees at home.
So, if you are like a lot of people heavily invested in Florida real estate thinking it is a great long term investment because of the popularity of the Sunshine State as a retirement center, well, you may want to give that just a bit of a second thought. Sure, Florida will always have a great draw among retirees, but with high prices, high taxes, high insurance, hurricanes and competition from other states it may not be quite the pull it has been in the past, and that may impact you in your personal retirment pocketbook.
If you'd like to keep pace with what's going on in real estate in the Tampa Bay area, visit my website at www.thestpeterealestatesite.com.
-30-
posted by Terry Ward at 2:42 PM
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