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We are such a diverse group. That house pictured in the article... I don't even want to think about running up and down those stairs all day doing all the cleaning, and taking care of that yard! But I guess there are many who want to do those things!
Probably a lot of us are in denial about how long our retirements will last and how long we will be physically able to live as we please. Having SO's cousin here has brought a lot of that home to roost for me. One fall on wet pavement changed his life forever. And he sure didn't see it coming!
That doesn't look like a house that anyone would want to live in, never mind retirement age.
Then again, no one has ever paid me for my predictions…
The house is the typical hype you see in "good retirement" articles. I was focused on the statistics, which rather surprised me, like how some 83% of retirees remain in their same state even if they relocate to another kind of dwelling. I would have imagined it would be more like 65%–70%.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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While going up and down stairs is good for the body, I wouldn't want to be doing it at age 80, and would not want to move again after retiring. I suppose people could put in one of those stair lifts (or an elevator) but it seems nuts, after seeing our parents dealing with falls even without stairs. This may change anyway, as more people delay retirement to age 70 or above as seems to be starting now.
I do agree with some of the findings, for example, we will not be moving to a warmer climate, and will either remain in this state or the next (Oregon) when we sell and "downsize." We only stay in our 3,000 sf house now because we do get out-of-town guests a few times a year, but when we retire such guests will have to either cram into smaller rooms or stay at a motel, because we want single story, smaller house with much more yard.
I always have to wander about these things; the numbers; the questions and the answer given. Often people say what the do not eventually do.My typical answer when I hear the short survey call ;is not thank you and I hang up. The actual stats on demographic are more accurate that surveys that often have a aim; IMO.I often think boomers do not realize there numbers and if just 10% move out of state in retirement that a huge number in population shift. SS say 10K a day retire. 10% means 100 a day and 30K a month. Over time it would mean 2.6% of total population moves just by retirement moves to another state.
Of course, I can only speak for myself and my husband, but when we retire about four years from now, we are going to move about 2,000 miles away, and we are going to downsize by about one-third.
So far (I'm 65) not one of my peers have downsized their homes. Most have kept up with the maintenance but they have no intention of moving. Mostly because I think they have their houses paid off and they prefer to stay in their neighborhoods.
Also, many have a lifetime accumulation of stuff and don't want to deal with getting rid of it.
- The whole "moving somewhere warm" thing will really subside. At least in the traditional sense of people moving from various Northeastern and Upper Midwestern states to FLA, AZ, etc. On the other hand, moving West will still continue. And "West" will be more OR, WA, ID, NV and less CA and AZ.
- You know all those large homes in retirement communities or as spec homes in other communities that just happen to have a large % of retirees? Very little interest. That is a Boomer (and Silent) thing.
- Retiring overseas will continue apace. Some people will have little choice, unless they want to live in squalor in the US.
- Official retirement ages will reach an all time peak. But age discrimination will force people to re-engineer their careers late in life, often resulting in severe underemployment for the last 15 - 25 years of working life.
- Since the supply of "retirement homes" will vastly exceed demand (due to the Baby Bust hitting the retirement window), the entire "retirement real estate" market will be upended. As for retirement communities, it will be a buyers' / renters' market.
(And just wait until the Millies hit!)
Last edited by BayAreaHillbilly; 03-19-2015 at 02:36 PM..
We have had great difficulties in finding either a new or updated/no-maintenance required SMALL home to relocate. It is even harder to find a nice small home with acreage. So unless we buy a lot and have a home built, we may end up having to buy a house bigger than what we want or need.
The same goes with single-level, one-story houses, almost all the ones we looked at are older ranch houses built in the 60's/70's. Aside from the houses being old which may need a lot of repairs and updates (wiring, plumbing), they are usually not energy efficient. Instead of having double/triple pane windows, the only energy saving feature is tiny windows. Then there is the trend starting in the 80s, 90s with sunken living rooms, step-up/step-down and multi-level living quarters. None of these features are older-people friendly! The new homes that we have seen are mostly mini McMansion with many useless wasteful features such as a huge walk-in closet, apartment-size master bedroom, mall-size cathedral ceiling. The saddest thing about these new homes is their relative puny lot size. It seems that people like the idea of living in 'exclusive, gated community' so builders just squeeze as many mini McMansions as they can in these high price real estate communities.
Of course, one can buy a lot then build a house to one's liking but it will be both time-consuming and a lot more expensive than buying an existing house.
Another issue with trying to downsize is that one has to resolve to get rid of a lot of stuffs accumulated over a lifetime. This deccumulation process can be either quite painful or ruthless depending whether you are the sentimental or unsentimental half in the family ;-)
Last edited by BellaDL; 03-19-2015 at 02:41 PM..
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My Predictions (based on my Xer cohort)
