Retirements communities and baby boomers

List your 55+ or a active adult community home

2009-08-07T07:57:00.003-07:00

Do you have a nice home or lot in an active adult or 55+ community that's for sale? There's a new and free service that lets you list it in the Topretirements Classifieds. Just go to http://www.topretirements.com/forum/t1580/Post_your_real_estate_classifieds_here.html and create a "New Topic" in that Forum. (You will need to create a free registration). It will get your message in front of over a thousand baby boomers every day.

10 Questions to Ask

2007-06-06T07:26:00.000-07:00

Before you get too excited about that new over 55 community and fork over a lot of money, you might want to consider the financial and other pitfalls that could await you. The editors at Topretirements.com have prepared a list of the top 10 questions you should ask before you buy. The answers just might save you a lot of heartache.

Some of the questions are a little unusual, like who owns the land. For example if a developer owns it, you might have to pay steadily escalating rents, or even see big changes you don't want. Our favorite question has to do with understanding the rules you will have to obey in your new community. If a rule says you can only have 1 dog, and you have 3, that's a problem! Likewise if you have a grandchild that might have to live with you part of the time, you'll need to know that.

Here's a link to the article on 10 Questions to Ask

Looking for reviews of the best retirement communities?

Carolinas and Asheville GenerateTop Retirement Interest

2007-03-26T15:50:00.000-07:00

I've been studying baby boomer retirement issues ever since I launched Topretirements.com. One of the most surprising things I have learned is the tremendous interest there is among adults over 50 in retiring to live in the Carolinas. It doesn't particularly matter if they hail from the Northeast or whether they currently reside in Florida - the Carolinas seem to be the hot place to live in retirement.

My current bet is that if you ask 10 baby boomers where they are thinking about living after they retire, you will get at least 5 or 6 that are considering North or South Carolina. And you might even get 3 that specifically say they want to live in Asheville.

The reasons are there, easy enough to see. Real estate tends to be cheaper. The Carolinas are warmer in winter than the north, but not so hot as Florida. The Asheville region in particular has great natural beauty and it is close to the mountains. The City of Asheville is very livable and always has something going on. Real estate developers have caught on and they are producing active adult communities of every type, description, activity, and price range to satisfy the demand.

You can read more about Asheville here, and find out more about retirement communities in North Carolina here.

Baby Boomers Launch Party

2006-11-24T11:55:00.000-08:00

I am celebrating today because my new website for retirement communities, www.Topretirements.com, has officially launched. The idea came out in March, I retired from my job of 25 years on August 1, and ever since then I have been working on this project.

The idea is to provide a place where baby boomers can go to research the best places to retire. A place that is as free from marketing hype as possible - in fact the reviews are written by our editorial staff and our visitors. There is a database of facts about retirement communities that is sortable - so if you are looking for a place that is oriented towards golf or equestrians, you can find it. Plus a Discussion Forum on Retirement where people can post their questions and get feedback from their peers.

You can tell I am pretty excited - come on, I would love to have you visit!
www.topretirements.com

It happened

2006-11-03T08:46:00.000-08:00

Who would have thought I would ever get to this point.

Yesterday I bought a cup of coffee at the Dunkin Donuts in Middletown, CT. A very sharp teenage girl took my order. When i watched the cash register transaction a code something like this appeared on the screen = "-.13 senr disc"

ohmygosh it happened - my first ever senior discount and i hadnt asked for it Must have looked pretty old to her (i'm 58 and at least feel young ). Anyway i congratulated her on being "my first', and she laughed, as did I. Had to happen sometime!

I married you for life, but not for lunch

2006-10-22T14:17:00.000-07:00

One of the first questions that my wife gets asked, now that I am living the retirement life is, “how’s it going with John home all day”? Since Roberta is a mystery writer and also works from home, the implication is clear that trouble is expected in the vein of - “I married you for life but not for lunch”.

We hear all kinds of responses to this issue among our friends. In cases where the guy plays a lot of golf or is active doing some onsite consulting or board work, this is a non-issue. A common theme is that the husband rents an outside office to get out from underfoot – several friends are sure that is what I should do. Most of our friends haven’t had to face this potential conflict yet, but they are clearly worried about what they will do when the time comes. When both partners are independent and used to ruling a domain, it is easy to predict flying fur when two Type A’s start pacing the same domain, 24/7.

So you might wonder how my working at home is going in our case. After 3 months we have declared a truce. I’ve stopped lifting my eyebrows every time she goes out for a massage, hair appointment, lunch with friends, yoga class, or other adventure. That was her life before, and it gives me a little space/ I try not to get irritated when the phone rings – half the time it’s for me.

We don’t hang out together during the day and usually eat lunch separately. I anchored my floating office upstairs in our bonus room, and stopped working in the dining room and assorted other places. It turns out I like having a dedicated place to work. She works from the dining room some of the time, which is a new development, but has other spots as well. We don’t seem to be getting on each nerves. I think we will make it through this phase!

I am curious to hear what other people have experienced on this issue. Please post and let me know!

Where to Retire - Questions Part II

2006-09-17T16:41:00.000-07:00

This is the second part of my take on the questions that you should answer before you make a decision on where to live in retirement.

Question #4 - What do you want to do?
One beauty of retirement is that you get a fresh slate for the rest of your life; anything is possible. But an even better thing is that you have accumulated a lot more wisdom than you probably had when you were a baby boomer fresh out of college, and making the decisions you made then. So this might sound corny, but here's the best way to get some good insight - write down a list of the 10 things you want to do before you leave this earth. Most of them aren't dependent on where you live, but some might be easier in certain locales. For instance, if one of your goals is to spend more time with your children or grandchildren, don't move too far away. If you want to collect seashells, stick close to the ocean. And if getting a daily dose of culture is important to you, then you better scope out a large city or university town. Bottom line on this question - know what's important to you and make sure you can do it wherever you move.

Question #5. Are you ready to start over again?
Maybe you are happy where you live now - most people are. So moving away from friends and family, clubs, churches... even stores, is going to be a big deal. Some people can't face abandoning the familiar and starting afresh, while others can't wait to get away. You need to figure out which person you are. Realize of course there are half steps- moving to a place where you already know others, keeping a smaller place where you live now, etc. But if either you or your spouse hates the prospect of starting over, consider that before you leap.

Question #6. Do you want to make one move for the rest of your life, or are you ready to relocate again?
Sounds easy, but it's not. Retirement and old age are a continuum, as anyone with an aging parent can attest. Right now you might be a very vital 60. But what happens if you or your spouse have a stroke or some other debilitating illness. Your 55+ community with 3 golf courses and 18 tennis courts isnt going to be that great. Even if you luck out and stay healthy into your 90's, independent living is going to be problematic. So if you are really forward thinking, you will consider a place that offers a range of options that will let you stay in one place, or at least the same area, for the rest of your life. And even if you don't choose that option, do everyone a favor. Develop a Plan B on what you would do if you were no longer able to live by yourself.

Question #7. How much are you willing to invest in looking?
This is a rhetorical question - flat out, the more you look, the smarter you will be. Look at it as an adventure. Save up your vacation before you retire. Take a trip and check out places you have heard about. Talk to everyone you know. Check out websites and buy some books. Look at Money Magazine's reviews of the best places. Think about renting in a couple of different places for the first few years. Smarter is better, period.

Question #8. Do you andyour spouse have the same dreams?
If there is one problem that can be the most insurmountable is finidng out that your dream retirement is the polar opposite of your spouse's. So what can do - well, find out the answer sooner rather than later. See if you can work out a compromise - halfway each. Or half of the year in one place in another. It might mean buying a giant RV for one of those halves, but it could keep both of you happy. Look at it this way - better for two of you to be reasonably happy than one of you totally miserable.

Well that's as many questions as I can come up with to help you decide where to live. If you have more I would love to hear from you. Congratulations to you for considering them and wanting to reach the smartest decision - most people don't get that far.

Next time I am going to write about specific baby boomer issues and retirement. To most of us the combination retirement and baby boomer is an oxymoron - we're the folks that go to Woodstock and rewrote the world's social order. Stay tuned....

Where to live in retirement - questions to ask yourself

2006-09-03T09:30:00.000-07:00

One of the first decisions one has to make about retirement is where to retire. Everyone's situation is different, but there are a number of common questions that, if addressed, will help lead to decision with a better than average chance of success. In the next few blogs I will explore some of these factors, and hope I get some input from others.

1. Full time or part time. For my wife and I, it is very important for us to be somewhere warm for at least part the winter - Connecticut just isn't that much fun in January and February. But April through October is fantastic in the Nutmeg state, we wouldn't want to miss those months. Fortunately we think our finances will permit maintaining two households, at least if one of them isnt too extravagant. But for other folks the idea of two homes is either too much trouble, or out of the question financially (although we've seen some pretty ingenious ways to execute the idea).

2. Climate. Once the decision about full-time or part time is made, the choice of climate is an issue. Someone who chooses to live full-time in one place might want to look for a compromise, or Goldilocks climate - not too hot, not too cold, just right. The Carolinas or Georgia might fit that bill. But for us, if we are going to go the trouble of moving south for a few months in winter, the climate better be very warm. That means southern Florida or Hawaii for us.

3. Friends and family. It is amazing how many people I know who have chosen their retirement community based on the friends or family who already live in a particular place. My parents did that in choosing 7 Lakes/Leisure Village in Ft. Myers, FL. For them, it was a terrific decision. Being near familiar people is a top reason to select a place - you've got instant friends or you have the ability to care for someone who needs the help. For us, Southwest Florida has an edge as long as my parents are able to live there. But on the other hand, maybe we might be passing up the optimum community to retire in because we only look at places where we know people already.

Obviously the more information one has the better the decision will be. Next time I will talk about some more factors that we need to consider in our quest for the perfect retirement community. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions please let us have them!

One day this baby boomer woke up and...I was retired!

2006-08-30T13:44:00.000-07:00

I found myself retired, suddenly, about 30 days ago. It happened several years ahead of when i thought that might happen, as I feel a fairly young 58 years of age. Happily, this change has come leaving me in a position where I retire without risking my family's security.

Lots of questions have come up. What will I do with myself? How will I make up for the void of no longer being the co- owner of a medium sized business, with all the attendant perks and a position of some status in the company. And where will my wife and I choose to live, now that we can live anywhere in the country (world!)? What will the criteria be that we use to make that momentous decision? Will it be in a retirement community?

For now I am happy. I am pleased to be out of a business situation that was getting more tense by the day. Delighted and apprehensive about starting two new businesses. Will my new ventures make it? What will we do about our living situation? Stay tuned. And if you have advice, please share.