Retirement Communities and Retirement?

Someone recently asked me what I planned to do when I retired. "Retire?" I asked. "I'm not planning to retire!" I can't think of anything much worse. What would I do if I weren't pursuing my passion? Yes, my work is my passion and I hope to be pursuing it for many more years.

Sure, I like to travel, just not for long periods of time. I don't play golf. I do mess around in my garden, but this only takes a few hours of my week. I love to read, but I couldn't read all day, every day. I want to continue writing books and articles and speaking to groups about my favorite topics. But, I want to do all of this when I want to do it!

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Does this sound familiar? As a Baby Boomer, what is in your future? Do you have a vision of your life ten, twenty, even thirty years down the road? What does your next chapter look like? If you are like most Boomers, you may be searching for a new career. You may have a desire for personal reinvention. If you need some help, I highly recommend Ellen Freudenheim's book, Looking Forward, An Optimist's Guide to Retirement. Ellen offers a wealth of information and ideas on this very subject.

Been there, done that…

We Boomers have always been anti-authoritarian, idealistic, self-empowered, and willing to embrace change. Is it any wonder the world is sitting on the edge of its seat waiting to see what we're going to do next?

We've paid our dues: went to college, got married, had kids. But now it's time to leave our comfort zones behind. It's time to get involved again. In fact, a recent study found that 25 million Boomers already do volunteer work.

What is in your future? Have you planned for it? Are you prepared for it? Believe me, this isn't just about money. It's about life your life!

What brings you pleasure? What have you always wanted to try but kept putting off? Would you enjoy volunteering your time to work with kids, build a house, rescue animals? Would you like to go back to school to finally get that elusive degree, or just study something that you've always wanted to learn?

The reason why

The reason I'm asking these questions is this. Do you know that a lot of people, in both the public and private sectors, are spending a lot of time visioning, planning, and developing programs for us post-retirement Boomers? Yes someone is making decisions about your future! Has anyone asked you what YOU want? Haven't you always resisted and resented anyone telling you what to do? In his book, Prime Time, Marc Freedman says, "Transforming the aging of America will require new ideas and new policies and a new constituency for change…"

If we don't want to be part of the herd being driven into those boxes, what are we going to do about it? Isn't it time we begin speaking up? I don't know about you, but I don't want to be told where I'm going to live when I'm 80. I don't want to be told how much money I can make without incurring a penalty. We may have to revert to the stand up, sit in, drop out, protest-anything-resembling-authority people we were in the sixties and seventies. I want to drive the ideas that go into creating those new policies, don't you?

Come on Boomers! We've changed every decade we've lived in thus far. Is that really going to change as we turn sixty...seventy...eighty? We must leave apathy in the rocking chair: step up, speak out, and create programs and opportunities that will work for our unique generation. Don't wait for someone else to do it for you.

Once again, Boomers, it's up to us to make a difference!

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Linda Thompson is the author of Every Generation Needs a New Revolution, How Six Generations Across Nine Decades can Find Harmony and Peaceful Coexistence, Planning for Tomorrow, Your Passport to a Confident Future, a common sense approach to life planning; and A Caregiver’s Journey, You Are Not Alone, a survival guide for working caregivers. To find out more about Linda’s presentations, workshops and publications, visit LifePathSolutions.biz.

Active Adult Communities – on the Rise

Active Adult Communities – on the Rise

By Senitra Horbrook
 
Communities catering to active adults are springing up in rapid numbers. Research from the National Association of Home Builders found that more than 100,000 units constructed in 2008 will be targeted to this growing niche market. Growing just as fast are the number of adults 55 and older, which is expected to
exceed 85 million by 2014.
 
But if they build it, will active adults come?
 
So far, they have and the reasons why active adults are choosing age restricted communities are quite
varied.

“We wanted to downsize and get something smaller,” said Beverly Massi, a 68-year-old who sold a single family home on one acre in Elmer, NJ nearly two years ago, to move with her husband to a school converted to condos for active adults in Clayton, NJ. 
 
“This particular one was cost-effective and more reasonable than anything else around. We had been looking at another community nearby. Then it opened and the taxes were out the ceiling, before we even moved in. The maintenance fee was also high. Then we found this, and it has worked out fine. We’re good.”

Rich Shakarjian, Director of Sales for J.S. Hovnanian & Sons, which currently has three active adult communities in Southern New Jersey, has noticed that location plays a large role in choosing an active adult
community.
 
“They want to stay close to where they currently live or they’re moving here to be closer to their kids or to a brother – to be near family,” Shakarjian said. “It’s also interesting that a lot of our active adults are still working, so they’re still not moving too far from where they’re
working.”
 
Selecting that perfect location is the next big decision, and active adults base that choice on a number of factors. According to the American Housing Survey data provided by the National Association of Home Builders, most buyers (77 percent) chose a new home in a particular age-restricted community because they liked the home’s look and overall design. Twenty-eight percent chose a community, so they could be close to friends and relatives. More than half of all new buyers in 55+ communities move within the same county as they currently live.
 
“Active adult buyers know what they want, and they want everything in their home,” Shakarjian said. “Even though they’re downsizing, it’s not like they really want to give anything up.” 
  
Other well-liked features include a second bedroom on the first floor and a nice, large, open kitchen with an island, all of the amenities, and an eating area.
 
“They want a nice, big, family room or great room and they also want a study. A lot of them are still working and they still want an office,” Shakarjian said.
 
Community amenities are also an important consideration for many active adult homebuyers. Communities that include outside maintenance and snow removal, as well as a clubhouse with exercise equipment, are popular. At the Clayton condo community Massi lives in, there is no yard work. In addition, the school’s old gymnasium is in the process of being remodeled into a recreation center with a sauna, a pool
table, and exercise equipment. 
 
With so many variables to consider in choosing an active adult community, be diligent and do your research. Review each potential community carefully. Massi advises others like herself to choose wisely. “Think about things like taxes and amenities. We got to pick everything that was inside. Know what your options are.
 
“I wish we had done some things differently. We picked out granite in the kitchen and two baths; we don’t need granite in the bath. We could have cut some expenses, but we made money on the house that we sold, so we had money to spend, so we upgraded a lot.”