This follows the same path as what happened in Australia in the 90’s a resetting of expectations for retirement. Aivars Lode
Bonnie and Carl Espinshade spend six months a year at the Sun-N-Fun Resort and Campground in Sarasota, packing their days with tennis, volleyball, workouts and running their businesses from the sunporch.
This makes the 65-year-olds typical of the first wave of baby boomer retirees just showing up in Florida: relentlessly athletic and healthy, and planning to do some kind of paying work for the rest of their lives. The significant numbers of boomers expected to follow the Espinshades to Southwest Florida are likely to stand out among other generations of retirees, and could make their mark in ways others have not.
Among boomers born before 1959, the top two concerns about aging involve being able to afford health care and staying productive and useful, according to recent studies by the MetLife Mature Market Institute.
By choosing communities with recreational and fitness facilities — what people in the housing industry call "active adult" enhancements — boomer retirees can tackle both of these fears. They are betting that staying in shape will help them spend more time working and playing, and less time in the hospital, than their parents.
The boomers' strategy of exercising their way through later life takes precedence over crown moldings and granite countertops, according to housing specialists.
"Health and well-being are of such vital importance to them," said Scott Mairn, vice president of sales in South Florida for Pulte Homes. "I think this generation of buyer focuses mostly on lifestyle; the floorplan is almost secondary."
This shift toward a more vigorous retirement lifestyle shows signs of continuing for the next 20 years or so. At 48, Paul Reihing is among the youngest of boomers. He and his fiancee, 52, shopped around Florida before buying a vacation condo in November at the Isles of Palmer Ranch — hoping to live there full time eventually. Both marathon runners, the Atlanta couple were interested in a place where they could train and ride bikes.
The Legacy Trail that passes through Palmer Ranch was "one of the things that drew us," Reihing said. "The neighborhood has all the amenities we were looking for."
Pulte's DiVosta division developed the Isles on Palmer Ranch, where recreational options include not only the standard pool and clubhouse, but a fitness center and lighted courts for tennis, basketball and bocce ball. Mairn said these days, prospective buyers often ask to see those features first, before even walking into a model home.
"From the folks at this age that we talk to, they feel that their mental attitude is younger," Mairn said. "They really feel like they've got a long time to live and enjoy this lifestyle. They say they're in better shape now than they were 10 years ago."
What boomers want
A recent survey of baby boomers for the Consumer Federation of the Southeast found that while the economy has delayed retirement for some, almost 60 percent of those between 57 and 65 said their plans are on track.
The five most important factors in their choice of a retirement destination differed little from those of older Americans: health care, housing costs, climate, taxes and recreational activities.
But look more closely at those broad categories, and a distinction emerges. While they like to have crack cardiologists and surgical teams nearby just in case, boomers also care about wellness centers and spa treatments, placing more emphasis on preventive health than their parents did.
When it comes to housing costs, they are more likely to sacrifice square footage inside — like formal dining rooms and guest suites — in favor of more outdoor recreational space.
The nature of that space is also changing.
The evolution in great American retiree pastimes from golf and shuffleboard to biking and basketball has been gradual in Florida, but is expected to gain momentum dramatically in the next five years.
In the 20 years they have been visiting Sarasota from Pennsylvania, the Espinshades have seen the difference. First lured to the Sun-N-Fun resort by its lighted tennis courts, they often found themselves short on people to play with in the early years. Now, they said, newer neighbors are less inclined to sit chatting over coffee or a drink at the resort's bar, and more likely to be seen in motion.
"In the last couple of years, it's really changing fast," said Carl Espinshade. "People are a lot more active than they were when we first came."
"And all these activities are volunteer-run," Bonnie Espinshade added. "Once you have a good nucleus of people, it really takes off. They just put in eight new pickleball courts" — a miniaturized version of tennis, easy on the knees — "and they're all full."
Sun-N-Fun, which draws some 1,500 snowbirds from the U.S., Europe and Canada each year, also recently opened a $5.5 million fitness center with an indoor pool. Its range of sports and entertainments — and lack of emphasis on fancy digs — mirrors the strategy of The Villages near Ocala, where aggressive marketing to active adults has resulted in a robust population increase even during Florida's lean years.
The buzzwords
"Active adult" has been a buzzword in the retirement housing industry for more than five years, but the recession put a damper on projects investing in the idea. In the 2010 U.S. census, Sumter County — home of the Villages — was the only Florida county to rank in the top five for growth in the 65-and-older population.
More active-lifestyle communities are coming online in Florida, said Peter Dennehy, vice president of John Burns Real Estate Consulting in California.
Dennehy mentioned a large Minto Group project to reposition Sun City for the boomer market.
Here in Lakewood Ranch, a just-opened new development — Esplanade — plans a 5,000- square-foot fitness and activity center to open this summer.
"The active adult projects in Florida are doing well," Dennehy said. "Obviously, the Villages is a standout. They're not all blowing the doors off, but they're doing better than the rest of the market because it's a somewhat more discretionary market."
Boomer buyers who put a premium on outdoor and fitness amenities are willing and able to spend more for them, he said. Others of their generation whose finances have taken a hit from the recession are not expected to make the traditional move to the Sunbelt.
"Our theory is that there will be a different type of retiree," Dennehy said. "Tastes have changed considerably and the amenities are different. There will be a little less focus on golf and more on active pursuits and socializing."
For retiree Bonnie Espinshade, the main benefit from all the sports she plays is the friendships that have built around them.
"The hard thing for people up North to understand is that when you have this circle of friends here, it's like family," she said. "When you have friends at home you may see them once a week or talk on the phone. Here, when you're out on your bike, you say hello to countless people by name every day.
"You can't explain that to people; you have to experience it," she said.
"People in Sarasota may look older, but they're out doing things all day long."
No comments:
Post a Comment