Category: Eldercare
Topretirements is gearing up to publish an expanded article for our "Tips and Picks" section on how to persuade aging parents that it is time to move to some type of retirement home. We are very interested in hearing "war stories" from our readers' experiences in trying to persuade their relatives to move from their private homes to a facility where they can get the care they need (independent living, assisted living, retirement home, continuing care retirement community, or nursing home). Please send your comments to editor@topretirements.com; we will try to share as many as we can.
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Published on May 3, 2007
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Category: Active adult communities
Bert Sperling is the man behind those "Best Places to Live" lists you see in "Money" Magazine. His newest book came out this week, and the results will be viewed with interest by active adults looking for the "best" retirement communities.
Sperling uses sophisticated tools and databases to come up with his lists. Cost of housing is very important, so recent price run-ups in some parts of the country doomed many communities' chances of a high ranking. Crime rates, health care availability, taxes,weather, and amenities like being a college town also significantly impact the rankings.
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Published on May 7, 2007
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Category: Baby Boomer Retirement Issues
May 14, 2007 - Build them and they will come - but be careful who does come. That was the gist of a May 11 Wall Street Journal article ("Animal House Meets the Empty Nest") on what is happening in some of the new condo developments being built for "swinging singles". It seems that some of these real estate developments are also seen as desirable by empty nesters over 50 - and that has some of the younger residents concerned. After all, they didn't buy into the dream of roof-top hot tubs, on-site bars, and video game parlors to see a baby boomer on the next chaise lounge.
There appear to be a few reasons why this generation mismatch is happening. First, developments that are being marketed on the pricey side find that people over 50 are more likely to be able to have the price of admission. Another is that the singles orientation of these places is just as appealing to older singles who want to exit the suburbs as it is to younger folks.
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Published on May 13, 2007
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Category: Retirement Real Estate
May 19, 2007 -- For baby boomers trying to figure out whether this is the time to buy into a retirement community, the recent news is balanced. There is some good news, bad news, and neutral news. On the whole it seems like this is still a buyers' market, although no one can predict if the bottom has been reached.
On the economic side:
Good news: New unemployment claims are down for the 5th straight week (Labor Department)
Not quite so good: Consumer prices and leading economic indicators from the Conference Board's April figures are down slightly
Reassuring: Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke commented on the sub-prime mortgage problem that he "does not expect significant spillovers (from it) to the rest of the economy". He was cautioning Congress not to pass legislation toughening lending laws
Disappointing: Housing starts fell to their lowest levels in 17 years, according to the New York Times
Positive: New home construction rose in April
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Published on May 18, 2007
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Category: Retirement Real Estate
The April figures for sales of existing homes are in, and the news isn't so great for sellers. April sales were down 2.6%, following a March drop of 7.9% from February. According to figures from the National Association of Realtors, April sales declined 10.7% from the year ago period.
While figures on sales of active adult and retirement community homes and condominiums are hard to come by, it stands to reason that the overall market weakness is also having a negative affect on this segment. But for baby boomers considering purchasing a new home, the news is probably positive. Continued pressure on sellers and greater inventories should mean price flexibility and better selection. Is the time to buy nearing?
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Published on May 29, 2007
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Category: Active adult communities
Annapolis, Maryland - June 1, 2007 -- Topretirements and the magazine "Where to Retire" both rate Annapolis Maryland as one of the best places to retire - if you can afford to live there. The community has charm, history, a beautiful downtown, the U.S. Naval Academy, and plenty of drop-dead waterfront.
It is a great place to live, but according to the Washington Post, not everybody is happy about its reputation as a great place to retire. The main reason is because of the city's policy of trying to encourage retirement housing as a way to discourage overcrowding and having to build new schools.
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Published on May 31, 2007
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