Category: Retirement Real Estate
June 15, 2007 -- Could more bad news possibly hit the real estate market that so many active adults are studying? A quote in today's Wall Street Journal regarding homeowners who are entering the foreclosure process is typical of recent fare - "rates for the last 2 quarters are the highest in the (Mortage Bankers Association) survey's 37 year history." Other bad news items in the last few days are that the number of homes for sale keeps growing (up 5% in May), and pending sales were also down in April.
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Published on June 15, 2007
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Category: Active adult communities
June 12- Every time we think we have heard about the most unusual type of retirement community, up pops another. The latest new idea is stargazer communities; developments geared for amateur astronomers. You don't have to be retired to live in one of these developments, but most of the people interviewed in the article were either of retirement age or were baby boomers fast approaching it.
The New York Times reported (June 8, 2007) on a number of astronomers who have turned their dream into finding a home in a place favorable for stargazing into a reality. People who enjoy watching the stars, it turns out, share several unique environmental prerequisites. First, they need an area that is dark, away the from bright lights of civilization that ruin the celestial view. Another is that when they watch the stars live, they tend
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Published on June 11, 2007
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Category: Active adult communities
June 6 - About the 5th time I was asked the question I finally caught on. The "question" comes up when someone finds out that I am associated with this site, obviously enough. They are usually a baby boomer thinking about where to live next, and they figure I must know the answer.
The problem is that I have heard about too many "best retirement communities", too many "top 10 retirement communities". Sorry, I just can't tell you your right answer - there are too many. You have to pick the one that is best for you. So that means you have to do some thinking about what's right for you - you have to answer the 16 questions in our free eBook: "The Baby Boomer's Guide to Selecting the Best Retirement Community". Only then will you know enough, and I can help with some "best" suggestions.
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Published on June 6, 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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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: 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: 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: 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: 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: Baby Boomer Retirement Issues
It’s a Great Read Baby boomer nostalgia is hot these days, and there is no funnier read on the subject than Bill Bryson’s delightful book – “The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid”. He captures perfectly the times, culture, and the absurd miscellanea of those days – you won’t…
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Published on April 30, 2007
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