Category: Retirement Real Estate
WASHINGTON, May 8 - Builder confidence in the single-family 55+ housing market for the first quarter of 2014 reached the highest first-quarter reading since the inception of the index in 2008. That's according to the National Association of Home Builders' (NAHB) latest 55+ Housing Market Index (HMI). Compared to the first quarter of 2013, the single-family index increased 4 points to a level of 50, which is and the 10th consecutive quarter of year over year improvements.
Good news from baby boomers fueling the market
"There are many factors contributing to the
more...
Published on June 2, 2014
Comments 9
Category: Retirement Real Estate
May 28, 2014 -- We hear a lot of anecdotal information about snowbirds having problems finding a rental for the upcoming 2014-2015 winter season. The issue mostly goes back to the harsh winter we just ended, which has motivated more people to look for a winter break down south. Exacerbating the problem is a bumper crop of retiring boomers who are entering the rental market.
We know of one couple who gave up looking in Bonita Springs (FL) because they couldn't
more...
Published on May 28, 2014
Comments 24
Category: Retirement Planning
May 27, 2014 -- Reality check: Even if you are among the fortunate half of baby boomers who will have enough money to maintain your pre-retirement lifestyle - you are still not out of the woods. That's because your financial well being is only one part of the retirement happiness equation - being prepared mentally and psychologically is just as important. In the first part of this article we've come up with 5 warning signs that you might not be well prepared psychologically for retirement. The second part has advice from various experts on the keys to solid mental preparation.
5 Warning Signs
There are probably a lot more than we have listed here. But yes answers to these questions as you start retirement might be a pretty good indication that your mental preparation for retirement is not up to snuff:
1. Most days you have nothing special to look forward to when you wake up in the morning.
2. Your best friends are at the job you just left.
3. Your personal identity is wrapped up in the title of the job you had previously.
4. You don't have any great reason to leave your house during the day.
5. You wish you weren't retired - or greatly fear you will soon be so.
Tips for Tuning up Your Retirement Psychological Profile
Here we've assembled some of the advice we have seen on getting psychologically ready for retirement.
People and dogs aren't so different
Dog trainers typically say that
more...
Published on May 27, 2014
Comments 28
Category: Adventurous retirement
By Akaisha Kaderli
Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. Helen Keller
Recently I have been reading a book called Daring Greatly by Brene Brown. You may have heard of it. The theme of the book is about being vulnerable, taking risks and being willing to expose ourselves to possible failure. It’s an enlightening read - and one that we think has relevance to those of us entering retirement.
I bring this up because what I want to share with you that security has a price. Everyone speaks about how risk is dangerous
more...
Published on May 22, 2014
Comments 22
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
May 21, 2014 -- If you are an outdoor oriented person the chances are you have dreamed about retiring to a town in the mountains.You might love to ski, hike, camp, fish, mountain bike, or just plain admire the beautiful scenery mountains have in such ample supply. This article is a companion to our other articles about great retirements near the water, in cities, college towns, and small towns (see Further Reading at end of article for more about them).
When some people think of mountain towns they might be thinking of a small community pushed up against the edge of towering peaks. Colorado and much of the American west have plenty of those. Yet for others the mountains might just mean having some nearby foothills. With that in mind we have tried to present a range of communities in this article. There are so many great mountain towns to choose from that we promise a Part 2 in these series.
Advantages
For those who aspire to a mountain retirement, here are some of the advantages that come with them:
- Cooler summers. Altitude means an escape from hot
more...
Published on May 21, 2014
Comments 46
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
May 2, 2014 -- In Florida's golden days in the early 20th century a group of inspired visionaries created many graceful towns. They produced magical communities that attracted hundreds of thousands of retirees from the north. Other towns somehow became classics just because of where they were situated or their economic success in their past. Moving forward to this century, most of these towns still have the great bones that made them attractive back in the day. This article will review some of our favorite "Old Florida" towns that make great places to retire right now.
Planning pays off
Many, but not all, of the classic Florida towns we know about were carefully planned. As a result they have symmetry and
more...
Published on May 3, 2014
Comments 23
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
April 29, 2014 -- For folks interested in an active retirement community for the mind there are few choices better than a college town. With so many advantages, and a minimum of reasons why not to try it, it is not surprising that so many baby boomers are exploring a college town retirement. This article, Part 2 in our series (see Part 1: "Should You Be Retiring to a College Town"), will explore many of the reasons why a college town retirement is so desirable, as well as list some of the more appealing campus towns in our database. We are indebted to frequent contributor Jan Cullinane, author of The Single Woman's Guide to Retirement (AARP/Wiley) and many other books and articles, for her insights into the advantages and drawbacks of college town life (see below).
College Towns. Here we mean a place where the college is the dominant influence on the flavor and
more...
Published on April 29, 2014
Comments 21
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
April 22, 2014 -- This request came in from one of our members, and it seems like a good one: "Could you please do an article on 55+ retirement developments that are under $200,000. There are so many great places to look at but most aren't affordable to us."
The happy answer to this question is that there are all kinds of 55+ and active adult communities with homes available for less than $200,000 - sometimes far below. In this article we will first explore different strategies for finding an affordable community, then list
more...
Published on April 21, 2014
Comments 106
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
Updated October 11, 2017 -- This article was originally published in April, 2014. Prices have gone up since then in most of these markets, but they are still less expensive than many other coastal towns.
Retiring near the coast is many people's dream. Visions of beautiful sunrises or sunsets over the water, boating, swimming, fishing, walks on the beach - it sounds great. But one practical thing that often gets in the way is the price of real estate. Those great views and proximity to the water usually come with a price tag that reflects marketplace demand. Fortunately, not every town on the water is out of reach. In this, Part 2 of our Affordable Places to Retire on the Water series, we've reviewed 10 coastal towns that are affordable. Some of these places to retire might not be as chichi as Naples, FL, but they are surprisingly nice and reasonable priced. Part 1, "Affordable Places to Retire on the Waterfront", came out in 2010 (it included some towns where the waterfront was on a lake, this one does not).
Prices have gone up
The first thing we noticed when compiling this article is that home prices
more...
Published on April 15, 2014
Comments 98
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
Update May 16, 2017 - We have updated this article with a 2 part installment. Here is the link to Part 1: These Crazy Best States to Retire Lists.
April 8, 2014 -- Back by popular demand, here is our 2014 list of the best states for retirement (see links at bottom to our lists from previous years). This year we have taken a different approach - we've assembled "best of" lists by category. At the conclusion of the article we've listed those states that made more than one list, which you can use as an indication that they must be pretty good places for retirement!
See the counterpoint to this article: "Worst States for Retirement - 2014".
The categories we've chosen are basically the opposite of those we used to choose our "2014 List of the Worst States for Retirement", although we decided to also give weight to
more...
Published on April 8, 2014
Comments 131
