Results Are in: 55+ and New Urban Communities on Top
Category: Active adult communities
July 18, 2024 — The results are in from our recent poll of your favorite community types, which we labelled “The Search”. In 2 polls featuring 10 different types, we asked our Members and visitors to vote on which type of community they would most like to retire in. The results came in much as expected, but there were also some very big surprises. In Part 1 the favorite was far and away 55+ active adult communities – it got 34% of the votes. In Part 2 the surprising winner was New Urban Communities, which garnered 28%. Golf and RV Resort communities were way down at the bottom, attracting very little interest. Over 400 people voted (thank you!) Detailed results below.
The object of “The Search” was to try to find out which of the many types of communities the Topretirements audience most wants to live in. Because there are so different types (we came up with 8) we decided to break down the voting into 2 different polls, and then combine the results. Since many people already have chosen how they are going to live in retirement, we asked them to vote as if they were heading into retirement, but hadn’t made a choice yet. The graphs below show the results from each poll.
Detailed Retirement Community Type Results
Poll #1:
55+ Active Adult Communities were the clear winner in Poll 1. If you also consider the 16% who voted for a close cousin, “55+ Within a Master Planned Community”, the support for living in 55+ communities is very strong among the voters. As was the case in Poll 2, a significant number of people didn’t like any of these choices, and presumably just want to live in a regular neighborhood in a city, suburb, or town. Thus 18% voted for “I wouldn’t live in any of these”.
Two other results jumped out at us in Poll 1. Pocket Neighborhoods garnered a lot more interest than we expected, getting 17% of the votes. And down at the bottom, there is very little (6% of votes) for Golf Oriented Communities.
Poll #2
Here is the biggest surprise of the 2 polls. There was a lot of interest in “New Urban”, which we did not expect (27% of the votes). In the poll they we described them as… “New Urban or Traditional Neighborhood Developments (TNDs), modeled when it was made up of small walkable towns, before cars came along. Shops, communal facilities, and homes are all within walkable distances. Front porches and sidewalks are often a feature. Most of them are open to all ages, but people 55+ usually predominate”.
The results were very close for the 3 community types at the top. Once again, “I wouldn’t live in any of these” came in second place, with 26% of votes. All Ages Active Adult (no 55+ restriction) was a very close #3, with 24%.
“Very Large Active Adult” Communities came in 4th with 18%. Way down at the bottom were “Manufactured Home Communities” (5%) and “RV Resorts” (0%) generated very little interest.
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Bottom Line – Strong Interest in a Fresh Look
Looking at the overall results from the 2 polls, 55+ Active Adult Communities (and its close relatives) are the clear winner, attracting a higher percentage of votes than any other option. “I Wouldn’t Live in Any of These” was a solid second, averaging 21% in the 2 polls. But our next finding is very interesting. New Urban and Pocket Neighborhoods generated a significant amount of interest, much more than we had imagined. We speculate that that represents a yearning for a different kind of retirement community among a significant population.
For further reading (still time to vote):
Comments on "Results Are in: 55+ and New Urban Communities on Top"
Yolande says:
I'm not surprised by the results. I find so called 55+ communities to have way too many people that are far older than me, and the so called 55+ Active to not have anyone who is truly active living in them. I chose urban because of that reason, and the fact that 55+ communities if they're built out, the homes haven't been updated since they were built in the 1970s and 1980s. I'm not paying a high price for a home then have to spend $100K+ updating someone else's bad taste.
I would prefer to have a modern luxury home in an urban community, costing less and getting more, where my privacy is paramount, and the interior appointments match my tastes.
Toni says:
I live in a 55+ active community of 2498 households. Ages generally range from 55 to 85 and that is what makes a 55+ community so nice. When you move in you tend to make friends with those in your age group and you all "age in place" as the years go by. There is a constant rotation of younger people coming in so there is always active people. And, I have to laugh at the comment homes haven't been updated. You just need to do your homework as far as the age range of the homes. Our community has condos, duplexes and single-family homes built from 2000 to 2020. Most have been updated over the years by the owners so you have a nice mix to choose from when buying. Appreciation of our home values has steadily gone up since 2000 which is another plus as it is a very well kept community.
Patricia says:
So are there going to be articles suggesting certain of these "new urban" communities? I for one would really like to know where they are.
Admin says:
Great question. We have written some articles about them in the past. Here are a couple. We might also create a new Blog category with that heading.
https://www.topretirements.com/blog/paper-or-plastic-do-you-yearn-to-retire-in-a-traditional-community/
https://www.topretirements.com/blog/frustrated-about-finding-your-ideal-retirement-community-how-about-a-new-urban-community/
https://www.topretirements.com/blog/the-best-walkable-communities-for-retirement/
Admin says:
Another way to find these communities is to use our Community Explorer feature.
https://www.topretirements.com/community-explorer/
First, select a state. Then under "Unit Types" choose New Urban and Mixed Use. Sometimes our advertisers are a little loose with their qualification to be New Urban
Tom Egly says:
One thing that people don't think about in 55+ communities is that your child probably won't be old enough to live there when you pass if they choose to.