Yes, Baby Boomers have changed the world and many of their inventions have advanced technology. I get so tired lately of reading article after article about Boomers’ lack of preparation for retirement, about their lack of savings and need to work long into their 60s and 70s. That may all be true, but let’s also recognize that many of our Boomer brethren have been responsible for some pretty exciting stuff. From Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, creators and founders of Apple Computer to Dr. Robert Jarvik, the inventor of the surgical stapler and the Jarvik 7 artificial heart and Dean Kamen who invented the Segway, creative talent flourished in the Boomer generation.

Read more and learn along with me about Baby Boomer Inventions that changed the world. This article highlights the 25 coolest creations.

Do You Click?

Do you know how to find the information you need while surfing the Internet? When you get an email newsletter with interesting information do you know how to recognize links and how to click through to find the “rest of the story” or to “Read More”? I received an email newsletter that I subscribe to the other day and right after Hello came a paragraph of information on how to actually use the newsletter. That’s when it dawned on me that not everyone spent 30 years in the computer business like I did. Despite the statistics showing that more and more people begin their search for real estate on the internet, there is so much more quality information available than listings of homes for sale. That is what most people find. Lists and prices and numbers of bedrooms and baths. (more…)

Early in my Real Estate career, I decided to specialize and work with Baby Boomers planning for and getting ready for retirement. My reason? Well, I thought I would enjoy spending time helping people my own age make a choice they would be very happy with. During my previous lives, and yes I had several, I was relocated often and it is not easy to decide where and how you want to live in places you barely know. I lived in New York, twice, Washington, DC, twice, Boston, Houston, Los Angeles, Kansas City, Wilmington, NC, and Wilmington, DE, not in that order. As hard as it is when you’re totally involved in your career, I thought, it must be a lot harder to figure out where you want to live when it’s just about what you want. Maybe I’ll write another blog post about some of the places I’ve lived, but back to becoming part of this group called Seniors.

The only specific education on this whole new market was from the Seniors Real Estate Specialists group that was yet even sanctioned by the National Association of Realtors! I took the classes and spent two years serving on the Advisory Committee helping to research the needs of this new group of real estate clients. Everyone and every business was trying to determine just what these Boomers where going to want and what to call them. Seniors? I think not. Builders hired marketing specialists and they all professed to know what Boomers wanted. I thought the answer was not so easy. What makes the Boomers an interesting group of people is their diversity. There is no one answer, no one box that we can be squeezed into.

No matter how hard we try, even the youngest and healthiest of us Baby Boomers are going to become Seniors. I’ve had calls lately from more than one client bringing me up to date on the serious illness of their spouse. What a shock when I realize this is someone my own age.

We spend a lot of time with our clients and we get to know many of them very well. A call like the one this morning reminds me to live life now. Life is what happens while we’re busy planning after all so don’t spend all your time planning, go out and enjoy life on your own terms today.

I’m a news junkie and CNBC, CNN or NPR is always my background.  I get really angry when I hear the talking heads spout the doom and gloom with such certainty. What real estate market are they talking about? Not the local market here in Coastal Delaware. All real estate is local! I am so busy I cannot keep up with all of the new people contacting me about relocating to Coastal Delaware. I am one of those people who believes that an immediate response is the only good response, but unless I can clone myself, I just can’t do it!

Here are some facts:

• Sussex County sales were up 20% in July/August compared to the same time last year
• Baby Boomers will be retiring for the next 10-20 years and they are moving to Coastal Delaware from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, DC, and even Connecticut, Rhode Island and other Northeastern states.
• In August 2010, Schell Brothers, our most successful local builder, just tied their best sales month ever! As other builders have abandoned projects, they have taken over several communities. (more…)

Baby Boomers are moving to Coastal Delaware and the locals couldn’t be happier. When I talk to local business owners in Lewes or Rehoboth Beach, in Milton or Georgetown or Bridgeville, they realize how lucky they are to see so many new people moving to the area at this time in their lives.

Think about it, if someone from New Jersey now paying real estate taxes of $10,000 or even $20,000 per year moves to Coastal Delaware they will probably only pay $1,000 to $2,000 in annual property tax. What will they be able to do with all that extra money? They may spend some of it at the great local restaurants and shops. They may find a local organization to support. It’s almost like having a second pension or social security check each month.

Is that enough of a reason for Boomers to relocate to Coastal Delaware? No, but it is a reason many have considered it in the first place. People from New York, Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania as well as our neighbors to the south in DC, Maryland and Virginia are buying homes here with an eye on eventual retirement, planning to relocate. What an interesting melting pot of talented, educated and interesting people!

Newcomers are getting involved in the arts, in local charities, in the Farmer’s Markets and we are all beneficiaries of their contributions. We just want to say “Thank you” and “Welcome”; we look forward to seeing you here in Coastal Delaware and making you feel right at home.

The tip of the baby boom iceberg has just started melting into retirement. As tends to be the case with this generation, they are not content to do retirement the old-fashioned way. Boomers are healthier and more active than retirees of the past, and they have a lot more in mind than just sitting on their front porches in rocking chairs.

This article in US News & World Report indicates that the unemployment rate for aging Boomers is actually lower than the national average. What are they doing? Boomers are starting businesses in “retirement”. Perhaps this is the perfect time to do what you always wanted to do.

It’s an interesting topic – Read More!

Boomers planning to relocate have some big decisions to make. What kind of community do they want to live in and where? There’s lots written about active adult communities and you get the idea that everyone has worked their entire life to move to one of these communities designed for the perfect retirement. But ask yourself what it is you really want and what you’re willing to pay for -

• Age restricted (55+) or not
• Clubhouse
• Fitness Center
• Pools
• Golf
• Game rooms and more

If you don’t belong to a Fitness Center now, will you really use it when you move? How about the indoor pool? Is golf your passion? How about tennis? What does active really mean to you?

In an age-restricted or 55+ active adult community, you’ll meet people in your own age group with similar backgrounds. With a ready group of new friends you’ll always have people to get together with, travel with and throw parties.

I’ve often thought that these communities look to reward us for working hard, giving us that chance to finally live that country club lifestyle we never had time for while we were raising families and working 24/7.

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Five years ago, the White House Conference on Aging was held, as were state conferences and mini-conferences that were sponsored by various organizations like the National Association of Home Builders and AARP. This only happens every 10 years and the focus of this decade’s conference was on Boomers.

The sheer magnitude of the numbers had government agencies in a near panic.

• 78 Million Baby Boomers began turning 60 in the year 2006!
• 10,000 Boomers turn 55 every day.
• A Boomer turns 50 every 7 seconds.

Stats are still flying and everyone is trying to figure out what Boomers will really be like as we age.

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Every home purchase today usually involves a “Home Inspection”. Before going to settlement, it’s a good idea to make sure that the home is in good operating condition and that it will stay that way for a reasonable period of time.

As more and more Boomers enter their 60s, another type of home inspection is highly recommended. This inspection will evaluate every aspect of the home, inside and outside, to determine how well the home will accommodate your needs as long as you live there. By now, most people understand the value of a first floor master bedroom and bath and some even consider the option of total first floor living. Beyond that, most of us have no idea what belongs on our checklist.

AARP and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) came to this realization several years ago. The Remodelers™ Council  in collaboration with the NAHB Research Center,  and AARP developed the Certified Aging-In-Place Specialist (CAPS) program to address the growing number of consumers that have a strong desire to remain independent and to live in their own homes regardless of age.

What does this have to do with the purchase of a new home? Making sure a home will be able to accommodate you in the future is up to you. A CAPS professional is trained to help you evaluate a home and make specific recommendations for improving the home’s livability. For about the same cost as that of a traditional home inspection, the CAPS evaluation will focus on areas of the home that may require modification to remain livable as you age.

New construction is popular with the relocating Boomer who doesn’t want to bother with updating an older home. Many new homes being built today, however, would not rate high on the “livability” scale. Some popular floor plans do have more open space in the main living areas, but they often fail when it comes to bathroom design, width of doorways and number of steps.

When you consider that even a new home will require some modification to age along with you, it makes sense to look at existing homes that may need some work but that are in desirable areas. For example, you might be able to buy a home that needs updating close to town. In addition to location, this option will allow you to remodel a home to your exact taste. An older home may be better built and there is little difference between ripping out and replacing an old bathroom or a new one that just doesn’t meet your needs.

Imagine that you have just purchased a new home – your dream house with expensive upgrades. Then imagine that you or your spouse has an accident that puts you in a wheelchair for the next 6 months. When you arrive home from the hospital, it hits you – you cannot get into the house. Even worse, you realize you cannot access the bathroom!

If you bought a home 40 years ago there was no such thing as a home inspection. Today, no one would think of purchasing a home without one. CAPS professionals believe that the same will be true of a CAPS Evaluation in the future. In Delaware, Bill Bell of Gotcha Covered! has been CAPS certified since 2003.

Don’t put off till tomorrow what you can plan for today. Add a CAPS Evaluation to your new home purchase checklist. To learn more about what a CAPS Professional can do for you and to locate one in your area, visit this page of the National Association of Home Builders web site.  

Baby Boomers are one hot media topic these days. In one publication you read that we Boomers are different than our parents’ generation – and then another story concludes we may approach things differently but, in the end, we are about the same.

But some facts are indisputable. We are all living longer and our parents are likely, at some point, to need our help. Let’s assume that our children have been educated, are gainfully employed, and can pay their own expenses. Now let’s focus on the “Open-Faced Sandwich” scenario in which we, as Boomers, have only to worry about caring for a parent or other older relative.

For Boomers who have grown up here with parents living nearby, the first step is to have a plan. While everyone is in good health, have your parents talk about their plans for the future and how they would like to live as they age. Some options to consider include:

1. CCRC – Are your parents interested in moving into a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC)? There are now several to choose from in our area. A CCRC is defined as “a residential community for the remainder of one’s life, with a choice of services and living situations. Residents can move between Independent Living, Assisted Living, and Nursing Home Care based on changing needs at each point in time”.  Cadbury at Lewes is a local CCRC.
2. Stay where they are – Are they determined to remain independent in their own home? If yes, can that home age well with them and be accessible if one or both parents become temporarily or permanently impaired? Now is the time to begin planning and making some modifications so that at least one entrance will be barrier free and one bedroom and one bathroom are on the first floor. Sometimes fairly simple modifications will allow your parents to “Age in Place”.
3. Move in with you – At some point, will one or both parents be moving into your home? How will that affect your life and that of the rest of your family? Do you have the room or will you have to consider buying a new home with multiple living areas?
4. In-law Suite or Granny Flat – At least in Sussex County, there are very few homes that include a totally separate suite and even fewer that are zoned properly to allow a Granny Flat to be built. Ellendale is one town that does allow the construction of an accessory dwelling on your property as long as you live in either the primary residence or the Granny Flat. Maybe it’s time for more cities and towns to add this provision just as many other parts of the country already have.

If your parents live thousands of miles away, all of the choices above become even more challenging. You may be perfectly willing to care for your aging parents but you’re not willing to move to do so. Maybe you just retired and finally moved to your dream home at the beach or into that new Active Adult Community. What will you do if your parents refuse to move closer to you? Thinking and talking about these issues with aging parents before decisions become urgent can save everyone a lot of unhappiness over the long haul.

Boomers will live long past the historic retirement age and so will our parents. The question is how will we live and take care of those who took care of us.