Senior Spotlight: Where Baby Boomers Don’t Want To Live

Welcome back to our Senior Spotlight! Earlier this year, we covered the top cities where Baby Boomers are headed and what cities this generation dominates, as well as snowbird life. But knowing what does NOT suit you is just as important as knowing what does. So this week, with the help of Yahoo! Finance and 24/7 Wall St., we are revealing the places least likely for retirees to call home!

Yahoo! Finance just published an article citing 5 cities that Baby Boomers are fleeing at the highest rates, and the top 3 reasons driving that exodus. The key reasons for exiting these cities are 1) exorbitantly high cost of living, 2) overpriced housing and 3) high property crime rates. You may not be surprised to learn that two Bay Area cities made the list, both San Francisco and San Jose. Living expenses in these cities are 71% and 75% higher than the national average, while vehicle theft is a leading crime in both locales. Other cities on the list are Washington, D.C., New York City, New York and Seattle, Washington.

Also in the news this week, 24/7 Wall St. ranked 7 cities that had a favorability rating of less than 35% with Baby Boomers. The message here was that with Boomers accounting for over 20% of the population and having more affluence than most generations, their impact on these economies can be big. While poverty rates and crime statistics played a role in these calculations too, these ratings also accounted for climate (humidity, severe storms, average temperatures, etc.). The unpopular city list includes: Columbus, Ohio, Tulsa, Oklahoma, Long Beach, New York, Detroit, Michigan, Fresno, California, Oakland, California and New Philadelphia, Ohio.

Some of these cities actually boast low crime rates and lots of things to do – but when coupled with few other retirees, lack of diversity and small size, popularity plummeted. Other cities had great diversity and lots of historic landmarks, but were either plagued with crime, subject to poor weather or simply felt overcrowded according to those surveyed.

Do you know what you do NOT want in a city when you retire? Most retirees cite proximity to family, quality healthcare systems and safety as top wants. As seen from above, many cities with a high cost of living, high crime or extreme weather are a big ‘no thank you!’.

But what if your loved ones live in a high-cost area? What if a place with great healthcare has cold year-round weather? The reality is that weighing pros and cons within your own personal priorities is key to choosing a retirement location. You know yourself best and you have got this!

Happy deciding,

Bobbi Decker
DRE#00607999

Broker Associate
650.346.5352 cell
650.577.3127 efax
www.bobbidecker.com

NAR Instructor….“Designations Create Distinctions”
CIPS, SRS, ABR, CRS, SRES, GRI, CLHMS, REI, AHWD, RSPS, MSLG

Bobbi Decker & Associates fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. For more information, please visit: http://portal.hud.gov/