Marketing Your Property: Baby Boomers

Most rental housing news is all about Millennials and their penchant for renting over buying. However, on the other end of that demographic, their parents and grandparents, the baby boomers are selling their houses and looking for alternative ways to live. They aren’t all moving into 55+ communities but do want somewhere that is accessible, has amenities, is in their existing city or neighborhood, and is accessible to services, mass transit, and other public services.
At a median age of 62, many baby boomers will be living for another 20-25 years and that means that for property investment purposes, catering to this demographic can be a very stable option over a good period of time. The baby boomers are a massive generation and that means there are many people looking for housing.

As millennial’s debt decreases and they have children, they may not be a reliable source of new renters. However, baby boomers are looking for affordable places to live. Half of baby boomers have some savings but are primarily relying on social security for their living expenses. This means that if you can supply housing at an affordable rate and that caters to senior living needs, there is potential for some good rental income.

What are baby boomers looking for?

According to a study done by Freddie Mac, they identified 3 trends in this market for investing:

1. 71% of respondents said they plan to rent rather than buy their next home.
2. Among the “very important” factors affordability and amenities are the two biggest factors influencing baby boomers in their next move. The amenities included not being responsible for landscaping and being in a walkable community.
3. Another interesting factor is that they don’t want to move very far. 31% of those surveyed reported that they would like to change neighborhoods but stay in the city where they live. Those looking to move far were in the minority. Those who want to move to a different city in the same state were only 18% and those moving to a different state only comprised 24% of respondents.

This means that no matter where you are in Washington, if you can provide safe, affordable, housing that doesn’t require your tenants to do any landscaping, you can have a reliable demographic of renters. Most people are planning on staying within our region and possibly within your city!

What does this all mean? It means that if you can effectively cater this demographic, you can have long-term, consistent, cash flow investing. In 15-20 years, generation X will be getting ready to retire and that could continue to present investment and income possibilities. That is great news for property investors. The long-term potential of your property increasing in value for being so well positioned is another factor that really makes this plan an attractive investment.