Retirees on the Move to Urban Cores

There was a great story on KJZZ yesterday morning on their Changing America series. Reporter Peter O’Dowd talked about how retirees are moving into downtown areas and urban cores along the Valley Metro light-rail line.

Finding homes for these folks in CenPho is driven by a need I saw coming years ago: Baby Boomers—the post-WWII generation born between 1946 and 1964—are changing the way we view retirement. I say that because I have helped many folks in their retirement years as they search for homes in downtown. So, this story really hit home.

“As a group,” said Landon Jones in his book that coined the word, “[Baby Boomers], were the wealthiest, most active, and most physically fit generation to that time, and amongst the first to grow up genuinely expecting the world to improve with time.”

It should come as no surprise, then, that 60 housing units are opening at the end of this month in downtown Phoenix, along the “pedestrian friendly street with historic sidewalks and that sort of thing”—which is how Gordan and Company Developer Brian Swanton described Lofts at McKinley in the KJZZ piece.

The Lofts will attend to the lower and middle income residents, 55 years and older. It’s just a few blocks from a light-rail station. When the complex broke ground last year, KPHO reported,

Despite the lower price tag, amenities will not be cheap. Tenants met by doormen, high end appliances and even green products. Recycled water for irrigation purposes. Rent will range from $400 to $900. Eligible tenants must have an annual income between $18,000 to $32,000.”

There aren’t many seniors or retirees who can afford early retirement these days. Guaranteed pensions are even less likely. Swanson said that by 2013 close to 300 units for seniors will be available along the light-rail line between Phoenix and Mesa.

Shannon Scutari, who leads the Sustainable Communities Collaborative (and is quoted in the KJZZ piece), “helps coordinate a 20-million dollar fund to kickstart financing for affordable housing near transit. Without various stacks of private money, Scutari says the banks just aren’t interested in taking the risk on their own.”

Encore on Farmer is another senior housing complex that opened January in downtown Tempe.

The prospects are not just for rentals, but also for home sales in CenPho and downtown. This is what I find so exciting. I love the diversity. As a famous baby boomer said, “The times they are a changin’….”

There are plenty of homes, town homes, patio homes and condos for sale that meet this need. Please give me a call at 602-456-9388 if you are interested to learn more.

[Lofts at Finley photo: combusean] [Baby Boomers photos: NGOA&ENGAF]