Retirement communities change for Boomers

[Amethyst]

Can they afford people to help keep up the house, and can they afford to modify the house so they can stay in it? Then it doesn't need to be an albatross...it can be a refuge. The key is whether they can afford it. Everything costs more as the square footage goes up.

So now its 20 years later and BIL and his DW have an albatross hanging over their head as they don't want to sell and are getting too old to move and downsize. Plus, all three children live thousands of miles away.

 

[aja8888]

Can they afford people to help keep up the house, and can they afford to modify the house so they can stay in it? Then it doesn't need to be an albatross...it can be a refuge. The key is whether they can afford it. Everything costs more as the square footage goes up.

Yes, they apparently can afford it.

BIL had a heart transplant last December and he is "better" although restricted in doing physical things for the first year. They have mentioned downsizing but don't have the ambition/energy/etc to make it worth the effort. They basically live on the first floor now and very rarely use the upstairs rooms where three bedrooms and a bath or two are located.

 

[Moemg]

, I also think people should have all the fun they can afford during their brief time on earth -whether it's buying an airplane, climbing Everest, taking the grandkids to Bora Bora, or buying/decorating/staffing a mansion. If they don't want to do things like that, it is also fine with me.

Sometimes, though, I sense the presence of a grim-faced contingent who have decided that unless they would want something, nobody should want it, and especially not older women! That is all I meant, and it's off my chest now

I agree with your post but I think the grim faced contengent is aimed at everybody not just older women . Let me be the first to say I live in a big house , have cable , travel,keep the air at 74 & freely spoil my grandkids but I will not be taking them to Bora Bora !

 

[harley]

Sometimes, though, I sense the presence of a grim-faced contingent who have decided that unless they would want something, nobody should want it, and especially not older women! That is all I meant, and it's off my chest now

There's a contingent of those everywhere, not just here. Sadly, many of them seem drawn to politics, whether at the national, local, or HOA level. You are only allowed to have fun doing the things "I" think are fun. All other activities should be illegal or considered immoral, or at least gossip topics.

 

[HFWR]

Sometimes, though, I sense the presence of a grim-faced contingent who have decided that unless they would want something, nobody should want it, and especially not older women! That is all I meant, and it's off my chest now

I'm perfectly happy with older women wanting it...

 

[Totoro]

.. taking the grandkids to Bora Bora, or buying/decorating/staffing a mansion. If they don't want to do things like that, it is also fine with me.

I know this is silly, but I keep confusing that nice place with this other nice place: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tora_Bora

So I couldn't understand why grandmas typically would want to take their kids there ..

 

[fritz]

Oh, I'm sorry, I wasn't going after you, fritz, and in fact I appreciated your detailed, thoughtful posts on this thread about your own experiences. That picture of the guy cleaning his sandals in the public pool will stay with me...I imagine him as having back fur and moobs...

I guess, though, that your post did trigger something that I have wanted to say for a while, having been an ER forum member since 2008. Even though I'm firmly in the "ant" camp in the age-old "ant versus grasshopper" struggle, I also think people should have all the fun they can afford during their brief time on earth -whether it's buying an airplane, climbing Everest, taking the grandkids to Bora Bora, or buying/decorating/staffing a mansion. If they don't want to do things like that, it is also fine with me.

Sometimes, though, I sense the presence of a grim-faced contingent who have decided that unless they would want something, nobody should want it, and especially not older women! That is all I meant, and it's off my chest now

You always see the brochures/advertisements on 55+ communities with those picture perfect air-brushed models around 55? featured - being very active and life is good smiles on their faces. Around here, it's much older folks in the neighborhood (and much older folks buying all the homes here).

As for older women enjoying themselves and buying nice single family houses - three live right across the street from us. One just recently bought her home from our friends who moved to Georgia to be near their kids (he just passed away). A limo picked up two of them on Saturday for a 10 day trip (I kind of keep an eye on the houses, but the three across the street take care of each others places, dogs, etc while they travel). The other just got back from traveling for a couple of weeks with her other women friends living in the community. Our next door neighbor is widowed, and there are 3 more older women on the street as well (a 4th just passed away, and we don't know who bought her house yet). One rides around the neighborhood with her two dogs in her golf cart all day and she and her sister (who also bought a single family home a block over) winter in Florida every year.

Our neighbors behind us are in their 90's (remember this neighborhood is +/-14 yrs old), and they spend 4-5 months here and the balance of the year in their 2nd home in Florida. Been doing this since I've bought in here 9 years now and their home is just a little older than ours). They used to drive, but have just started to fly back and forth. Same with two of the other neighbors behind us, although they are a little younger early/mid 70's. One sold a home down in Florida and bought another 5 bed/3 1/2 bath home there last year.

Although our neighborhood is mostly much older folks than the models pictured on the brochures for these communities - they do have the life is good smiles on their faces, and appear to be enjoying life.

 

[zerogravity]

"In short, I'm simply not everyone's cup of tea, nor do I want to have to exert the mental effort to BE everyone's cup of tea (had to do enough of that at work). "

+1 amethyst - you are my kind of gal.
How do you meet friends like this if you are not normally an extrovert social butterfly?



a condition of apparent weightlessness such as that experienced in orbit or in free fall or my aunts inverse table! Causes blood flow to the brain that might result in amazing thoughts!