The pandemic has spurred surges in camping and RV travel due to the need for social distancing and outdoor activity. But it’s not all fun and vacations: one group of Americans adopted a self-sufficient and nomadic lifestyle long ago, living full-time in motor homes and working seasonal jobs to support themselves as they travel the United States. Paul Solman reports on retirement-age “workampers.”
Tag Archives: Retirement
Boomers & Technology: “2020 Tech And The 50+ Survey” (AARP – Dec 2019)
Tech ownership among older adults is growing with no signs of slowing down.
• For many devices, adoption among adults ages 50 and older is comparable to younger generations. Adults ages 50
and older are adopting smartphones, wearables, home assistants/smart speakers, and smart home technology at
nearly the same rate as adults ages 18–49.
• Younger adults have abandoned tablets, but older adults are adopting tablets at an increasing rate: More than half
(52%) of adults ages 50 and older own a tablet.
• Once adopted, usage of smartphones, wearables, tablets, home assistants/smart speakers, and smart home
technology is high with most owners using their technology daily.
While older adults are highly engaged with their devices, many are not using the technology to its full potential.
• Adults ages 50 and older are using smartphones and tablets to maintain social connections, find information, and for
entertainment, but only a few are using their device to automate their home or conduct transactions.
• Engaging in social media is one of the most common uses of a tech device (e.g., computer, tablet, or smartphone).
• Though 49% claim to own a smart TV, only 42% are using streaming or online options to watch shows.
• Nearly half (46%) of all smart home assistant/smart speaker owners do not use their device daily.
Retirement: 53-Story “The Clare” Tower Sale Signals Booming “Senior Luxury Living” Sector In Chicago
From a The Real Deal online article:
A unit at the Clare costs an average one-time entrance fee of $800,000 or so, along with around $5,500 monthly fees. The entrance fee is refunded when a resident dies or moves out. Entrance fees at a typical senior living facility is around $369,000.
The 53-story Clare tower on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile has sold for $105 million, a sign that luxury senior living facilities hold huge upside in today’s market.
Fundamental Advisors LP sold the luxury seniors-only tower for twice what the private equity firm paid for the 334-unit tower in 2012, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Baby Boomer Economics: American 50+ Population Would Be World’s Third Largest Economy (AARP)
From an AARP.org online article:
“As the number of people over 50 grows, that age cohort is transforming markets and sparking new ideas, products and services across our economy,” AARP CEO Jo Ann Jenkins says. “And as people extend their work lives, they are fueling economic growth past the traditional retirement age.
Americans age 50 and up contribute so much to the U.S. economy that they’d constitute the world’s third-largest economy if they were counted as their own country, a major new AARP study finds.
The economic contributions of 50-plus Americans totaled $8.3 trillion last year, which puts them just behind the U.S. and China when measured by gross domestic product.
And that economic impact will grow significantly in decades to come, tripling to more than $28 trillion by 2050 as millennials and Generation Z begin to turn 50 in 2031 and 2047, respectively, the report finds.
Retirement: Colleges Cater To Baby Boomers By Building On-Campus Living Facilities (WSJ)
From a Wall Street Journal online article:
More schools are building or planning senior-living facilities on or near campus to cater to baby boomers who view college as a stimulating alternative to bingo at an archetypal retirement home. Some savor the pursuit of academic and cultural interests. Others are lured by the promise of interaction with younger students, for whom many hope to act as mentors.
It is the latest way for universities to profit from one of their greatest assets, land. Colleges have already taken advantage of this privilege by developing hotels and high-end student housing. Now, some see sales of upscale senior housing as the next step.
Lasell University, just west of Boston, built one of the first on-campus senior communities two decades ago. It requires members to take 450 hours of coursework or activities each year. Other programs have since sprouted up in places like the University of Michigan and Oberlin College in Ohio. Some communities are on campus; others are situated nearby and may have only a loose affiliation with the school. Many offer assisted living and nursing options.
To read more: https://www.wsj.com/articles/seniors-want-to-go-back-to-class-universities-want-to-sell-them-real-estate-11576751403
Healthy Aging: “Happiness Across The Life Span” By Susan Bell (USC Dornsife)
From a USC Dornsife Magazine article by Susan Bell:
Not a Slippery Slope after all
Contrary to popular opinion, when it comes to well-being, our lives do not represent an inevitable decline from the sunny uplands of youth to the valley of death. Instead, the opposite is true — we can confidently look forward to old age as the happiest time of our lives.
More than 50 years have passed since The Who’s Pete Townshend penned these immortal lines on his 20th birthday, resulting in the band’s iconic ode to rebellious youth, “My Generation.” These days there is no hint that the rock star, now a spritely septuagenarian, is entertaining any regrets that his youthful wish didn’t come true.
So why do people grow happier as they age? Is it an absence of stress, or are they able to focus more on what brings them joy?
But as a young man, Townshend certainly wasn’t alone in dreading old age, and while his suggested remedy for avoiding the unavoidable may have been extreme, he also wasn’t alone in wanting to dodge what we tend to believe will be the miseries of aging.
To read more: https://dornsife.usc.edu/news/stories/3117/happiness-across-the-life-span-not-a-slippery-slope-after-all/
Boomers’ Retirement: Find Purpose, Give Back To Your Community And Adapt Slowly (Barron’s)
From a Barron’s online article:
Retirements must evolve because everything won’t work out as planned, says Carolyn Taylor, president of Weatherly Asset Management, an investment-management firm in Del Mar, Calif. One of her clients, who worked in the biotech industry and had a very busy family life, trained before retirement to become a master gardener. As she trained, she found that she enjoyed teaching others and finally became a teacher of gardening, Taylor says.
Retirees who feel they have no purpose are more likely to find themselves at a loss or feeling depressed, says Black. Taking on part-time work, going back to school, volunteering, or participating in philanthropic endeavors can make retirees feel that they’re still making an important contribution.
Bringing the enjoyable aspects of your work into your retirement life can be helpful, says Black. “Maybe you enjoy mentoring young people; perhaps you can find a way to continue doing that into retirement,” she says.
Retirement Life: Former Canadian Hockey Player Chooses To Travel In His “Living Vehicle” (Video)
Professional Canadian athlete Justin Kelly celebrates retirement by hitting the road on his motorcycle and enjoying the waves in Malibu. Share in Justin’s vision for sustaining his love for travel after retiring his #27 jersey and completing a remarkable ice hockey career.
https://www.justinkelly27.com/
Website: https://www.livingvehicle.com/
Boomers: “How Realistic Are Retirement Expectations In The USA?”
Healthcare Surveys: Nursing Shortage Threatens System As Baby Boomers & Nurses Retire
From a Healthcare Finance news article:
A third of the nurses who took the survey are baby boomers and 20% of survey takers said they planned to retire in the next five years. More than a quarter, 27%, said they were unlikely to be working at their current job in a year.
The shortage threatens to collide with the impending retirement of the baby boomers, all of whom will be 65 years old by 2030, said the survey titled “A Challenging Decade Ahead.” People over 65 are hospitalized three times as often as middle-aged individuals, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
Amid a nursing shortage, hospitals are struggling to hire and keep nurses, with burnout and workplace violence cited as contributing factors, according to a new survey.
Flexibility and work-life balance had the most influence for 39% of nurses in whether they decided to stick with a job, though 31% say compensation and benefits were the biggest driving factor, according to AMN Healthcare’s 2019 Survey of Registered Nurses.
To read more: https://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/node/139458
Boomers Daily 