• One half of all people who ever lived to the age of 65 are alive today!
• In 1875 when Otto von Bismarck set the age of 65 as the age to receive a pension, the average life expectancy was in the mid-thirties.
• What happened in between 1875 and today is the longevity revolution which really began with post-World War II antibiotics and modern epidemiology. 

 Dynamic and Evolving Market

• There are currently 36 million retirees in the U.S.
• On January 1, 2008 the first ‘baby boomer’ turned age 62. (Boomers are the generation born between 1946 and 1965)
• Over the next two decades 77 million ‘baby boomers’ will reach retirement age.
• With the increase in life-expectancy the boomers will have to decide what to do and where to spend about 20 to 25 years of life.

• A typical description of the retiree is that they are tourist who don’t go home.
• Of course it is generally accepted attracting tourists is a legitimate path to development.
• But to say a retiree is just a tourist who does not go home over simplifies the impact of retirees.
• Like tourists retirees do bring a lot of discretionary spending with them when they move.

More Than Discretionary Spending

• Whether they rent or buy, retirees induce home building.
• New residential construction has one of the highest multipliers for any sector since new home building also means new home furnishing, new appliances, etc.
• Various estimates place the purchase price of the median value retiree home at between $150,000 to $200,000.
• A small retiree development  of 250 homes will add about $50.0 million to a community’s tax base.

• The average retiree spends about $42,000 per year.
• Retirees spend money on housing, medical services, financial services, arts and entertainment, and high-end retail.

Impact of Retirees: A Comparison

• In 1950 Georgia’s population was 3.4 million
• Florida’s population in 1950 was 2.8 million, about the size of the state of Delaware.
• In the 50 years between 1950 and 2000, Florida became the 4th largest state in the U.S, with a population of about 18.3 million
• The Florida economy was transformed from a rural agricultural economy to one of the largest economies in the U.S.
• By comparison Georgia did grow over the same period, but only to  was 10th in population with less than half the population of Florida.

No Doubt

• To transform an economy like that of Florida in a 50 year period is an economic development success story, but there are challenges going forward.

Retirees Now Seek More Than Sun

• The competition for retirees has increased.
• Both Florida and California have lost market share to other states.
• States and communities must now make their case for why they are ‘the best’ destination for retirement.

• Only 8% to 10% of the ‘Silent Generation,’ the boomer’s parents, relocated post retirement.
• It is expected that boomers will have a much higher propensity to move as part of a planned retirement.  It is estimated that about 20% of boomers will move post retirement.
• If boomers do move, they will re-make the population geography if the U.S. with as many as 18.2 million retirees relocating in the next two decades.

• To play in the exploding market a state or a community has to be prepared to tell its story.
• To sell in any market one must know what the customer wants.
• The American Association of Retirement Communities has a mission to help states and communities created effective retiree attraction strategies.

• AARC stands for the American Association of Retirement Communities.
• It was established with the assistance of an Economic Development Administration grant for the purpose of helping states and communities understand more about retiree attraction as an economic development strategy.

• The Seal of Approval was developed as a process to help communities
• understand the needs and expectations of retirees,
• evaluate their community relative to the needs and expectations of retirees,
• to then develop a plan for meeting those expectations with an understanding of how to sell a community to retirees.

The Seal

• To achieve Seal of Approval status, towns and municipalities must:
• Show community support for the policy by a resolution of the government;
• Designate a sponsoring organization with a retirement program director that will be accountable for the community;
• Prepare a printed brochure;
• Establish a toll-free number
• Create a committee to assist the retirement program director
• Develop a marketing plan

• The Seal requires an assessment of Quality of Life Quality of Life Measures

• Hospital and Adequacy of Medical Services – The community must be within 30 minutes of a hospital and there must be emergency servicers for stabilization and transport to an acute care hospital (minimum standard)
• Availability of Housing – There must be a variety of housing options with an adequate supply of both resale and rental housing
• Availability of Goods and Services – Adequate shopping, restaurants, etc
• Seal Quality of Life Continued
• Adult Education Opportunities – Availability of adult continuing education either through college/university located in the community
• Recreational Opportunities – Adequate outdoor recreation such as golf and walking trails.  There must also be fitness and wellness centers.
• Cultural Opportunities – adequate availability of theatres, arts galleries, etc
• Low Crime – below the national average for both violent and non-violent crime  

Why Should You Apply

• The current recession will not last forever and states and communities are likely to emerge from the downturn with strong interests in creating more diverse economies.
• States and communities are also likely to be seeking out new market opportunities.
• Undertake the AARC Seal of Approval process now to learn where you stand with respect to the huge market in retiree attraction

• Hunting for retirees will be as serious a business as recruiting industry.
• The retiree recruitment market will surge over the next 20 years.
• After the era of boomer retirement, it is expected that the U.S. will plateau with about 71.5 million people in retirement.
• A doubling of the size of the market for retiree services in 20 years.

Next Steps

• Many states do not currently have a state level strategy for retiree attraction.
• When Florida dropped out of the number one spot as a retiree destination in 2006, the state immediately initiated a state level plan for retiree attraction.
• Other southern neighbors of Florida have state level plans including Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee.  North Carolina will join them next year with a state level plan.

• Visit http://www.the-aarc.org/ and become a member of the AARC.
• Read the AARC’s monthly newsletter to stay current with the latest research on retirees.
• Plan to attend the AARC’s annual conference, November 4 to 6 in Chattanooga, TN.
• GET ON BOARD!