Living Arrangements in Retirement (852 words)

As you look forward to your retirement years, you may consider where you live with fresh insight.  Concerns about work commutes, school and community activities and other responsibilities that tied you to your spot on this earth will change. Now is the time to explore your relocation options.

Rank the following factors. Determine your key motivators and assess priorities from the least important to the most important.

Cost of Living

With a finite amount of retirement funds, reducing expenses by lowering living costs is a tried and true method of increasing monthly cash flow. Besides your lower monthly base cost, expand your calculations to include other expenses such as taxes, transportation, utilities, health care and miscellaneous goods and services in your proposed area.

If you are moving to a smaller home or a less expensive location, the permutations are endless. You can sell your larger home and move to the suburbs or slightly farther out. This is relatively easy because you know the general area, can keep your friendships and family relationships going, and can still make jaunts back to your favorite shops or specialists.

Or, you can go farther a field by moving to a new area. This requires more planning. For example, I met one couple who had moved from Edmonton to Vancouver Island. They initially liked living there, but found because of the ferry schedules and cost, the lack of spontaneity prohibited them and others from coming and going. They subsequently moved to a suburb of Vancouver. That certainly would be a factor easily overlooked in their initial planning.

Another couple went back to their home province, Saskatchewan, which is a relatively inexpensive real estate market, bought a house there, and spend the winter as snowbirds.

If this is your plan, do not wait too long to get into action. Baby boomers are looking and buying now for their eventual retirement. Spend weekends exploring and perhaps purchasing a property and renting it out.

Recreational and small town real estate has enjoyed booming increases over the past several years. This is, in part, because of world-wide real estate increases, but also because of the migration of retired folks. Demographics do not lie, and with some ninety million baby boomers in North America, small towns with culture, recreational facilities, health services and a good infrastructure are bound to increase in price. Some towns actively court retirees by providing excellent programming and quality of life. Retirement income is non-polluting.

Personality and Interests

Consider whether you and your partner are extroverts or introverts. Think about the amount of time you will spend together and separately.  Will you hang out together and socialize a lot, or operate independently with separate activities for much of your day.

What activities do you plan to you do in retirement, and how much space will you need? Do you love or need the freedom your home provides? Do you need more space? Art, playing an instrument, building, small engine repairs, sculpting, more entertaining -  all of those things can actually require more space, not less.

Consider also that you will be home much more when you retire.  If you are not used to living underfoot each other day after day, you might want to hang on to your space.  For example, what if your activities collide and one of you wants to watch TV and the other want space to read in a quiet setting? This needs to be thought out carefully.  After your big trips are made and you are settling down to a routine of everyday living, how much legroom do you really need on a daily basis?

Proximity to Important Others

The range of relationships is as wide as it is deep. I recently talked to one couple with four children in their early twenties, most of them still in college. The couple was in their early to mid-fifties.  They planned to move now and enjoy a few years living in another country. When their kids actually settle down, and when and if grandchildren arrive, they can rethink their plans at that point. In the interim they are exploring the world and different cultures.

Your family circumstances do need to be taken into consideration. Are you a grandparent with lots of kids coming and going? What are you looking for in your relationship with your kids and grandkids?

The relationship between children and parents is complex. Some grandparents refuse to be "used" for baby-sitting, while others can not get enough of it. Realistically, though, throughout history, people have moved cities, geographic locations and even countries for better conditions. Forty-four million Americans moved last year.

Climate

Ah, the sun! One of the main factors why people move in retirement is because of bad weather. If you long for warm weather in the winter, why not try living in a warm place? Your mood, energy and health will probably improve with the increased outdoor activity that an active warm weather lifestyle encourages.

Other factors to be explored in my next articles include transportation needs, cultural and recreational needs, medical needs, landscape and quality of life.

Mahara Sinclaire, M.Ed.
© Mahara Sinclaire, 2010
mahara@laughingboomer.com

Mahara Sinclaire, M. Ed. Is the author of The Laughing Boomer: Retire from Work – Gear Up for Living! available from www.laughingboomer.com.  She was a college and university educator and has presented hundred of workshops on a variety of topics, including retirement planning workshops.  But what people are most interested in is Mahara and her husband’s two year, forty-three country, round-the-world travel odyssey.  Contact her at 604-210-2025, mahara@laughingboomer.com or visit www.laughingboomer.com.

852 words