What are those baby boomers going to do?

I’ve thought about this quite a bit.

I see the government increasing immigration quotas in order to maintain/increase the labour force and help prop up an ailing and overloaded health care and social security system.

I imagine that this will either stabilise or boost property prices.

Also, as baby boomers retire and leave the workforce we tend to forget that they are replaced by more efficient, tech savvy workers. The economy may need less workers to replace the baby boomers due to their improved efficiency.

This is all pure speculation and hasn’t been based on any thorough statistical research whatsoever but could be a possible outcome.

forwards ever
backwards never!!

The important thing about this forum is that we can express our opinions to allow others to follow with their ideas. The accumulation of ideas makes it possible for us all to formulate plans for our investments.

The one important element about the boomers is the realisation that their large numbers were sufficient to cause a real impact on the property market. Without their input the property market may have continued at a more sedate pace. It is generally agreed that the boomers were born between 1946 and 1964, so they will be reaching 60 this year. The bulk of them will be retiring in the next ten years.

If nothing else, the removal of their influence from the property market will cause some sort or adjustment in property prices. If their tendency is to ‘cash-up’ in some way, there could be a bigger adjustment. Many will do nothing but others will move to less expensive homes in order to use the equity the may have in their valuable city homes. Look fo sea & tree change.

It is difficult to know exactly what will happen but they have influenced the property market for the past 40 or so years and they will certainly continue to do so.

Who says we baby boomers are not tech savvy and are inefficient workers, you impudent young whipper snapper! [grrr]

The baby boomers have already started the sea change and tree change phenomenom and lots changes that we are in the middle of.

So to those people worrying about what effect the baby boomers will have, stop worrying, you have been living it anyway.

Dale

If they’re cashed up, they have options to down size and live close to amenities, families and health services, or to take up seachange and live it up (maybe leave some for legacy). Not so sure about the impact on coastal regions.

Others not so lucky will moderate their lifestyle to suit their draw down on super and savings or use reverse mortgage to fund retirement.

Hmm…a message to us all – delay gratification? Or the cynic puts it – in the long run, we’re all dead?

Property prices will tend to shift according to the general public perception on the next boom place to be in, not just the baby boomers. I am sure the state of the economy, interest rates, to some extent govornment policies and fuel prices etc. will keep property prices in check.

I think for those that can afford to move they will be looking to downsize. Most will not want to keep the family home once the kids have flown the nest and will probably be looking for a more secure environment near plenty of amenities.

My bet is on a growing demand for luxury units for our wealthier boomers, which have increased security (door codes etc), cable built in (for those boomers that are techies!!) on site gyms and a sense of community.
I agree its not for everyone but who wants to be mowing a lawn or climbing stairs when you reach 70? People want and pay for convenience particularly as they get older![biggrin]

James

Interesting topic, and one that I’ve studied in detail. I have many thoughts on the matter, but will share just a few.

1) There is no doubt that the gradual retirement of the boomers will have a significant impact on many aspects of society, business, politics and economics. Immigration will not change the absolute certainty that many parts of the country are facing a decline in the number of people of the currently accepted ‘working age’ – 15 to 55. This is supported by a large report I read a couple of weekends ago – if I recall correctly it was by Demographia consulting the fed gov’t. At least 3 states will have a net loss of these ‘working age’ people for a couple of decades. As an example, SA is projected to lose 4,000 per annum from 2012 if memory serves. So point one, this is a real issue. Things are going to change.

2) Who will step up to the leadership plate? If we look at the leaders of the business world, politics and to a lesser extent education and intellectuals, the vast majority are men aged 50+. I don’t doubt there are plenty of bright and brilliant young men & women entirely capable of taking these roles, but I wonder whether the transition of a new generation of leadership styles, ideas and ethics will cause some turmoil…?
The boomers will retain their voting majority for some years to come; what are potential leaders to do? Pander to their needs and wants, regardless of how this hurts the rest of society, or take the hard decisions and feel their wrath? I’m musing particularly on health-care, welfare, concessions and tax benefits, and of course, the environment.

3) These ‘cashed up boomers’ we hear, and or talk about are just one small part of a generation who will collectively be carrying more debt into their later years that any previous generation. This will absolutely have a number of consequences, the magnitude of which will be either negated or magnified by financial and economic developments over the next 1, 2 and 5 years. Will we still be playing envy politics and having inter-generational war talk if interest rates double in five years? I don’t think so. What if we enter a hyper-inflationary period where the cost of living (food, health & basic needs) doubles over a few years, then doubles again? The younger workers who are carrying lower debts will have some of their problems eased by rising wages, but anyone fully or partly retired will find their cash fairly irrellevent. Sure, given the past, 5 or 6 average houses should still provide 1 average income worth of rent for anyone who has paid them off in full, but many of those boomers who have recently begun investing have huge debts and no hope of being debt free…

I have the overwhelming urge to finish this with ‘for your kind consideration’, but fear I may step on kenneth’s toes. Any thoughts?

F.[cowboy2]

Assuming good health i hope they enjoy what they have earned, isn’t that what investiing is all about.

Gen xers and Gen yers need to get a life – all i hear from them is that we have all the money, ah well yes we do now but when we were your age we didn’t.

Its not all a bed of roses and millioneres out there retireing.

73% of all retirees have little super little savings and only their family home to rely on – WHY – the costs of raising children and education!!!

The biggest problem of retiring is maintaining and paying for health care which as every body knows is getting out of reach for most people, even private health care doesn’t cover every thing.

So to the lucky baby boomers who have done well over their working and investing life go spend it and have a bl…y good time because you deserve it – don’t give it to your children or the Gen x&yers because they are smarter than us and i am sure they will get rick quickly anyway.

I’m in a bad mood because a friend of mine has just died from cancer at 37yrs old and she didn’t get the chance to retire …

D