Reporting the Retirement Housing Slide. Why?

Some people will see the Press Release that is being published around the state about the housing downturn in retirement and resort areas of NC in 2009 versus 2006 and ask why talk about it? We all know sales have gotten soft in many areas of the Carolinas.

NARA's position is that our state governments focus on attracting industry and attracting tourists. Never is it mentioned that we want to get aging boomers with grey hair to come and buy.

The government has left it up to private enterprise to market the state. The problem is that government marketing spending outside the state sorely dwarfs the effort that private industry - developers and builders - can muster.

For whatever reason, state officials have never seen the billions of dollars of sales that comes from retirees buying homes and investing in the state as business. Tourism or visitors coming in is business. Economic development or providing massive incentives to attract industry is business. Both enterprises employ hundreds of government workers and spend hundreds of millions of dollars.

The Carolinas have been an awesome place to retire to in the 2000s. However, other states are creeping in the mix, setting up retirement organizations to try to support small towns that want to import retiree's wealth and spending. My point is: what happens when they quit coming? Billions are lost. And, lots of people lose their livelihoods.

Should retirement edge out other government efforts? Absolutely not. But, should the topic of attracting aging boomers be at the table in every state in the country? Absolutely yes. In too many cases, small towns - especially in the South - have seen their manufacturing and industrial base leave for foreign lands. This has caused an erosion in the local economies.

When no companies are coming and no tourists are coming, some small towns should be looking at bringing in more retirees. For some "off the beaten path" towns, this may be their best option.

This is a long way of saying: retirement relocation is BIG business.