Boomers can’t downsize

[Anonymous]

We’re buying where we want to retire (nowhere as expensive as the Hampton, etc.!) and will rent our current home in DC. So another property not on the market for buyers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We’re buying where we want to retire (nowhere as expensive as the Hampton, etc.!) and will rent our current home in DC. So another property not on the market for buyers.

Ok, and … ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is why boomers are annoying to so many of us.

You’re so entitled.

You are so entitled. You want us to leave our homes and go live in an apartment so you can leave your apartment and buy our homes! Somehow, you are more deserving!??

No I think some people just want boomers to stop complaining. Buying homes decades ago was a lot cheaper so was healthcare and getting a college education. Most Boomers are on Medicare and SS that probably won’t be around or the same when it comes to be our time. It’s frustrating.

I graduated college right as the Great Recession was happening. I have paid an arm and a leg for healthcare and have worked my tail off to be able to afford a house and a decent life. Costs continue to go up for everything and I am fortunate because I own a home! Many people can’t afford to buy a home. I have one child and no more because it’s unaffordable at this point with costs of healthcare and college.

I think it’s a reality check for some boomers and what other generations have been dealing with for most of our lives!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is why boomers are annoying to so many of us.

You’re so entitled.

You are so entitled. You want us to leave our homes and go live in an apartment so you can leave your apartment and buy our homes! Somehow, you are more deserving!??

Boomers ARE annoying because like OP, they want top dollar but then want a cheap home. You think it's entitled for a Milennial to want to begin home ownership on similar terms to what you faced as a young person in terms of how housing related to salaries?

It's fine for you to hold onto your house and your job in an attempt to get top dollar someday, but nobody wants to hear you whine about it. So you'll "only" make what, $500k? On the sale of your home? Cry me a river.

[Anonymous]

I’m a boomer and OP is nauseating. You can’t afford to retire in Rehoboth? Really? One of the most expensive beach towns on the Eastern Seaboard? Neither can anybody else, moron. Not to mention living in Rehoboth or any of the other places you listed year round would actually suck.

We “downsized” from a large home in a pricey DMV suburb in an excellent school district to downtown DC, where we bought a rowhome with a basement apartment for the same price. We’re in a shitty school district now and don’t care, and the basement rent covers the mortgage 100 percent. We’re having a great time while surrounding ourselves with folks of all ages and races rather than just a bunch of blue hairs and snow birds. And a nice young family now lives in our old house.

Be creative, OP.

[Anonymous]

One problem Boomers have is that they are super picky. It's pretty typical with age. But when the market is tight, you can't be that picky.

If you've been living in a house that you have renovated to your specifications several times over 40 years, it is very hard to shop for a smaller house where you are pretty much definitely going to have to accept some imperfections, especially if you don't want to go through more renovations.

My parents are currently shopping for a retirement home, but they want 3 bedrooms (but under 2k sq ft), a two car garage, all one level, and everything updated. They have a healthy budget ($1m, this is not the DMV but a similarly low-inventory, HCOL place), but they are struggling to find all that and feeling disappointed. But... that's what it's like to buy a house these days. They just haven't done it in a long time.

What's funny is that a few years back when WE were house hunting, my parents rolled their eyes at us when we expressed frustration with what was on the market. Now they get it.

[Anonymous]

Everyone is jumping on OP but it’s probably accurate that part of the housing crisis in the areas with good school districts and commutes is because of things preventing empty nesters from moving out of those areas. Current high interest rates is one of them especially compared with the run up in values that we saw over the past decade or so in some of the retirement areas. The problem is that this is the back end of the boomer generafion—the front end retired a decade ago and drove up the demand in all those retirement areas.

[Anonymous]

Your whole premise is shit. You want to make money on your house, but you want to buy a house for cheap that someone else isn't making money on.

If you want a cheaper place, you have to move someplace less desirable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Typical boomers. Want top dollar for the home they're in now, but want to land somewhere nice and cheap.

Typical GenZ/X/Y - want to land somewhere nice, but it also has to be cheap.

Most of the houses boomers are selling are really not all that nice. Trying to pass a 20 year old kitchen reno as a recent update, for example. But options are limited right now so it’s more about finding something acceptable within a reasonable budget (“cheap” was in 2008, nothing is cheap anymore).

A 20 year old kitchen Reno? Try a kitchen that hasn’t been touched since 1994 + wallpaper borders in every bedroom and bathroom!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Typical boomers. Want top dollar for the home they're in now, but want to land somewhere nice and cheap.

Typical GenZ/X/Y - want to land somewhere nice, but it also has to be cheap.

Most of the houses boomers are selling are really not all that nice. Trying to pass a 20 year old kitchen reno as a recent update, for example. But options are limited right now so it’s more about finding something acceptable within a reasonable budget (“cheap” was in 2008, nothing is cheap anymore).

A 20 year old kitchen Reno? Try a kitchen that hasn’t been touched since 1994 + wallpaper borders in every bedroom and bathroom!

Yep. We bought our current house and renovated it top to bottom because the boomers who lived here before either hadn’t touched things in 25 years, or did crappy DIY repairs that made things worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You're conflating two issues: The size of the house and the location. You could likely find something smaller in your same general location (though in certain specific neighborhoods it might be hard to find a smaller unit), but you can't afford a smaller home in a much more expensive neighborhood.

We have a 2000 sq ft house in the city so probably won't downsize when the kids leave, because we'd want something maybe 2/3 of the size, and it wouldn't be worth the change. But if we had a 3500 sq ft house in the burbs, we'd probably consider moving to a smaller house in the same area.

+1

I understand what OP is trying to say, but what OP doesn't get is that home prices have gone through the roof everywhere that is desirable for any generation.

Younger people are also moving to FL because of no income taxes, and it's more affordable than places like SF bay area or NYC. Retirees move there for the same reason. That will cause prices to go up. A lot of long time Miami residents are having to leave Miami because of how expensive housing has gotten. Miami has seen a net migration out due to the high housing costs.

I'm in a similar boat, OP. I currently live in a large home, with large lot in a fairly desirable area. My home is worth maybe $900K. I would love to downsize to a nice area where I can get something for maybe $600K so I can have a bit of profit leftover from the sale of my sfh. But, the question is.. where can I move to that I find desirable, and a home that doesn't need much work for < $600K? I'm finding that this is not possible. If/when I can find something for < $600K in a place I like, then chances are that means the market has gone down which means that the worth of my sfh also has gone down. So, that means I can't really move if I want everything I want.

Something's gotta give on my part.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Typical boomers. Want top dollar for the home they're in now, but want to land somewhere nice and cheap.

Typical GenZ/X/Y - want to land somewhere nice, but it also has to be cheap.

Most of the houses boomers are selling are really not all that nice. Trying to pass a 20 year old kitchen reno as a recent update, for example. But options are limited right now so it’s more about finding something acceptable within a reasonable budget (“cheap” was in 2008, nothing is cheap anymore).

A 20 year old kitchen Reno? Try a kitchen that hasn’t been touched since 1994 + wallpaper borders in every bedroom and bathroom!

Yep. We bought our current house and renovated it top to bottom because the boomers who lived here before either hadn’t touched things in 25 years, or did crappy DIY repairs that made things worse.

Please. I'm a older gen xer who bought a home 10 years ago with a kitchen that hadn't been touched since the 80s.

[Anonymous]

The last 10 years have been tougher on some Boomers though because their $ allocation was probably not as equity heavy, so while younger people made $$ on anything they invested in stock wise, many Boomers were seeing much more modest gains after losing a lot in the late 2000s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Typical boomers. Want top dollar for the home they're in now, but want to land somewhere nice and cheap.

Typical GenZ/X/Y - want to land somewhere nice, but it also has to be cheap.

Most of the houses boomers are selling are really not all that nice. Trying to pass a 20 year old kitchen reno as a recent update, for example. But options are limited right now so it’s more about finding something acceptable within a reasonable budget (“cheap” was in 2008, nothing is cheap anymore).

A 20 year old kitchen Reno? Try a kitchen that hasn’t been touched since 1994 + wallpaper borders in every bedroom and bathroom!

Yep. We bought our current house and renovated it top to bottom because the boomers who lived here before either hadn’t touched things in 25 years, or did crappy DIY repairs that made things worse.

Please. I'm an older gen xer who bought a home 10 years ago with a kitchen that hadn't been touched since the 80s.

Ok. What’s your point?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The last 10 years have been tougher on some Boomers though because their $ allocation was probably not as equity heavy, so while younger people made $$ on anything they invested in stock wise, many Boomers were seeing much more modest gains after losing a lot in the late 2000s.

Most younger people don’t have money to invest in the stock market because we’re saddled with massive student debt and wage stagnation.