One striking difference, according to John Migliaccio, director of research at MetLife’s Mature Market Institute, related to home services and community services.
“Very telling,” said Migliaccio, “is that the younger group of mature consumers reported enthusiastically that they want services like home maintenance and repair as part of their next home purchase, along with services usually connected to older householders, such as housekeeping, onsite health care and transportation.”
According to Migliaccio, all of the aforementioned were ranked higher than the desire for social activities by this group - a surprise in as much as social activities and amenities have been thought to be valued quite highly by this group. This finding, he said, supports an emerging trend among builders to look for ways to partner with providers of such services to the residents of their active adult/lifestyle communities.
According to Mike McGowan, a 50+ builder from Binghamton, New York and chair of NAHB’s 50+ Housing Council, “Most buyers in this market are looking for an easy-living lifestyle. They would like easy access to services that will free up their time from maintenance both inside and outside their homes. This data tells builders that the homes they build for older active adults will remain attractive to the consumers who will be entering that market for the foreseeable future.”
