Studies show more people retire near home than to traditional hotspots like Florida and California
By Regina Harris
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE
The Sunshine State is losing its luster as America’s top retirement destination. According to a study by The American City Business Journal, today’s retirees are thinking beyond traditional hotspots like Florida and putting higher emphasis on maintaining personal connections like family, friends, and community.
Nowhere is this trend more apparent than in the Chicago area. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the 65-plus population in Cook County actually exceeds that of traditional retirement destinations like San Diego and Miami-Dade.
Three retirement principles
While the media has long labeled Florida, Arizona, and California as the most popular retirement destinations, only about 41/2% of people over 60 actually move across state lines, says Chuck Longino, director of the Reynolda Gerontology Program at Wake Forest University.
Longino, who studies migration trends, has discovered three principles:
1. Regionally rooted people search for a retirement location only 30 to 50 miles away from where they have lived in order to stay close to friends, family, and patterns of life.
2. Proximity to a metropolitan area provides access to the amenities of a city while offering a relaxed, smalltown style of life.
3. Regional retirement centers allow people to more easily maintain some degree of social continuity.
“People want the best of both worlds—a place without the hassles of city life, but with the lifestyles they’ve developed over the years,” Longino says.
Staying close to home
Chicagoland combines all three of Longino’s principles, appealing to people who have lived here their whole lives, as well as those who first retired elsewhere.