In the age of the Fitbit and more active retirees, there is a growing demand for neighborhoods that don’t require a car and offer a mix of services.
There is a growing demand for these types of communities not just for retirees but also the 22 to 35 yr old age group.
I live in a community where there is so much development. Grocery store and bank coming up across the street. Metro within walking distance. One metro stop away and we have the commercial/corporate district and shopping centers. I recently purchased a car but in my mind I would really would prefer to live in a place where a car is not needed. Communities where a person can live, work, and play are developing up quite a bit in our area along with the development of town centers which include shops, restaurants, farmers markets, and entertainment.
I wish I had lived in a walkable place when my kids were growing up, but I always lived in places you had to drive a car to get anywhere.
Part of my criteria for retirement location is a place that’s very walkable, but I think I’d rather be in a mixed development/neighborhood with families, as opposed to an over 55 kind of place.
NYC.
Ha! I have just returned from looking at a detached townhome as we are thinking of downsizing. I nixed the place as it was too close to the the grocery store and Target. We want trails through woods and around lakes rather than an urban setting. Don’t mind driving if we can have peace and quiet. Choosing new communities is tough!
Same here! Looked at townhomes, and Mr. decided that they were too close to civilization.
I would love to live in Bar Harbor. There are about 40 miles of carriage roads you can use for walking or biking. No cars are allowed on them. Incredible scenery! And the tourists tend to clump right along the shoreline, so the carriage roads are often deserted.
I do worry that I wouldn’t like living that close to others, after having a fair amount of privacy, but I think I could handle it.
I am an introvert who needs a lot of private time. I find living in a city provides me with more privacy than living in a suburb. People in NYC respect your personal space and the chance of running into people you know is a lot less than in a suburb. When I see my next door neighbor in my apartment building, we would just nod and move on. When I used to live out in a suburb, if I saw my neighbor out in the yard they would feel compelled to say hi and chat. They knew when I bought a new car and they cared where my kids went to school.
Our community is a mix of the population. Not really a retired community. We have college students, retirees, young professionals, as well as families as the school bus stop appears crowded every morning. I think what draws people to this area is the convenience of everything. Parks and community centers are close by. There really isn’t a need to get out of the area as it is quiet on weekends especially when the commercial traffic of the weekdays is all gone. It then appears as a quite neighborhood with lots of things to do for families and residents of all ages. So I am still in a suburb but I get the convenience of being close to the city but away from it at the same time. Best of both worlds. If I want to go away to wine yards or away for real peace and quiet it is just a short trip on the weekends.
Interesting. In our suburbia, everyone seems to mind their own business.
There is a significant difference between, say, 69 year olds and 86 year olds. One size doesn’t fit all. For long.
Raclut I would love to live in your neighborhood or somewhere similar.
When I lived in a NYC borough (not Manhattan), I could walk to do most shopping. Now, in the “lovely” suburb that I despise, you have to drive everywhere. I have developed a distaste for driving and am lucky to have 4 other drivers in the house. I can’t wait to retire somewhere that I can either walk to shopping or that has a shuttle bus service so I don’t have to drive. However, I really don’t want to move back to Manhattan, primarily because I don’t want to spend that kind of money to live.
I do agree with @oldfort. When I lived in apartment buildings, the neighbors left you alone. OTOH, as a kid, it was great trick or treating in a 30+ story building and selling Girl Scout cookies was so easy.
For Halloween we would sign up if we wanted to participate. If you weren’t on the list then people wouldn’t knock on your door. When I lived in a suburb there was no way to opt out.
I don’t want to live in a big city close nor do I want to live in a suburb where everything is close - but annoying close - a big box store, fast food chains, etc. galore.
My requirement is a small town where I can walk or bike to the following things: small grocery store, farmer’s market, library, coffee shop, a local restaurant or two and perhaps church. I’ll drive to everything else, but would be perfectly content to get in the car much less if these things were in my very local neighborhood.
Dream’s to die in bed, while asleep, on the hard to get to side of our creek. Until then, I’ll enjoy not seeing the face of someone strange when I look out the window. That there are no curtains is yet another plus.
Having some of the things we grew used to over the years, decent shops and restaurant, within driving distance - less than an hour - is something we haven’t been able to give up.
I have no desire to go shopping on foot, especially grocery shopping. The number of bags adds up and it gets heavy fast. I’d drive if the store is only a block away. I like the freedom and flexibility driving offers.
I have most things delivered, and that include groceries, wine, household goods…They usually get delivered right to my kitchen. My mother still lives in a house. She struggles with bringing her garbage cans to the curb, carrying her groceries to her car then unloading them when she gets to the house.
I’m with you techmom. I’ve lived in suburbia for the past 35 years and I hate it. You can’t do anything without a car. I live within a reasonable distance to the library, bank, grocery store, and CVS, yet I have to drive to all of them because of lack of sidewalks and crosswalks. I want to retire to a walkable community, but it also has to be affordable which eliminates alot of cities I’d consider.