Retirement community

A retirement community, or active adult community, is a housing complex designed for older adults who are generally able to care for themselves; however, assistance from home care agencies is allowed in some communities, and activities and socialization opportunities are often provided. It differs from a retirement home which is a single building or small complex where no "common areas" for socializing exist. Many retirement communities are planned for that purpose, and have special facilities catering to the needs and wants of retirees, including extensive amenities like clubhouses, swimming pools, arts and crafts, boating, trails, golf courses, active adult retail and on-site medical facilities. These amenities are a big selling point for retirement communities and most greatly affect where older adults choose to live. Other facilities have no or very few common amenities. An Age-restricted community generally requires at least one household resident to be 55 plus years of age or older (occasionally 50+ or 60+ years of age). Retirement communities are often built in warm climates, and are common in Arizona, California, Florida and Texas but are increasingly being built in and around major cities throughout the United States. Youngtown, Arizona, established in 1954, was the first age-restricted community. Del Webb opened Sun City, Arizona, with the active adult concept, in 1960. In 2011, The Villages, Florida is the largest of these communities. While new retirement communities have developed in various areas of the United States, they are largely marketed to older adults who are financially secure. Lower income retirement communities are rare, which neglects a large proportion of older adults who have fewer financial resources.

Naturally occurring retirement communities

Main article: Naturally occurring retirement community

Naturally occurring retirement communities (NORCs) can involve low-income residents receiving a richer mix of public services through a NORC model. They might serve people of all income levels who got together to furnish cost-effective transportation services. And there are NORCs for relatively affluent households that may charge $1,000 or even more in annual dues, and support paid and volunteer staffers who provide a rich variety of support services and cultural enrichment activities. NORCs can be very effective mechanisms to identify populations of people who need government-provided services and then provide those services in cost-effective ways. An example would be Beacon Hill Village in Boston provide support and resources for those who do not want to leave their current neighborhoods. Another term may be used for a predominantly senior citizen community, in which residence is unrestricted by age and job affiliation.

One categorization of retirement communities:^{[citation needed]}

• Active communities (all residential units, no long-term healthcare facilities - also known as "independent living communities" such as Holiday Retirement which has over three hundred communities across the US.
• Active/supportive communities (a combination of residential and healthcare facilities - also known as "continuing care retirement communities" - CCRC)
• Supportive communities (all longterm healthcare units, like assisted living facilities or nursing homes)

Continuing care retirement communities

At the time of writing (late 2010), the term Continuing Care Retirement Community is the primary term for a major part of the retirement scene, in books, magazines, accreditation and legislation, in parallel with the categorization just presented. A typical definition, from a New York Department of Health website [1] is "Continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) and fee-for-service continuing care retirement communities (FFSCCRCs) are residential alternatives for adults that offer, under one contract, an independent living unit (an apartment or cottage), residential amenities and access to a continuum of long term care services, as residents' health and social needs change over time." The accrediting agency CCRC/CARF [2] uses the term CCRC with the same meaning. So do texts that include Senior Living Communities: Operations Management and Marketing for Assisted Living, Congregate, and Continuing Care Retirement Communities by Benjamin W. Pearce. Like regular retirement communities, CCRCs are often expensive and can involve some risk depending on the community because of declining occupancy and possible cost increases.

Elder/Senior cohousing

Senior cohousing is a living arrangement in which multiple individually owned housing units are oriented around a common open area and a common house. Residents actively cooperate together to live in a neighborhood in which there is socialization, and mutual support for one another. The idea for elder cohousing originated in Denmark, where intergenerational cohousing was successfully implemented. This idea formulated into an age-specific cohousing model for active elders, in which, the design in the communities includes easy access for all levels of physical ability. There may also be options to include studio residencies in the common house to provide living quarters for home health aids whose services may be shared by several residents.

Other information

A number of publishers have created lists of the 100 best retirement communities or "100 best places (or towns) to retire". For the most part these lists are helpful in terms of finding desirable communities to live in. The extent to which desirable amenities are "priced" in labor markets (lower wages in nice places) or housing markets (higher housing prices in nice places) will have a large impact on their appeal elderly retirees who no longer have to pay in the labor market. One drawback to these lists is that these communities often become more expensive as a result of their popularity.

Retirement communities in the United States

So far six U.S. states have created Certified Retirement Community programs with approximately 70 towns and communities included (see list). The obvious purpose of these programs is to encourage economic development - retirement, particularly baby boomer retirement - is very big business. States seek to encourage retirement in their states; keeping existing residents and encouraging out of state residents to move to a new state. Bill Haas of the University of North Carolina's Institute for the Future of Retirement estimates that the economic impact of a retiree household moving to a state is the equivalent of 1.4 factory jobs.^{[citation needed]}

The six states that have publicized their certification programs are:

• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Mississippi
• Tennessee has a program that promotes retirement in select communities in that state; the program is called "Retire Tennessee".
• Texas
• West Virginia(West Virginia calls its program a "Designated Retirement Community".

Arizona

• Circle City
• Green Valley
• Rio Verde
• Sun City
• Sun City West

Arkansas

• Hot Springs Village

California

• Leisure World in Seal Beach, California
• Rossmoor, Walnut Creek, California

Connecticut

• Heritage Village

Florida

• Century Village
• Lehigh Acres
• Penney Farms
• Sun City Center
• The Villages
• Lanark Village

Georgia

• Mount Vernon Towers

Maryland

• Leisure World

New Jersey

• Cedar Glen in Manchester Township
• Crestwood Village in Manchester Township
• Holiday City in Berkeley Township
• Leisure Village in Lakewood Township
• Leisuretowne in Southampton Township
• Pine Ridge in Manchester Township
• Rossmoor, Clearbrook, Concordia, and Whittingham in Monroe Township

Pennsylvania

• Garden Spot Village

LGBT retirement communities in the United States

Currently, there are over 3 million Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) persons over the age of 65 in the United States, and this number is estimated to rise to 4 million by the year 2020. LGBT elders face many additional issues concerning their future retirement plans. Approximately two-thirds do not have children and up to half live alone. Therefore, LGBT persons may have a lack of support in their retirement years. Additionally, LGBT couples are not legally recognized; spouses are often excluded in late-life decisions, inheritance claims, and spousal pension and social security plans. Several healthcare concerns exist for older LGBT adults, including increased incidence of illness and disease, lack of disclosure about sexual orientation to health providers, and lack of support for individual needs. Many of these concerns affect the decisions LGBT persons make concerning their retirement residence. One study found that LGBT persons are least likely to choose a retirement community as a residence due to fears of unmet needs and heterosexism that occurs in many retirement communities . LGBT persons have increasing concern about discrimination as they age and fear that most retirement communities do not recognize the special needs of LGBT elders or offer supportive services .

Several retirement communities have been built with particular attention to the needs of LGBT older persons. These establishments cater to various income levels and aim to have a discrimination-free environment. Several popular LGBT retirement communities are described below. None of these communities are exclusive to LGBT persons, but are specifically geared toward meeting their needs.

• Rainbow Vision
  • Rainbow Vision was reportedly the first retirement community to open that was specifically developed for LGBT older adults. It is located in Santa Fe, New Mexico and offers condos, independent living (with access to meal services and other aminities), and assisted living (with access to healthcare services). This establishment is currently sold out of units, speaking to the popularity of the idea and need for more LGBT retirement communities. Rainbow Vision offers a series of educational, social, health-maintenance, recreational, housekeeping, and LGBT supportive services.

• Gay and Lesbian Elder Housing
  • The Gay and Lesbian Elder Housing (GLEH) organization is an outgrowth of the Alliance for Diverse Aging Community Services of Los Angeles California. GLEH has opened a retirement community called Triangle Square in Hollywood, California that is geared towards LGBT older adult. The GLEH retirement community focuses particularly on low-income individuals and is built on city owned land and supported by a grant from California's Aging With Dignity Initative (2001). GLEH offers access to supportive LGBT services, housekeeping, recreation, social services, transportation, and some meals.

• Openhouse
  • Openhouse is a retirement community that offers multicultural, urban retirement in San Francisco, California. Openhouse honors LGBT couples and offers supportive services to both residents and non-residents. This establishment offers care for all income levels and incorporates intergenerational contact that respects both aging and youth.

Some non-U.S. retirement communities

Canada

• Arbutus Ridge, Vancouver Island

India

In India too, due to the diaspora associated with IT Industry, the traditional family system in which elders would be cared for by their children has been collapsing in recent years. This has necessitated the development of retirement homes and communities in India. Ashiana Housing Ltd. and Serene Retirement Communities by Covai Property Centre (I) Pvt Ltd. are foremost names in retirement communities in India.

Once recent trend to emerge in the Indian retirement industry is the "retirement resort": a long-term rental unit within a resort-like community, with many of the amenities of a traditional vacation resort. This trend is just starting, and there is no evidence that it will take hold. Although no official statistics exist, HelpAge India, an organization servicing the senior community in India, estimates that of the 80 million senior citizens in India, perhaps only 1 million would accept the notion of a retirement resort, and of that number, perhaps only 50% (500,000) are even aware of the idea.

New Zealand

• Selwyn Village, Auckland, is run by an Anglican church Trust. It includes self-contained houses and apartments, bed-sits, and a hospital.
• Lauriston Park, Cambridge, Waikato is owned and operated by the Neil Group. It specialises in high quality independent living villas.

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom retirement villages are becoming more and more prevalent. According to a recent BBC report (Aug 2009) there are approximately 25,000 people across the UK now living within a retirement village model.

Models do vary - from local authority funded and charitable schemes such as Hartrigg Oaks in York led by the Joseph Rowntree Trust through to privately-funded projects such as Roseland Parc in Cornwall by Retirement Villages Ltd,, Fleet house retirement village in Devon, and Boughton Hall in Chester.

Retirement Villages Ltd opened their first scheme in the UK over 25 years ago so the model is not so new to the UK as people think. There is now an umbrella organisation called the Association of Retirement Village Operators UK (ARVOUK) working to collaborate thinking and best practice in this popular retirement homes market.

See also

• Age-restricted community
• Eldercare
• Nursing home
• Veterans Health Administration

External links

• Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities
• Free Retirement Living Directory
• NORC Blueprint - A Guide to Community Action and resource for developing effective NORC programs
• US News and World Report - Is a Naturally Occurring Retirement Community Right for you?
• Carolina Aging - A comprehensive directory of North Carolina retirement communities
• LGBT retirement community guide