How to Work with the Sandwich Generation – Whether ‘Here’ or ‘To Go!’

When Angie Delboy, a Realtor® with RE/MAX Gateway in Lorton, went to her Baby Boomer client’s home to make sure it was photo-ready, she discovered “a wreck in progress.”

“Even though I told her to just get it ready for the photographer and not to get into deep packing, when I arrived every room was torn apart so she could reorganize her closets and sort her stuff,” says Delboy. “This can be a big issue with Baby Boomers: if they’ve lived in a house for a long time; they have a lot of stuff. It can be overwhelming.”
Delboy stayed with her client until midnight to help her prepare for the photo shoot.

“It’s a good idea to identify who will provide physical and emotional support for someone who’s older and has lived in their home for a long time,” says Delboy. “There’s a lot of anxiety for older people who are leaving the house where they raised their kids, especially if they’re changing their lifestyle.”

Just like any other age group, there are many different types of Baby Boomer clients, each with individual needs. Pattie Mancini, managing broker of Avery-Hess, Realtors® in Springfield, has worked with Baby Boomers who became first-time buyers after the house they had rented for more than 15 years was sold; a 60-something woman who sold her life-long home for top dollar and downsized into an active adult community because she was eager for a new lifestyle; a recent divorcee unhappily selling her home of 30 years; a retiree ready to sell her home to move out of state into a retirement community where the cost of living is lower; and a recently divorced man who trusted Mancini to do  “the legwork” and provide him with choices by computer. 

“Baby Boomers in this area are often ready to retire from their first job,” says Mancini. “Most want to downsize but don’t know how. They know what they want but they don’t know the ins and outs of how to go about selling and buying real estate. Most know about computers but don’t know or have time to search for what they want. They want to rely on the expertise of professionals, but they don’t suffer fools gladly.”

“The biggest challenge for most Baby Boomer clients is whether to stay in their home and age-in-place or move to a one-level residence.”

BABY BOOMER PREFERENCES
Baby Boomers have different priorities than younger buyers, says Mary Misleh, a Realtor® with Avery-Hess, Realtors® in Dunn Loring. 
“Many Baby Boomers are focused on living near their children and grandchildren and having a lifestyle that allows them to do what they want when they want,” says Misleh.

“They’re not as concerned with commuter services and travel time to work the way non-Baby Boomers are.”
Debbie Miller, an associate broker with McEnearney Associates in Arlington, says Baby Boomers want to live in a place that’s convenient to transportation and medical services, and they also want the freedom to travel and to volunteer. 

“Baby Boomers are looking to enhance the quality of their lives when they move,” says Rosemarie Johnson, an associate broker with RE/MAX Executives in Fairfax. “They want to find a home that allows them to enjoy the fruits of their many years of labor. They’re looking for homes and communities that take the burden of homeownership away, such as HOAs and condos that take care of their yard work.”

Johnson says new communities organized around a town center where amenities and daily needs can be met close to home are appealing to Baby Boomers. In addition, Misleh says Baby Boomers are often searching for a one-level home, a home with a main level master bedroom or a condo with an elevator to avoid climbing stairs. 

CHALLENGES FOR BABY BOOMER CLIENTS
“The biggest challenge for most Baby Boomer clients is whether to stay in their home and age-in-place or move to a one-level residence,” says Miller. “Their current residence allows them to keep the same doctors and perhaps be near grandchildren and friends who haven’t moved, but moving to a new location that’s less expensive, has a better climate and good medical care are considerations, too.”

Miller says she recommends that Baby Boomers rent in a new location until they get a feel for whether they want to relocate permanently to the area. 
While some Baby Boomers are decisive, ready to sell and embrace a new lifestyle, many Baby Boomers are uncertain about whether they want to move. 

“When I meet with clients on the older end of the Baby Boomer age bracket, I listen to their goals and help them to decide if they can or want to stay and age in place or if it really is a better decision to downsize and move,” says Heather Embrey, an associate broker with McEnearney Associates in McLean. “I recommend contractors who can give them estimates on improvements that can make their existing home more senior-friendly. Once they know the costs involved they are in a better position to decide to stay or go.”

“Sellers in this age group fall into two categories: those who plan and those who procrastinate.”

Embrey says some Baby Boomers lean toward moving because they crave access to activities closer to home or want to live closer to their adult children so they can rely on them for help. For other Baby Boomers, proximity to grandchildren is the number one priority.

“What I find in this age group is that you have many different issues to deal with that you don’t necessarily run into with other age groups, such as divorce, the death of a spouse, retirement and moving to be closer to your grandchildren,” says Susan Mekenney, an associate broker with RE/MAX Executives in Springfield. “Right now I’m counseling a client and friend who lost her spouse. He was a college professor and had a wall of war books, none of which she will ever read, but she’s not willing to give them away. She feels if she gives the books away, she will lose a part of her late husband.”

CHALLENGES FOR REALTORS®
Realtors® who work with Baby Boomers say that homeowners in this age group sometimes need extra care and attention simply because selling a home where they raised their children can be emotional. 

“Baby Boomers often need extra hand-holding,” says Miller. “They’ve lived in their homes for 20 years or more and need to decide what to take with them, what to sell, what to pass along to their children or to donate. They’re surprised at how much they’ve accumulated over the years.”
Miller says sellers in this age group fall into two categories: those who plan and those who procrastinate. 

“Planners have thought through the process of moving and have visited places in which they have an interest, but procrastinators wait until the last minute and often someone else has to make the decisions for them,” says Miller. 
Misleh says most of her Baby Boomer clients are well-prepared for their move and already have resources in place to help them, but Baby Boomers who are less prepared may need more help from their Realtor®. 

“I provide all the services they need to help them through the process of moving,” says Miller. “I help them evaluate various destinations, decide how to place their furniture in their new home, arrange the best prices with movers, schedule a deep cleaning and prepare their home with painters, carpet cleaners and contractors before it’s listed. I set up the schedule of when tasks need to be completed and help them get the best prices and then make sure the work is done.”

Not all Baby Boomers need that level of assistance, but most will typically communicate what they want from their Realtor®.
“Listen,” says Mancini. “No matter what, Baby Boomers will tell you how they want to be treated if you just take the time to ask.”

Advice to Realtors® with Baby Boomer Clients ‘on the Fence’ about Moving

• Be patient. It takes time to work through the transition of deciding whether to move or stay.
• In some cases the decision to move or stay may involve the Baby Boomers’ parents and/or their adult children, so be ready for a multifaceted discussion. 
• Share your knowledge about the healthy real estate market and, in some areas, the lack of inventory which could make it easier to sell their home. 
• Explain the benefit of low interest rates and why they should take advantage of the moment. 
• Be understanding that change is difficult, especially as we age. 
• Talk to homeowners about what kind of help they may need to get organized for the move and who will be there for them physically and emotionally.
• Provide recommendations of contractors so they can get an estimate of what it will cost to age-in-place or to move and downsize.

Downsizing Advice

• Find a friend or family member the clients trust who doesn’t have an emotional attachment to the house and can downsize for them.
• The purging of belongings should start before the house is put on the market.
• Sellers should move as few possessions as they can.
• Sellers should go room by room and decide whether they want to pay a mover to pack and move everything they’ve collected over the years. 
• Recognize that it can be hard to sell items such as a dining room set, a piano or a pool table; donate those things if you don’t want to pay to move them.
• Sort through clothes before a move and donate winter coats if  moving to a warmer climate.
• Shred papers from 25 years ago that are no longer needed. 
• Seek professional help at the National Association of Senior Move Managers www.NASMM.org or the National Association of Professional Organizers www.NAPO.net
Possible to make simple infographic from facts in the below sidebar?

2014 Facts about Boomers and Housing in Northern Virginia

• Approximately 1.5 million Baby Boomers – defined as residents between the ages of 45 and 64 as of 2010 – live in the D.C. metro area
• In Northern Virginia there are 302,455 homeowner households with a Baby Boomer in residence; this is equivalent to 47.3% of homeowner households
• The highest concentration of Baby Boomer homeowners in the region is in Fairfax County, where 50% of all homeowner households include a Baby Boomer
• The highest concentration of Baby Boomer homeowners are found in affluent areas located outside the Beltway that are dominated by single-family homes on large lots
Source: George Mason University Center for Regional Analysis
• According to research by John Burns Real Estate Consulting, “Mature Couples,” defined as those between 45 and 64 with no children living at home, are the largest individual segment of buyers in the Washington region, accounting for 22% of all home purchase activity in 2013, or more than 19,525 home sales. 
• “Mature singles,” defined as single individuals between 45 and 64 living alone with no children under 18 living at home; and “Mature Families,” defined as families led by someone age 45 to 64 with the oldest child living at home age 12 to 17, make up a combined additional 24% of all home purchases in 2013. 

Michele Lerner, a freelance writer based in the Washington, D.C. area, has been writing about real estate and personal finance for more than 20 years for print and online publications.