As more baby boomers hit the market, senior experts say ‘Find where you’re going now!’

As spring 2025 arrives in Colorado, the very oldest of the Baby Boom generation is set to turn 80 years old next year. And senior housing experts say that should set off alarm bells for anyone heading into those years who hasn’t at least made some kind of plan for moving from their single-family home.

“Even if you’re not moving tomorrow, the first thing you have to figure out now is where you’re going next,” says Senior Relocation Specialist Jan Peterson, who counsels on where to find senior living opportunities, both here and out of state.

Peterson is joining Blair Bryant, broker with the Senior Solutions Division of The Steller Group real estate team, in a series of free seminars coming to south Denver, Centennial, and southeast Aurora this month.

Bryant and other specialists at Steller are reporting a drastic shift in the market now, as sellers—many of them seniors—put homes up for sale that they’ve held back, waiting for prices and interest rates to stabilize.

“What is harder for them to see is how much the demand is growing for the places they want to end up, that are better suited for their age group,” says Bryant.

Peterson follows opportunities at dozens of communities—and explains how they differ in services, and in monthly prices and front-end commitments.

“What they all have in common now is lots of demand from people wanting to move,” she adds. Waiting lists, very common at the most popular senior destinations around town, have grown longer this year, she says.

Bryant and Peterson discussed those options last week for a crowd of seniors in Lakewood. “We have worked with some people who have chosen to be on waiting lists for popular communities for as long as 12 years, before finally choosing to move,” Bryant told the crowd.

“The good news is that they get more freedom in choosing their options, and are better prepared if some triggering event happens that urges a quick move.”

Options range from buying a ranch-style new home (there are lots of those on the market now, says Bryant), to buying or renting a low-maintenance patio home or townhome, to communities designed for aging in place—with lots of social interaction, dining, activities, and options for continuing care.

“Those are popular,” says Peterson. “But they vary greatly in the financials. Some have upfront fees that may make for lower monthly rents, while others don’t.”

April seminars cover the entire range of tasks in planning a move, from choosing a destination, to getting a start on decluttering, to receiving the most from the sale of your current home, including the best tax advantages.

See the box or visit DenverSeniorSeminars.com.

The news and editorial staffs of The Denver Post had no role in this post’s preparation.