There’s a new kind of retirement community, and it is very different from the traditional image of one.
Experts believe that university retirement communities (URCs) represent a potential game-changing opportunity not only for the seniors housing industry but also for universities and retirees, if executed properly. This new concept has its complications, as the state universities are, by and large, slow moving bureaucratic machines, while the senior living industry is very fast-paced, investor-oriented – even though it is focused on 80-year-olds.
Up until the last 15 years, there were only a handful of URCs nationwide, but today it’s among the fastest growing segments in the senior living industry. What drives this development?
One of every five Americans will be age 65 or older by 2030. The first of approximately 80 million baby boomers will turn 79 this year (2025), which is the approximate age of entry into senior living. And they’re coming our way at a rate of 10,000 a day, and they will be doing that for the next 15 years. Boomers are also the most highly educated retirement demographic in US history. Nearly three in 10 boomers (29%) hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, and nearly 60 percent have “some college”.
So, there’s no wonder, really, that boomers don’t want to spend their golden years in the proverbial “Shady Pines” but rather in the invigorating, intellectually stimulating college campus environment.
This deal benefits universities, too, as the boomers control 70% of the nation’s wealth - and having them on campus can provide philanthropic opportunities for the universities. And you can add having the part-time employment opportunities for the students to the list of benefits.
Business strategy is always about product differentiation and achieving and sustaining a competitive advantage – any MBA will tell you that. Of course, there’s more to this new concept than just declaring a URC and waiting for things to happen on their own. There’s a lot of data gathering and demographic analysis involved, which has to be done just right.
But this is what consulting firms like Ticon are for. We have our data figured out, and can provide the exact, accurate, highly granular (and affordable) location intelligence for any square mile of American territory. Including the vicinity of university campuses.
If you want to get into the URC game and need to know what your customers want, and where to find them, Ticon should be your first choice.
And after you tried us, we’ll become your only choice.
