The advent of Kathleen Casey Kirschling’s 75th birthday denotes not only a long-lived life, she’s also the oldest baby boomer on record out of an estimated 76 million baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964.[1] As the population of baby boomers around the world ages in the upcoming years, there will be more demand for senior living needs and accommodation,[2] especially as it has been predicted that baby boomers will live “well into the second half of this century”.[3]
The advent of Kathleen Casey Kirschling’s 75th birthday denotes not only a long-lived life, she’s also the oldest baby boomer on record out of an estimated 76 million baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964.[1] As the population of baby boomers around the world ages in the upcoming years, there will be more demand for senior living needs and accommodation,[2] especially as it has been predicted that baby boomers will live “well into the second half of this century”.[3]
A recent webinar from a panel at Cornell University highlighted some major changes with COVID-19 and the impact the pandemic has had on senior living. Senior living is a specialised field as it overlaps in the hospitality, healthcare, and real estate sectors. Due to the economic downturn in 2020, there was less capital for both the operators and the residents. Another big concern is how facilities are dealing with visitors and staff during COVID-19, with the biggest issue facing seniors being loneliness and depression from the social distancing, and the lack of community that the seniors are used to having before.[4] As the focus on senior living has become increasingly important, there’s been a noticeable shift on improving acute care needs.[5]
Going forward, in-home care is also going to be an alternate solution, particularly for areas without large senior living centres.[6] As people are living longer and healthier lives even though retirement age hasn’t changed, the current generation is more open to the idea of living independently from their children and grandchildren. With the massive upcoming wave of baby boomers, the demand for senior living will be a major focus for investors that partner with the right operators and strategies.
With the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a risk that senior living accommodation may be underfunded or neglected due to funds being prioritised for other human needs.[7] The McFarlin Group is a specialised Dallas-based firm that focuses on senior living accommodation and has launched a $100 million fund to purchase these types of assets due to the high need for facilities like this in the future.[8]
As the demand for this type of accommodation continues to rise, and investor interest increases, the MacFarlin Group is hoping to position their company to take advantage of the high demand, while investing in senior living accommodation and upgrading the facilities they acquire.[9] This creates a win-win situation for baby boomers looking for appropriate senior living accommodation and investors looking to invest in the real estate market.
[1] Jones, L. (December 2020). ‘The first baby boomer is turning 75. Okay Boomers?’. Retrieved from U.S. 1.
[2] (November 2020). ‘The future of senior living’. Retrieved from eCornell.
[3] Jones, L. (December 2020). ‘The first baby boomer is turning 75. Okay Boomers?’. Retrieved from U.S. 1.
[4] (November 2020). ‘The future of senior living’. Retrieved from eCornell.
[5] Committee on Guidance for Establishing Crisis Standards of Care for Use in Disaster Situations, Institute of Medicine (March 2012). ‘Crisis standards of care: A systems framework for catastrophic disaster response’. Retrieved from NCBI.
[6] Pearson, F. et al. (April, 2019). ‘The forgotten middle: Many middle-income seniors will have insufficient resources for housing and health care’. Retrieved from Health Affairs.
[7] Sudo, C. (April 2020). ‘McFarlin Group raising $100m fund to target Covid-19 distressed senior housing’. Retrieved from Senior Housing News.
[8] Sudo, C. (April 2020). ‘McFarlin Group raising $100m fund to target Covid-19 distressed senior housing’. Retrieved from Senior Housing News.
[9] Sudo, C. (April 2020). ‘McFarlin Group raising $100m fund to target Covid-19 distressed senior housing’. Retrieved from Senior Housing News.