Your Next Target Renter for Apts.

Gonzalez: “Boomers don’t want to sleep on the couch every time they visit their son or daughter, nor do they want to sell their home. An apartment offers a home away from home.”

IRVINE, CA—Research shows that aging Baby Boomers will represent a larger share of growth in the apartment market as Millennials begin to marry, have children and buy homes, Manny Gonzalez, managing principal for KTGY Architecture + Planning’s Los Angeles office, tells Globest.com. With RealShare Apartments held recently and the apartment market still booming, we spoke exclusively with Gonzalez about the sector and why we should be looking at Baby Boomers as the next significant group of apartment renters.

From affordable senior rentals to luxury living, the demand for age-qualified apartment homes is higher than ever, Gonzalez tells us. And with 10,000 people a day turning 65 through 2030, that demand will continue to grow. “Just like the Millennials who fueled the recent surge in apartment construction, the 55-plus renters are looking for many of the same things. They rank proximity to grocery stores, dining and entertainment at the top of their list.” He adds that demographic studies and historical patterns also point to the 55-plus cohort downsizing and choosing a more convenient lifestyle. Incorporating universal design into active-adult apartments is critical for attracting new residents and for allowing existing residents to remain in their apartment as their lifestyle needs change, Gonzalez says. “Incorporating universal design is key, and the best universal design is invisible. You don’t know it’s there until you need it.”