CLARK, NJ—Financial product developers–and real estate planners–need to stop thinking about designing their products based on a “pyramidal” approach to demographics, economist Larry Cohen told members of the New Jersey Bank Marketing Association last week.

Cohen, vice president and director, consumer financial decisions, for Princeton-based Strategic Business Insights, spoke at the bank marketing group's annual Economic Outlook conference here.

In an exclusive interview with GlobeSt.com, Cohen highlighted what he called “the urbanicity trend,” where Millennials are looking for a certain level of amenities in their environs.

“That pyramid that used to be narrow at the top is now going to be wide at the top,” Cohen says, referring to a stacked chart depicting populations in various age cohorts, with the oldest on the top. “Think of all those products and services you can sell them for the next 20, 30, 40 years.”

Medical advances will not only extend lifespans but also improve the quality of life. Not all seniors will suffer from Alzheimer's Disease or dementia, Cohen says.

“I'm 62 years old, my father died when he was 62 years old,” Cohen says. “I'm not planning on dying any time soon. I think that's more the norm than the exception.”

“Being able to create the type of critical mass in a community that would make it vibrant requires not just having all the stores and restaurants in one location, but having arts and entertainment and things of that nature,” he says. “So in developing an area, instead of just thinking in terms of what the project might be, taking into account the dynamic of the entire area and trying to help promote other types of businesses.”

Cohen says the aging population presents special opportunities for this kind of living environment. “When you have that type of community that is not homogeneous in terms of ages, you have a ready available work force to take on different roles,” he says. “More and more we need people to be able to provide some part time assistance, to provide mentoring. To make a community vibrant you need to have things where people can take care of each other.”

Hear the complete interview with Cohen in the player below.

Instant Insights /

Demographics Need to Drive Financial and Real Estate Development, Economist Says

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