2011 is the year when the Baby Boomers begin to turn 65 years old.  This trend will continue for the next twenty years.  How is the Real Estate industry going to respond to this demographic reality ?  The impact on society is enormous: housing, transportation and work force issues abound.  

• Will housing prices be suppressed as Boomers downsize their homes to match their new lifestyles and incomes ?
• What will the impact be on government delivered social services ?
• Will consumer spending decrease as Boomer incomes are reduced ?
• Will medical and health industries have the resources to respond to the flood of new patients showing up in their waiting rooms ?
• Will skilled workers stay on the job longer ?
• Are there enough skilled workers to replace those that are retiring ?

Which of the industries real estate professionals work with will expand and which will contract ?  It seems reasonable to assume that the health care industry will expand, but how will this change impact retail, housing and transportation ?  

Crain’s Chicago Business  explored all of these issues recently and presented very interesting conclusions and facts.  One of which is that in Illinois .9 people will turn 65 by 2030 for each new person added to the general population since 2000; and in Ohio the ratio is 4.3;  Iowa the ratio is 7.9.  Is this evidence of a work force drain in Ohio, Iowa and other similarly situated states ?  Does this bode well for the real estate and other industries in Illinois ?  Consider all of this as you formulate or amend your long term vision for your company, including where to expand your operations.