Condo Media - November 2013 - 47

housing. Among other constraints, not
all seniors can afford the cost of these
amenity-rich communities, and some
(nearly 90 percent in one survey) will
prefer to age in place in the homes they
currently own, if that is an option.
CHAPA estimated eight years ago
that fewer than 10 percent of home
buyers 55 and older had purchased in
age-restricted communities in Massachusetts. Even if that percentage
doubled - an unlikely prospect at best,
the report noted - total demand, including resales, would amount to "fewer
than 3,500 units per year" by 2010.
This doesn't mean that the market
for age-restricted housing has disappeared or is likely to; many projects
have succeeded in the past and others
will succeed in the future. Aging babyboomers will continue to be attracted
by the lifestyle and amenities these
communities offer. But developers
must look beyond that generic appeal
and analyze carefully the demand for

any project they are contemplating,
considering not just the number of
55-and-over adults in the market, but
the number who are likely to move
into the development and the number
of competing projects - existing or
planned - in the area. It is those numbers, not the theoretical appeal of agetargeted housing that will determine
how a specific project in a particular
community is likely to fare.
Local officials considering requests
to ease or eliminate age restrictions in
existing developments should undertake the same rigorous analysis of
current and future demand for agetargeted housing in their community,
recognizing that while senior housing
may produce revenue undiminished
by pressure on schools and other
resources, vacant units produce no
revenue at all.
Residents of existing communities should be equally realistic. Their
dismay at seeing the adult-only com-

munity they expected transformed into
something else is understandable, but
their concerns that the market value
of their homes will be compromised
by the change may be misplaced. In
fact, the reverse may be true. Maintaining the age restrictions may reduce
values not only by limiting the pool
of prospective buyers to those who
meet the age requirement, but also by
discouraging otherwise age-eligible
buyers who may avoid adults-only
communities that would preclude them
from helping their children should they
need assistance. In some developments,
the choice owners face may be between
changing the character of their community or risking its failure. CM
Stephen M. Marcus is a partner in the
law firm of Marcus, Errico, Emmer &
Brooks. An active CAI member, he serves on
local CAI committees and national boards
and counsels including the College of Community Association Lawyers (CCAL).

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Condo Media * November 2013

Condo Media - November 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Condo Media - November 2013