Interesting article on how Baby Boomers and their kids as a demographic force can pull the US back economically. That is if certain realities are accepted and the mistakes of the past Leary from.

Here is an extract;

But the biggest factor, one that will quickly pick up speed in the next few years, is demographic. The baby boomers and their children, the millennial generation, are looking for places to live and work that reflect their current desires and life needs. Boomers are downsizing as their children leave home while the millennials, or generation Y, are setting out on their careers with far different housing needs and preferences. Both of these huge demographic groups want something that the U.S. housing market is not currently providing: small one- to three-bedroom homes in walkable, transit-oriented, economically dynamic, and job-rich neighborhoods.

For the full story click here

Boomers identified as a great market to target for online opportunities. The word is not to worry about the other generations as there are plenty of opportunities to market to the 78 millions baby boomers in the US, let alone the rest of the world.

As the recession continues younger generations are scaling back on their expenses but boomers continue to spend in markets such as travel.

So not only is it an opportunity for the major brands to cash in, but also anyone with a business, especially an online business as more boomers become internet savvy.

See the full report here.

A great Baby Boomer article by Michael Kinsley. It covers the issue of handing the batton so to speak to the next generation. The feeling towards the boomers as a generation and how it’s wrong to lump any group of people together in a yearly category. For example President Obama being born in 1961 is strictly a baby boomer but in reality through his policies is anything but. I feel the same way - having more empathy with Gen X than those boomers at the head of the wave born in the 1940s and early 50s.

Here are a couple of excerpts from the article;

‘Self-absorbed, self-indulged, and self-loathing, the Baby Boom generation at last has the chance to step out of the so-called Greatest Generation’s historical shadow. Boomers may not have the opportunity to save the world, as their predecessors did, but they can still redeem themselves by saving the American economy from the fiscal mess that they, and their fathers and mothers, are leaving behind’.

‘Nobody actually wants the Boomers dead (or at least nobody has been impolitic enough to say so), but many wouldn’t mind if they took early retirement. From the day John F. Kennedy said “The torch has been passed to a new generation” to the day George H. W. Bush headed back to Houston, seven members of the World War II generation occupied the White House, for a total of 32 years. The Boomers had just two presidents, Clinton and Bush the younger, over 16 years, before the citizenry said, “That’s enough. Let’s move on.” Barack Obama, born in 1961, is technically a Boomer, but consciously ran against a version of Boomer values, and got a lot of self-hating Boomer supporters as a result’.

For the whole article go to TheAtlantic.com

Paul Hodges has some interesting thoughts re boomers and their changing spending habits over at his blog.

The extract below is part of his comment;’

‘But they are getting closer to retirement, with a median age of 54 years. And so their need for ‘new things’ is reducing, as is their ability to afford them. Equally, as the above chart from thechartstore.com shows, their savings rate is starting to shoot up. They were let down by the stock market after the dot-com boom; then the housing market disappointed.
So now we seem to be seeing the start of a generational switch from spending to saving in the world’s most important market. From close to zero, the savings rate has already jumped to 6%, as baby-boomers worry about how to afford their retirement, especially as they can expect to live longer than any generation in history’.

Harry Dent argues that the economic cycle is dependent on the generation spending wave. And that indicates that things are not going to improve for quite a while yet. I hope he’s wrong, but in the mean time I am one of those boomers who is cutting spending and trying to save more!.

To read more go to Boomers cutting spending and start saving.

OK…. I am opening myself up here but I am desperate to update this WP Theme and finally have a header that is representative of what this …a blog that Baby Boomer Lifestyle should represent. I originally planned that this to be about superyatchs etc, but this credit crunch has hit us all hard. Don’t get me wrong - we should all aim high, but perhaps a more tempered approach is warranted in this economic climate!

OK some in - all in. What of the category selection? To me travel, health, technology ie the internet are paramount. Retirement also important but has geographical considerations. What do you consider important for you? That is all you Baby Boomers and Cuspers out there?

What do you guys out there think? I hope there is someone out there that can give a few pointers.