Shedding Suburbia - Sales, Marketing and the Rise of the Ruppie

The Downtown Dayton condo building I live in has a wide mix of people - in fact, every age bracket from 20-somethings up to 70-somethings are represented.  It is the very thing that makes our building so interesting and our community so strong.  But it is the "aging baby boomer" market that is talked about most when it comes to downtowns across the country transforming into places to live.

Kyle Ezell is an urban-living advocate from Columbus, Ohio that goes around the country teaching people how to "live urban", and also helps organize Ruppie Parties as he spreads the word about the joys of retiring downtown.

Here is an interesting article that talks about retirees deciding to move downtown, and the challenges that developers find themselves with when it comes to marketing downtown living. Are you one of those "empty-nesters"? Have you considered living downtown, or have you at least been interested?  In other words - are YOU a Ruppie?

Link: 50+ Builder Magazine.

As the Baby Boomers prepare to enter retirement en masse, decisions must be made. Is the look of landscaping really worth the yard work? Is a two-car garage all it’s cracked up to be? And, perhaps most importantly, without an office to drive to or kids to raise, how the hell do you keep from getting bored? Fast on the heels of resort living, international retreats and the latest in lifestyle developments comes the next generation retirement destination, a true golden oldie: Downtown.