Published: Friday, December 18, 2015
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA
The North Port–Sarasota–Bradenton metropolitan area now has the highest percentage of baby boomers of any mid-sized metropolitan area in the nation, according to a report released Friday from online data aggregator Headlight Data.
Baby boomers, ages 51 to 69, now make up more than 30 percent of the area’s population. They are products of the surge in births in the United States that followed the end of World War II and lasted until the early 1960s.
“Florida receives a lot of retirees and we’re starting to see that baby boomer population flock down to Florida,” said Chris Engle, president and chief data analyst of Headlight Data. “Your population is much older on average than the average (metropolitan area) in the U.S.”
Candy Swick, a Realtor in the area for 37 years, sees differences between the Greatest Generation and boomers that will have a big impact on the region.
The Greatest Generation saw the area as a spot for vacation or second homes. They were content with more modest two-bedroom, two-bath homes. And many were comfortable in retirement tending their yards, socializing and relaxing.
TOP 5 AREAS
Here are the top five mid-sized metropolitan areas in the United States with the most baby boomers as a percentage of their population:
1. North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton: 30.4 percent.
2. Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, Florida: 30.3 percent
3. Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, Florida: 30 percent.
4. Portland, Maine: 29.1 percent.
5. Cape Coral-Fort Myers-Naples, Florida: 29 percent.
Source: Headline Data report based on U.S. Census Bureau data.
READ MORE ON THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE ON HERALD TRIBUNE
