It’s a sad story Pete but not an uncommon one. We tend to think everyone is like us, in their 30s/40s, successful, making money, doing well in their careers, etc… Those are the people we deal with on a daily basis so they become our universe. If we do deal with the elderly we automatically defer respect to them and assume — oh they live in DM, they’re probably rich and never have to worry about money. Then we go about our business.
But our retired and elderly neighbors do really inhabit a different reality than we do. Just imagine how frightening it must be to see how expensive everything has gotten when you’re on a fixed income! Some of these folks retired 10-15 years ago and prices of everything have just exploded. And now whatever equities or mutual funds they held are worth half of what they were last year. The pressure on them to sell is going to be intense if they suffer high medical bills, a death in the family, etc… Also, if they have multiple kids, selling the home can actually relieve them of the fear of their kids fighting over it after they’re gone while simultaneously guaranteeing that they don’t become a burden to them by freeing up a bunch of cash.
Want to find deals? Keep your eyes on neighborhoods built in the late 60s/early 70s with a large number of original owners. And be willing to wait, wait, wait…
