How retiree heavy is Phoenix?

[Tall Traveler]

Originally Posted by WiringGuru2

It's funny because a friend of mine lives in Florida and there are a lot of parallels. Lots of retirees, HOA communities, Florida has New Yorkers we have Los Angeleans. Personally I don't regret buying property here but I do regret "moving" here and am looking elsewhere. Simply put Arizona is not a good place for non-retired folks unless you are very, very passionate about the Desert. I'd take Florida for the prettier women, beaches and lower cost of living (man-eating alligators, mosquitos the size of airplanes and hurricanes notwithstanding).






The Phoenix metro and Miami metro areas are pretty much the same, both right around 40 years.

According to the data on this site (see attached), the average age in Phoenix is 34.5 and Miami is over 40.

https://www.city-data.com/city/Phoenix-Arizona.html

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by Tall Traveler

According to the data on this site (see attached), the average age in Phoenix is 34.5 and Miami is over 40.

https://www.city-data.com/city/Phoenix-Arizona.html

Another way to look at it:

21.3 % of Florida residents are 65+
18.5% of Arizona residents are 65+.
Not all that different until one considers that -

Florida has about 24 million people in 1/3 the area of Arizona with 7 million. There's a lot more grey density there than here. Of course, both places are inundated with snowbirds in winter too.

https://www.prb.org/resources/which-...re-the-oldest/

[MN-Born-n-Raised]

Originally Posted by Valley Native

In many of the older established neighborhoods, there are residents who have lived in the same homes for decades, made their living, and are now retired.

My neighborhood is somewhat like that, except it consists largely of working professionals in their 40s to 60s who are looking to retire fairly soon.

The idea that most retirees can be found in the age restricted communities is somewhat of a myth ... especially now that a large number of Boomers are retirement age. The Sun City communities simply don't have enough room for all the retired 60 & 70 somethings.

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demogr..._United_States

Here are the population percentiles by age in the US:
0 – 14 years: 18.2%
15 – 24 years: 13.0%
25 – 54 years: 39.0%
55 – 64 years: 12.9%
65 years and over: 16.8%

In Maricopa County, 65+ is 16.2% of the population which is slightly below average.
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fa...zona/INC110222

FL and AZ differ as compared to other states because of the concentration of retirees. Then, add in non-resident snowbirds. Non-residents are not counted in the demographic statistics because you don't get counted in more than one state. i.e., what is most noticeable is the active adult communities where retirees (including snowbirds) hang out. Those areas are in the outer regions where they have the land to build out an upscale age-restricted playground.

When I lived in the Marley Park neighborhood in Surprise, we had over 400 trick-or-treaters. Of course, there were several retirees sprinkled in the mix too. Again, it's all about what you notice because of the concentration of a certain demographic all the while seniors are roaming every neighborhood. Hence, if you don't live near a retiree concentration area which is mostly in specific outer area neighborhoods, you will see a town blend of around 16% of 65+ areas.

To the Op: there are towns that are not "age-restricted" yet very senior in age. Take the upscale area of Fountain Hills (which would agree with Valley Native's POV). The median town age is 60 years old. See https://www.city-data.com/city/Fount...oogle_vignette . By the way, 7.9% are widowed. There might be some cougars roaming the isles of Walgreens.

Per my initial recommendation: Google is your friend. Want a nicer area? Google people's income which will correlate to the price of their home. Do you want a certain ethnic mix? By now, you should know the answer. The website City-Data did the hard work for you.

[WiringGuru2]

Arizona and Florida are both "retirement destinations" so they have more older folks than usual however the big cities are still big cities with young people, working families, gyms, sports stadiums, concerts whatever. Some areas definitely feel like one giant 55+ park but it's not ALL like that.


Florida has many more small towns. Arizona has a lot more empty desert spaces. Arizona has more land that is accessible to camping, offroading, florida has a ton of beaches and ocean fishing.


In Arizona the biggest thing is offroading. If you don't have a side-by-side or a jeep you'll be bored on the weekends. The roads are endless.


Florida I'd say fishing and hunting, but especially fishing. Ocean fishing is unlike any other.

[Mike from back east]

the google is your friend

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fa...zona/PST045222

[ShampooBanana]

The Phoenix metro actually has a lower median age than the US average, so unless you're specifically living in or near a 55+ community, you really won't even notice any difference in age demographics as compared to most other places, unless you live in north Tempe or just north of downtown Phoenix, where you'll notice it actually skews younger.