Choosing a retirement communities development for your land can be a profitable choice. You can provide retirement housing developments for a variety of stages, including active retirement communities, assisted living, or a senior community development with full nursing home capabilities.

Choosing the right retirement developers will help you focus your plans, so you can add features that will attract your target clients. The best part is that a retirement housing development doesn't have to be boring. If you want to build an active community, you can include many amenities for tenants, like:

1. Sports facilities for active retirees.

2. Community areas where large events are planned and executed.

3. A senior community development that leans toward resort-style living.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Hire senior living community developers that have a reputation for excellent work

There are many senior living community developers throughout the country. In order to choose the best firm for your development, credentials are important. This can be a portfolio a previous projects, commendations for their work, or a list of satisfied former clients.

I recommend: Capital Senior Living lays out its experience and track record so you can decide if the firm is right for your project. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provides a study of assisted living communities that contains many interviews with developers.

Find a retirement community development builder that can add custom features

All senior living communities are different. If you want your development to offer something extra that will attract more seniors, work with a developer to come up with the necessary amenities as well as ones that are fun for the whole community.

I recommend: If you are wondering which features a developer should add to your community, consider checking out SeniorHousingNet to see the types of options seniors consider. Senior Resource Group provides a variety of amenities in every community it builds.

Consider a senior community developer who will work with a consultant

Many people choose to hire a third party to oversee their development projects and ensure everything goes smoothly. You might choose to hire a consultant for your development, as long as your developer is also on board with this idea. This can ease much of the day to day tension of making small decisions, so you're free to concentrate on the big picture.

I recommend: Seniority is a consulting firm that specializes in consulting for retirement community developments. Doyle & Nelson is another firm that specializes in consulting for retirement and assisted living community projects.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Making the most of retirement communities development includes choosing a developer that can work within time and budget constraints. A good developer should be able to tell you from the start whether the job is feasible or not.

Retirement housing developments are needed all over the country to help provide for those who are looking to retire and be close to others who want to live in retirement communities. As the baby boom generation retires, there is a question as to who will take care of them and where they will live. These communities are an affordable option for those who want to live in active retirement communities, in a place where they feel comfortable.

In order to build great retirement housing developments, choose developers who specialize in senior community development. This will require not only knowledge about ordinary development, but also an extensive knowledge and experience with retirement community development. In order to find the right retirement village developers for your project, you will want to consider the following:

1. How many retirement communities a developer has created.

2. References from past customers.

3. The plans the developer has for your retirement communities development.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Interview several active adult community developers

Your choice of the right retirement developers is very important for getting the job done to your specifications. Active retirement communities are on the rise, but they'll have to compete with all the other communities being built in your local and regional area. Interviewing many developers can help you decide who will get the contract.

I recommend: Poking around a developer's website is a great way to set up a pre-screening process for interviews. Developers at Life Care Services and the Saba Group have websites that detail past developments and what standards they provide.

Find a senior community developer that's flexible to changes

What you really want to look for in a senior community developer is flexibility in all areas, including design and construction. While you're still in the research phase, you will want to pay close attention to the different types of communities the developer has worked on in the past. Variety is a good sign of flexibility.

I recommend: Senior Star Living and MTW Architecture are two developers that show variety in their past projects.

Provide guidance on what you want to see in your retirement housing development

The best way to have a great working relationship with your developer is to share detailed ideas of what you want from your active retirement community. This way, you can use the same developer if you choose to build future developments in other areas.

I recommend: Find out what's possible by examining what kind of retirement community development is popular, and why. Examples from ACTS Retirement-Life Communities and Blair Communities will give you a good idea of what you can get from your developer.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  To find the right senior living community developers, you'll have to be patient. The right developer can work with you on all aspects of development and listen to what you want out of your senior living community.

Retirement community developers use a variety of skills to provide a comfortable, functional and exciting place for seniors to live. Training for senior living community developers begins with an education in designing and planning retirement housing developments. Developers must design facilities that accommodate the needs of the seniors who live in active retirement communities.

Additional project management and contractor courses can also be helpful, as retirement communities development encompasses the worlds of design, construction and medicine. Due to the special needs of seniors, retirement communities development education and training is often a combination of:

1. Colleges that offer courses in community planning and design.

2. Courses in real estate topics, including real estate development.

3. Seminars that address the common issues of a senior community development.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Consider how you will address medical needs in retirement housing development

A retirement housing development can be categorized in three ways: as an active retirement community, assisted living, or full-time care. These categories scribe the type of medical care that should be offered to residents through community resources.

I recommend: Many state organizations, such as the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, provide information, training, and event that relate to issues of seniors and those especially living independently at a retirement community. Assisted Living Federation of America Conference and Expo provides many educational opportunities for community developers and assisted living staff to learn about the lifestyle and medical needs of retiring seniors.

Study urban and regional planning to work as retirement village developers

Urban and regional planning courses help students learn how to design for small areas, as well as protect a property's environmental assets. Urban planners also learn how to lay out communities in a way that facilitates access to amenities. This same education can be applied to retirement community developments on a smaller scale.

I recommend: The University of Illinois offers a degree program in urban planning that also supports education towards regional and community planning. San Jose State University is another school that offers a bachelor's and master's degree program in urban and regional planning.

Attend seminars on topics related to senior community development

There are many seminars held through organizations for retirement community development professionals. Commonly addressed issues include finding the right site for a community, knowing how to use the surrounding environment to your advantage, and adding features to the development that make it easier for seniors to navigate.

I recommend: Ultimate Moves provides a seminar on how helping seniors transition into retirement communities. The class is organized for all types of groups, including developers and management companies. Lorman Educational Services offers an on-demand webinar that focuses on the challenges of senior residential design.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Those working as retirement developers are not just designers and real estate experts. Most developers also need a strong team of accountants and financial consultants to see a community from start to finish.

Which retirement housing development you choose is not just a major investment, but also may be one of the last investments you make in your life. Whether you're actively looking for a retirement community yourself or hoping to advertise to active, retired seniors, keeping up on the latest about retirement community development makes good business sense.

It's no surprise that some of the best sources for retirement communities development news and trends are online, but you'll also find useful information in print. Consider the following.

1. Retirement housing developments and advocate organizations will often post news and updates online.
2. Blogs offer quick, easily-accessed and frequently updated information on a wide range of retirement community development topics.
3. Senior living community developers are major advertisers in print magazines catering to the retirement community.
   

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Learn from retirement housing development websites

Most major retirement communities--or regional community groups--have their own websites that keep you current on their latest news. Your other major source for reputable online information is organizations and councils dedicated to informing about and promoting new retirement developments.

I recommend: The Retirement Living Information Center maintains a section on its website dedicated to newly developed retirement communities. Keep current with the latest retirement community developments in specific communities through regional organizations like the Retire in Louisiana website.

Read up on the latest retirement home development news online

Whether you're looking for active retirement communities for mature adults or an exotic locale to retire in, online blogs offer quick news bites that are frequently updated. Most blogs also will link you to relevant news from major media sources, including television and print news.

I recommend: The TopRetirements.com blog exists to guide you toward, in their words, "The best retirement communities, active adult communities, and places to retire." Whether you're actually looking to retire or not, this makes them one of the best sources for news on retirement community development. Retirement-Review.com keeps you up to date on the latest developments in international retirement communities.

Catch up on retirement and senior community development in print publications

Print journalism and magazines cater to people that still remember, and treasure, the feel of paper in their hands. Whether you're one of many retirement community developers looking to advertise to a select crowd of readers or if you just don't want to hassle with battling thousands of other people with the same agenda for search engine traffic online, print publications remain a viable avenue for keeping up on retirement community development news and trends.

I recommend: Where to Retire Magazine gives you the latest on retirement community developments as part of its mission to help you find the right place to retire. The SourceBook--your guide to retirement living--is full of articles and real-life stories about retirement living, including the latest in retirement communities. The SourceBook itself is also a reference guide for senior and retirement housing in several states.