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COVER STORY
Courtyards of Vinings ►
LESS IS MORE
Continued from page 1
Isaacs sees the Alpharetta
location as a big plus. “We love
being able to walk to dinner,
shopping and attending the
many events Avalon sponsors
throughout the year,” she said.
“We can also walk to downtown
Alpharetta and were a heartbeat
away from the Verizon
Amphitheatre.”
As the aging community
continues to grow, the
downsizing trend does as well,
according to Aven Barbosa,
Realtor®, Seniors Real Estate
Specialist® with Ansley Atlanta
Real Estate. “What we’re seeing
today is only the tip of the
iceberg,” she said. “The U.S.
Census Bureau estimates more
than 20 percent of Georgia’s
population will be 60 and older
by the year 2030, an increase of
nearly 34 percent from 2012.”
She said that with more than
10,000 people turning 63 per
day, more and more of them are
ready to transition to smaller
home. “We’re seeing a big spike
in the new development of active
adult communities throughout
Georgia,” Barbosa said.
Lindsey Burroughs, Harry
Norman REALTORS® Sandy
Springs Office, explained that
active adults, on average, move
three times after age 50. The first
move is the ‘initial downsize’, the
second is the ‘half-back’, and the
third is to ‘age in place’.
“The catalyst for the first
move is typically an empty nest
or early retirement,” Burroughs
said. “These 50+ homeowners
are excited to downsize, but still
want enough space to entertain
and room for traveling guests.
Most will gravitate towards
an inside-the-perimeter or
metropolitan location.”
The ‘half-back’ move tends
to take seniors closer to family,
where they can be near enough
to visit but still have their
own living space. For the ‘age
in place’ move, the goal is a
home designed to minimize the
obstacles of aging with easy
access to healthcare, grocery
stores and restaurants.
“Transitional housing allows
you to transfer homes within
the community during different
stages of life,” Burroughs said.
“For instance, Celebration
Villages at Forsyth has
independent living, concierge
living, assisted living and
memory care all on site.”
There are as many senior
housing choices as there are
needs and preferences. Intown
luxury condos at The Charles in
Buckhead Village, 1010 Midtown
and Emerson Buckhead offer
stunning views of the city and an
upscale urban lifestyle.
Overture Lindbergh has
maintenance-free rentals for the
55+ active adult life. Lenbrook
Atlanta, on Peachtree Road, is a
nonprofit senior community that
provides a full range of on-site
health services. And Peachtree
Hills Place in Buckhead boasts
85 luxury condos and eight
freestanding homes.
Brandt Ross, 80, lives in the
Renaissance Senior Residence in
what he calls the “Buckhaven”
area, where Buckhead meets
Brookhaven on Peachtree
Street. He and his wife share a
▲ The Charles in Buckhead Village
3-bedroom apartment, giving
them enough space for his man
cave and her studio.
“I saw what has happening
among our family, friends and
acquaintances, and realized that
the worst legacy that I could
leave to my wife and children is
a house filled with stuff,” Ross
said. “I knew that we were just an
incident, illness or accident away
from facing a difficult transition
of selling a house and disposing
of a lot of things.”
The Rosses developed a
plan to downsize and sell their
house while they were still
in good health, and made the
decision to do it when they
wanted to, not when they had
to. Their plan included a move
to the Renaissance. “We love
living here because we can
do whatever we want to...and
still know that if something
JUNE 2017
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