The rental market isn`t just for kids. For a multitude of reasons, some retired and close-to-retirement-age people opt for monthly rent payments rather than monthly mortgage payments.
Some of them, housing experts say, are seeking a permanent residence while others are looking for a short-term lease to tide them over until they find another place to live.
”Empty-nesters might want to rent for a year before they buy,” said Helen Dress, a broker for Habitat Realty, which manages many buildings in the Chicago area.
Dress remembers one recent client, a widow, who was looking for a rental unit while she went through the rigors of selling her house. ”She couldn`t buy right away because she had to sell her house” on the Northwest Side, Dress said. The broker found the woman an apartment that she plans to live in until all her selling and buying is completed.
But that woman`s circumstances, Dress said, are rather exceptional.
”Older people do not move. If they change an apartment, it`s sort of a permanent change. They tend to renew the lease and stay there. Change is not as easy for older people as it is for younger people.”
A feeling of independence
While some opt for the growing number of retirement communities springing up in the Chicago area, other older people prefer independent apartment living because it provides a feeling of independence, said Eileen Kwitney, director of operations for the Apartment People, a relocation service based in Chicago. ”They still get the luxury of neighbors who check on them or know where they are,” she said. ”They still have the independence that makes them feel like people.”
On the other hand, choosing to move into a retirement center can be quite traumatic, she said. ”It`s very difficult to change your life. It can be a depressing step even as posh and as nice and as lovely as many of them are. Some people think of it as a nursing home.”
Safety first
When older people do settle down and decide on a rental property, Dress said, certain concerns are paramount.
”Number one, I think they want security. They are looking for services-whether there`s a grocery store in the building, an indoor pool, a health club and services as far as maintenance.”
Preferences and priorities seem to fluctuate with geographical location, said Warren Jarog, a property manager for the Inland Group, which manages property in the city and suburbs. ”In different areas it tends to be different types of apartments,” Jarog said, noting that in the city and in the older, more established suburbs, elderly people ”tend to like the older- style buildings. It`s what they lived with all their life and they try to stay with it.”
Parkway Towers, in Harwood Heights, is a building ”that`s always attracted elderly people,” Jarog said. Certain amenities, he surmised, are the community`s chief draws.
”It`s got elevators, a good location as far as transportation, it`s close to the Harlem Irving Shopping Center and it has nearby bus service,” he said.
Arleen and Henry Walczak chose Parkway Towers ”mainly because of the elevators,” said Mrs. Walczak, 68. ”I like where it`s situated because no matter where you go you can get to shopping. The location is great, tremendous.”
The retired couple moved to Harwood Heights from Chicago, where they both lived for 40 years. ”We lived in our own home down in the old neighborhood at Damen and Armitage. What I missed most giving up was my kitchen,” said Mrs. Walczak.
She admits that moving away from friends wasn`t easy either. ”Of course it means you miss your friends. But we talk by phone,” she said.
All the extras
The building has an intercom security system, underground parking, a swimming pool, a rooftop sun deck, an exercise room, a recreation room with card tables and a television set and medical offices in the basement, said Sharon Mangiameli, vice president of marketing for Inland.
Darlyn Dreuth, manager at Parkway Towers, estimates that about 80 percent of the building`s population are seniors. ”It`s just a friendly building. We have some chairs in the lobby. They sit and they congregate there. It`s not like being in a retirement home-it`s independent living.”
”We have a lot of young people, too,” added Dreuth. ”And they interact well with each other.”
Generally, Jarog said, elderly people don`t seek communities that are primarily populated by other elderly people. ”There aren`t many places where you`ll see older people congregate,” he said. Rather, elderly people sometimes will find themselves among other elderly renters because the property offers services particularly valuable to senior citizens, Dress said. ”People in their 80s, late 70s, they make arrangements for buildings that cater to older people.”
One such complex is Central Park East Apartments in Arlington Heights. The management there will take in mail and water plants for vacationing residents, help them with some maintenance chores, such as hanging shelves or drapes, and even help them get their car started in the winter.
Though the complex geared itself to empty nesters when it opened last year, it now has more younger renters than older renters, said manager Gail Linhart.
That`s the case at River Place in Naperville, too, where elderly people comprise about 15 percent of the complex`s population, said Carolyn Bannister, property manager.
”We have a very active population,” Bannister said. ”We`re within walking distance of so many things. We have both young and old, single and married. There is no average renter.”
Leasing consultant Ed Everett, who works for Apartment Express, a relocation service with several suburban offices, said there are several reasons River Place attracts a cross-section of tenants, including senior citizens.
`Homey` atmosphere
”The apartments are bigger. It`s quiet, more serene. It`s more homey than most apartments. It`s private, too,” he said. ”Those people who are older, they`ve lived in homes for 30 years and of course that`s what they`re looking for,” Everett said.
Earl Irvin moved into an apartment at River Place with his wife, Ruth, a year ago. A former homeowner, Irvin said he was tired of keeping up with maintenance chores.
”I had a home with a swimming pool, five bedrooms and three baths. The grass took two nights a week and the swimming pool one night a week. About the only chore I have now is taking out the garbage,” Irvin said.
He said that he and his wife also enjoy living among younger families.
”It`s nice to see kids. I just love kids,” he said. ”I have four grandchildren of my own.”
The amenities, too, make living at River Place pleasant. ”They give you breakfast every morning at our place. And that`s free,” he said. ”If you want to take the train into Chicago, they`ll take you to the train. You have your own washer and dryer in the apartment. You control your heat and air-conditioning. Things are fixed right away. They clear the snow right away. For all the things I wanted this had them all.”
The amenities do, of course, come with a price tag. Bannister said one-bedroom units at River Place rent for $699 to $959 a month; two-bedroom apartments range from $939 to $1,199 per month.
Not all senior citizens are able to afford such luxury accommodations.
”Older people either have a lot of money to spend or no money to spend,”
said Everett. Those at the other end of the spectrum, he said, often seek subsidized housing in both the city and suburbs.
Mangiameli of Inland agrees that price can be a major, if not determining factor in a senior`s selection of an apartment. ”One major attraction is the price. A lot of them are on fixed incomes, so pricing is important. They`re predominantly attracted to studios and one-bedrooms. The price is definitely an attraction. (But) we have found they`re willing to pay for easy access to the things they need.”
