Dianna Brouthers , Real Estate Educators Association's 'Educator of the Year' for 1998, sees Baby Boomers as 'The Coming Tide of Opportunity' and is promoting niche marketing to real estate agents to accommodate the housing market changes expected in the twenty-first century. This demographic group will be looking for customized services, statistical support, one-stop shopping and unbundled services. They have very defined needs and they have left clues in their wake as to who they are and what they need. From the counter-culture '60s to the indulgent '70s to the opulent '80s and practical '90s, they have been the focus of marketers because of the size of their demographic group and their buying power.
Baby boomers are very well educated.
Two-thirds of them are married. They have above-average homes, are currently in their peak earning years and have the ability to do what they want. The trend so far in housing is that they are moving laterally, generally not spending more or less on a home but rather finding something more suitable for their later years. Nostalgia communities, like those of the 1950s, are popular with this group and they have re-ignited the second home market as they put 10 trillion dollars of real estate back on the market. They want their own private space within the home, his and her closets, levers instead of knobs and California baths.