The aging of the baby boomers provides a terrific opportunity for profit-minded plumbing and heating contractors who can certainly supply what they need.
The generation that once didn’t trust anyone over 30, viewed 40 as traumatic, and 50 as unthinkable is finally approaching that “unthinkable” milestone. Baby Boomers are turning 50 and their defiant voices and clenched fists emblematic of the 1960s are rising again, this time to defend what they once most hated and feared — old age. With the average lifespan reaching around 80 years, these boomers are out to change perceptions of the elderly as passive objects of care. They are planning for a viable future by equipping their homes today with features that will ensure their autonomy in tomorrow’s golden years. And this provides a terrific opportunity for profit-minded plumbing and heating contractors who can certainly supply what they need.
A recent poll conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services indicates that 86 percent of Americans prefer to “age in place.” This preference has resulted in a nation-wide interest in home improvement and a $40 billion remodeling market. For the advanced planner, gone is the standard 5- by 7-foot bathroom, replaced by spacious rooms built for comfort and convenience. Also gone are inefficient systems that expel energy at a rate far too high for a senior’s retirement income. In their place are energy efficient systems that not only pay for themselves in dollar savings, but also provide a stable and healthy thermal environment.