Real Estate Education and Coaching Company Sharpens Focus on Seniors

Austin, TX, June 17, 2013 --(PR.com)-- Asserting that aging population trends stand to have a greater impact on the housing market than any other factor in the coming decade, Nikki Buckelew, co-founder and CEO of the Seniors Real Estate Institute, pointed out that specially trained real estate agents are distinctly positioned to serve at the hub of the entire process surrounding late-in-life moves.

“The seniors market is a distinct specialty—not a sideline to a general real estate practice,” Buckelew emphasized. She added, “Population trends have created a significant gap in the skills and understanding needed to serve the specialized needs of seniors who are downsizing from a home that they may have lived in for decades and transitioning to another type of living situation.”

Indeed, since 2000, the country’s population has aged considerably and that trend is accelerating. Citing a 2010 U.S. Census Bureau Report, Buckelew noted that between 2000 and 2010, there was a 15.1 percent increase in the 65-and-over segment of the population. At the same time, there was a 31.5 percent increase in the 45 to 64 year old segment—baby boomers who represent the largest demographic block in the history of the United States and will be entering retirement over the next decade.

As baby boomers weigh their retirement options, they face, like no generation before them, the challenges of caring for and helping to transition their elderly parents into new living situations. U.S. Census Bureau data indicate that the 90-and-older segment of the population nearly tripled over the past three decades. Due largely to longer life expectancies, this population is expected to increase in size four times over during the next 40 years. “Adult children with aging parents who often live thousands of miles away, are increasingly relying on the expertise of trusted local professionals to help them assist their parents with the complexities of a late-in-life transition,” remarked Buckelew.

The Certified Senior Housing Professional (CSHP) designation offered by the Seniors Real Estate Institute covers the full spectrum of knowledge and skills that real estate agents need to facilitate every aspect of a late-in-life move. The CSHP designation incorporates extensive business coaching and training on maintaining a profitable business model.

Uniquely positioned to spearhead a coaching and training company that is sharply focused on the seniors housing and real estate markets, Buckelew holds an undergraduate degree in Family Studies and Gerontology and a Masters degree in counseling psychology. As a 20-year veteran of the real estate industry she previously co-founded, managed, and subsequently sold a mega-agent team and senior move management company specializing in serving older adults, and has achieved renowned status industry wide as a highly effective and insightful trainer and coach.

www.seniorsrealestateinstitute.com