The U.N. estimates the number of people aged 60 and over will triple by 2050, reaching 2 billion. Every country faces new challenges due to changes in traditional family arrangements, the lifestyle demands of ageing baby boomers, and a more mobile and rapidly ageing population.
The practical issues faced by families are often universal and so the specialist retirement property market is developing quickly in response to this demand. Baby boomers are looking for resort-style living, but with quality medical care available as needed, and so many new luxury retirement resort developments offer attached medical facilities
Families are now more geographically mobile, and kids are more likely to study and work in another country leaving their older parents behind, making the traditional extended family model not viable for many.
International property investment is more common, and many people from developed economies are looking for a cheaper location to retire, with a better quality of life - for example Europeans retiring in Asia, and migrants returning home to their country of origin to retire after many years living abroad.
Some countries are offering special visa arrangements to attract retirees, and there is also increasing competition between cities wanting to attract the grey dollar and associated economic development benefits.
Even for countries like India, where older family members have traditionally been cared for within the extended family, this is no longer possible for many families and new retirement communities are under development to meet their needs.
View retirement communities in India.
View BBC program on new ways of caring for seniors in India:
