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Just in response to your second point, I do think that's specific to you and your circles. I know multiple retired or semi-retired people who have moved towards

Just in response to your second point, I do think that's specific to you and your circles. I know multiple retired or semi-retired people who have moved towards the center of a city. Without work to keep them occupied, they want the hustle and bustle, which means something to do. And driving has become more of a hassle and a barrier to the kinds of lives they want to live. These are east coast or midwest cities, so maybe there is something about SF that's different, but that's my experience.

danielhep 2y ago
Also, a lot of older people don't want big houses, and having easy access to amenities and socialization is more important than having extra empty bedrooms.
- hintymad 2y ago
  Very true. At least to me, a modest condo will be more than enough, as I've learned long before that tidiness brings more pleasure than large space.
  - throwaway2037 2y ago
    I will get downvoted for this comment: Size of living area does seem to be highly influenced by gender. I hear many more men say they would be happy living in a smaller place. I never once heard that from a woman under 50. (After the kids are gone, they may wish to downsize.)
    - antisthenes 2y ago
      Men are just content to have less, usually. Also, are these single men with hobbies that don't take up a lot of space like gardening or woodworking?
    - Elinvynia 2y ago
      Let me be the first one then - I am fully content on living in a 40-60m2 space with my partner and two cats. Considering we never lived in anything bigger this size is perfect for us, easy to clean and still enough space to live.
      - throwaway2037 2y ago
        I am confused. I wrote: "many more men say they would be happy living in a smaller place". Are you saying that in your reply? It is unclear to me.
        returningfory2 2y ago
        They were replying to part where you said: > I never once heard that from a woman under 50.
gkoberger 2y ago
You're talking about different age groups. You mention retired people (who are likely empty nesters), but the age group OP is talking about are middle-aged CEOs with young kids or teenagers.
curiousllama 2y ago
Cities' attractiveness feels u-shaped Young adults love it bc they have the time to go to bars/restaurants/clubs Middle aged folks hate it because they're so busy - they can't take advantage, and other people get in their way (some) Older folks like it again bc they have the time to go to restaurants/theater
- spiderfarmer 2y ago
  Exactly this. I grew up on a farm, was a student in the city, started a family in the countryside and I want to retire in a city, as long as it’s close to my children.
  - tomcam 2y ago
    Did you… did you, ah, raise spiders on the family farm?
    - AlbertCory 2y ago
      Is that a Thing? I'm so behind /s
      - tomcam 2y ago
        Well, check out their username
        AlbertCory 2y ago
        oops. right.
        jacobr1 2y ago
        I've polled my friends about this, and our group is a about 50/50. Some of us when looking at comments never read the usernames, we just completely skip over it. And some alway do - the next is right there of course you'd read it! It seems like an interesting dichotomy - I didn't see any obvious correlation between other traits in my informal survey but I am very curious to see if there is some set of personality traits that correlates with reading vs ignoring user names.
hintymad 2y ago
> I know multiple retired or semi-retired people who have moved towards the center of a city Is it because their kids have grown up? I can imagine myself living in a city like Paris or NY if I don't have kids. I get to enjoy a bustling city without needing to dealing with the challenges of raising kids.
- red-iron-pine 2y ago
  cities cost more for smaller spaces. when you've got a family you need that space, but for two empty-nesters, a city location is smaller, easier to manage, and closer to things. elevators and small apartments on a single floor might even be preferable -- no stairs for bad knees. also if you're not able to drive cuz your eyes or reaction time are bad, being walkable helps -- that exercise might even keep grandpa healthier, longer. and in the case of my in-laws, a big draw was proximity to (good) medical care. literally walkable to the local hospital and medical services, and if something goes bad the ambulance can get them there ASAP. and then you have more food options, more entertainment, etc.
lumost 2y ago
anecdotally, city life becomes a net drain when one doesn't have time for themselves. In my mid-thirties now, and keeping up with family/travel/hobbies is more than I can handle on most days. I've gone to a great number of restaurants in the past and ... getting more sleep seems like a better bet for the day then going to another restaurant. I'm sure that this will flip when I no longer have kids at home and have reached retirement.
lolinder 2y ago
> I do think that's specific to you and your circles. I know multiple retired or semi-retired people... Just a note that this reversal could just as easily be specific to you and your circles. In this thread all we have is two people who find anecdotally that some older people move to live near where they themselves live. Given how many people make some kind of change in retirement that's hardly surprising. We'd need actual data to come to any conclusion about large-scale trends.

danielhep 2y ago

Also, a lot of older people don't want big houses, and having easy access to amenities and socialization is more important than having extra empty bedrooms.

hintymad 2y ago
Very true. At least to me, a modest condo will be more than enough, as I've learned long before that tidiness brings more pleasure than large space.
- throwaway2037 2y ago
  I will get downvoted for this comment: Size of living area does seem to be highly influenced by gender. I hear many more men say they would be happy living in a smaller place. I never once heard that from a woman under 50. (After the kids are gone, they may wish to downsize.)
  - antisthenes 2y ago
    Men are just content to have less, usually. Also, are these single men with hobbies that don't take up a lot of space like gardening or woodworking?
  - Elinvynia 2y ago
    Let me be the first one then - I am fully content on living in a 40-60m2 space with my partner and two cats. Considering we never lived in anything bigger this size is perfect for us, easy to clean and still enough space to live.
    - throwaway2037 2y ago
      I am confused. I wrote: "many more men say they would be happy living in a smaller place". Are you saying that in your reply? It is unclear to me.
      - returningfory2 2y ago
        They were replying to part where you said: > I never once heard that from a woman under 50.

gkoberger 2y ago

You're talking about different age groups. You mention retired people (who are likely empty nesters), but the age group OP is talking about are middle-aged CEOs with young kids or teenagers.

curiousllama 2y ago

Cities' attractiveness feels u-shaped Young adults love it bc they have the time to go to bars/restaurants/clubs Middle aged folks hate it because they're so busy - they can't take advantage, and other people get in their way (some) Older folks like it again bc they have the time to go to restaurants/theater

spiderfarmer 2y ago
Exactly this. I grew up on a farm, was a student in the city, started a family in the countryside and I want to retire in a city, as long as it’s close to my children.
- tomcam 2y ago
  Did you… did you, ah, raise spiders on the family farm?
  - AlbertCory 2y ago
    Is that a Thing? I'm so behind /s
    - tomcam 2y ago
      Well, check out their username
      - AlbertCory 2y ago
        oops. right.
      - jacobr1 2y ago
        I've polled my friends about this, and our group is a about 50/50. Some of us when looking at comments never read the usernames, we just completely skip over it. And some alway do - the next is right there of course you'd read it! It seems like an interesting dichotomy - I didn't see any obvious correlation between other traits in my informal survey but I am very curious to see if there is some set of personality traits that correlates with reading vs ignoring user names.

hintymad 2y ago

> I know multiple retired or semi-retired people who have moved towards the center of a city Is it because their kids have grown up? I can imagine myself living in a city like Paris or NY if I don't have kids. I get to enjoy a bustling city without needing to dealing with the challenges of raising kids.

red-iron-pine 2y ago
cities cost more for smaller spaces. when you've got a family you need that space, but for two empty-nesters, a city location is smaller, easier to manage, and closer to things. elevators and small apartments on a single floor might even be preferable -- no stairs for bad knees. also if you're not able to drive cuz your eyes or reaction time are bad, being walkable helps -- that exercise might even keep grandpa healthier, longer. and in the case of my in-laws, a big draw was proximity to (good) medical care. literally walkable to the local hospital and medical services, and if something goes bad the ambulance can get them there ASAP. and then you have more food options, more entertainment, etc.

lumost 2y ago

anecdotally, city life becomes a net drain when one doesn't have time for themselves. In my mid-thirties now, and keeping up with family/travel/hobbies is more than I can handle on most days. I've gone to a great number of restaurants in the past and ... getting more sleep seems like a better bet for the day then going to another restaurant. I'm sure that this will flip when I no longer have kids at home and have reached retirement.

lolinder 2y ago

> I do think that's specific to you and your circles. I know multiple retired or semi-retired people... Just a note that this reversal could just as easily be specific to you and your circles. In this thread all we have is two people who find anecdotally that some older people move to live near where they themselves live. Given how many people make some kind of change in retirement that's hardly surprising. We'd need actual data to come to any conclusion about large-scale trends.