How a Seniors Real Estate Specialist® can help you find your perfect retirement home in Collingwood

“I can only ski for a few hours this morning,” a friend told me. “I have to curl this afternoon.” This is just one of the tough challenges folks face when they retire to our four-season playground in Collingwood and area. I tell people moving here that they’d better be retired. That’s the only way they’re going to have time to take advantage of all the activities they have to choose from.

The Collingwood, Thornbury, Meaford and Wasaga Beach area has become a destination for retirement and pre-retirement living, with an endless array of activities for retirees and those poor folks still working.

But when choosing a home in this area, the excitement of an active, jam-packed retirement might crowd out other important considerations. As much as we don’t want to think about it, retirement comes along with aging.

By taking aging knees and backs and other factors into account now, you’ll enjoy your new home much longer.

Fortunately, you can stay focused on the good stuff. As an accredited Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES®), I can take a load off your shoulders and help find a house to suit you now – and for many, many years into your retired life in Southern Georgian Bay.

I was the first person in Collingwood to earn the SRES®, which is an official designation of the National Association of REALTORS®. Seniors Real Estate Specialists® are REALTORS® qualified to address the needs of home buyers aged 50-plus. By earning the SRES® designation, I’ve demonstrated the necessary knowledge and expertise to counsel clients through major financial and lifestyle transitions in relocating, refinancing, or selling the family home.

I’ve seen my parents through the transition from retirement into seniors’ living, and closer to home, my wife and I have chosen a home that’s well-suited to a knee injury that has long plagued my wife.

While many considerations seem like common sense, earning accreditation as a Seniors Real Estate Specialist® introduced me to hidden factors that make living in retirement more enjoyable – everything from a home’s location to its layout to its landscaping. I know – first hand – the pros and cons of a wheelchair lift, for example. (In addition to its primary function, it’s also great for getting boxes into the house, but it can eat into your garage space.)

We originally moved to Collingwood (and now to Meaford, overlooking Thornbury and the Beaver Valley) for the skiing, and I’m a past president of Probus Ski Legends, a fun group of members from all the area’s Probus Clubs (and some from out of town), who enjoy skiing and socializing. But we’re involved with many different groups now, including the Georgian Bay British Car Club, the Beaver Valley Concert Band, and the All Saints Church choir, to name just a few. I’m also a member of two local Probus clubs, including the largest in the world, the Beaver Valley Probus Club.

With so much more to offer in this region than in areas like Muskoka and Niagara on the Lake, I can’t help but become an ambassador – and I love to introduce my clients to people and activities they’ll enjoy.

I also consider myself a “go-to guy” for information about day-to-day needs. Looking for a good mechanic? I can make a recommendation. Need gardening help? Just ask.

If you’re moving from the big city to a smaller community you might be worried about how you’ll get involved with the local community. Fear not. Before long you’ll be meeting new friends of a similar age that share your interests and can introduce you to new ones.

Because staying active isn’t just fun – it’s the best way to stay healthy and happy in your retirement.