What will be the long term effects of the Baby Boom?

Answer 1

There are millions of Baby Boomers coming up hot and heavy. There are pros and cons ...

PROS:

Baby Boomers want things right and aren't too old to fight for it which could be excellent in the areas of health care, politics, and taking a good solid stand on important issues of the country they are in.

Baby Boomers are either going to retire and travel, stay around home, have ill health perhaps, or many well go back to work part-time or full-time. Although I'm not classed as a Baby Boomer I found that I'd rather work part-time than stay home constantly and it helps financially.

Baby Boomers may even have more free time to volunteer in places that need help, or, they may even go back to College or night school. Some may even go into their own business'. They have much to offer.

CONS:

Baby Boomers are going to be a drain on our Health Care including the U.S. and Canada. Our Health Care system (in Canada at least) is already having problems and former governments knew full-well that they should have been saving money in their coffers for the burst bubble of the Baby Boomers. Of course former governments didn't do this (at least in Canada) and now they're scrambling for money to provide for the sick. Hospitals are over-crowded, there are not enough hospitals and it doesn't look like the government is going to be building any new hospitals in the near future.

When Baby Boomers retire many companies have not given it a thought that they will have to retrain future employees and have really messed up the process. It would have been smart to train young people along with the up and coming Baby Boomers so the company could carry on without too much of a problem. Some Baby Boomers may be called back to work for the company they use to work for as they need pros to help out.

Many Baby Boomers are taking early retirement because they want to be well enough to travel, perhaps start their own small business or just enjoy life sooner than later. Once one gets old the illness' start to pile up.

Higher insurance costs because they are living longer.

Higher unemployment among generations x and y, due to "retired" Baby Boomers taking up jobs in a limited job market.

Answer 2

For some time I have been increasingly concerned about how the aging boomer generation will affect our economy as they retire. It seems logical that they ("e" since I am in there too) will put unprecedented demands upon the health care system as they age. Future health care will be further stressed by younger generations which will be experiencing increased health issues brought on by rising obesity rates among younger people. The baby boom doubled typical birthrates which helped America prosper and provide a perfect base for the growth of health insurance industry since there were many young and healthy people to participate with a smaller group requiring to access the health care. The situation is gradually shifting and we are already experiencing tremendous upward spiraling of costs. The current system will continue to experience rapid price increases until an eventual government takeover of the health care and insurance industries becomes inevitable. There is no political will in Washington to do otherwise by taking on the health insurance and health care lobby's.

Housing is another area which has been significantly affected by boomers.

I am of the opinion that much of the dramatic rise in housing prices since WWII was fueled by this generation. As they begin retiring and passing away, I wonder what effect it could have on housing prices in various parts of the country. Many retirees will continue to relocate to southern states or perhaps retirement communities and sell their homes. Heirs will also likely be dealing with selling property of their parents as they age into nursing homes and pass away. This would seem to have the effect of increasing supply which will in turn have a downward pressure on housing prices which may be the largest asset many boomers own. The sub-prime mortgages which so fueled the housing bubble will not be repeated. The appreciation we have come to expect will not likely return in my lifetime.

Typically, retirees will move investment assets into more income producing vehicles and conservative equity positions. I would expect the boomers to do the same with some negative effect on financial markets. The result could be less money flowing into the markets. We have recently witnessed bank failures at the highest rate since the great depression. Future tax increases and likely inflation will mean less money to invest, save or spend. It is not unthinkable that we could see even greater stress on our financial institutions in the coming years which may bring further failures within that industry as well. Insurance companies could also be facing their own crises as annuities and insurance payouts mount. If such failures do occur it could be catastrophic to our nation and the world. With the federal debt at all time highs it may be impossible for the government to be able to provide future bailouts on any similar scale.

Our nation (as well as most western nations) is aging and the demographic aged 65 and above is increasing dramatically. According to the US Census bureau, over the next 30 years, all other age groups will continue to decline as a percentage of the population. The population over 65 will be doubling in the coming years from 1 in 10 to 1 in every 5 people. There will be fewer people paying into a system with increasing numbers being supported. This would seem to indicate increased taxes at every level of government will be necessary. Local governments are already struggling with burdensome health and pension costs which will only increase over time. Increased taxes will mean less disposable income and have a negative impact on private businesses.

WWII saw the US emerge as sole economic power of the world, a position it has generally maintained for 60 years. But increased competition from rising global economic opportunity, which was largely a result of US policies and technological innovation, has now made it more difficult for our nation to continue this dominance. Our high living standards and correspondingly high wages make us less competitive. It seems that we will be required to adjust economically to this new world and make significant changes which will likely result in lower standards of living for at least most of the middle class if not all. Having lost significant employment to other countries, it is unlikely in my opinion that the private sector will be able to generate sufficient employment which could return us to the low unemployment rates we enjoyed in the past.

Government will likely witness tremendous expansion as it becomes the major creator of jobs. It would appear our nation is in decline and there is little which I can envision that can be done to alter this trend. It may be that the coming adjustments could be accompanied by increasing civil unrest and violence, at least until the baby boom generation has passed into history.