SAREC is recognized by the National Association of Realtors but not owned by the 760,000 real estate professional member organization. It is currently the sixth largest designation organization in the real estate industry with thousands of members in all 60 states and Canada. SRES designees are trained to help seniors make wise decisions about selling the family home, buying rental property or managing the capital gains and tax implications of owning real estate. By earning the SRES designation, Realtors have demonstrated that they have the requisite knowledge, experience and expertise to help seniors with their unique needs.

Because America is maturing and nearly 80 percent of contemporary seniors own real estate and/or are buying new properties, the Council provides its members with tools, skills and knowledge to service the needs of this unique segment of the population. Nearly four out of 10 property owners over 65 have lived in the same home for over 30 years. The issues facing these clients are unique and special.

Every seven-and-a-half seconds, someone in the United States turns 50 years old. The aging of the baby boom generation — those people born between 1946 and 1955 — have resulted in a 50-and over population in this country of more than 75 million. Over the next two years, according to the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), more than 8 million of them will change their residences.

Real estate professionals who work largely or exclusively with seniors understand working with this niche market requires special skills and preparation.

How do seniors differ, and why do agents and brokers need these special skills and information to work with them? Each client is different, but there are some common threads many seniors share: Many are fearful-of getting older, of losing control of their lives and environment. They’re also afraid of getting ripped off. We’ve all heard the horror stories about how seniors are targets for scam artists. So one of the most important things that an agent must understand when he or she works with senior clients is that those clients have to have a comfort level with the Realtor; they have to trust you. And that can take some time.

Seniors also may approach real estate transactions with trepidation because of their unfamiliarity with the process. Some seniors haven’t done a transaction in 20 or 30 years — or more. There are Realtors that fall into the category of what the industry calls “90-day wonders” — they want to get the house listed, sold, and closed in 90 days. That may be moving too fast for many seniors and their mindset just doesn’t work with this segment of the market. Seniors may be slow to move — especially senior sellers.

According to a study by Merrill Lynch, something like 85 percent of most seniors’ net worth is in their homes. These people don’t have time to make their equity back if something goes wrong with a transaction. So, naturally, they’re very cautious. Our job is not just to help them sell or buy a home, but to work through the whole process with them so they feel secure is the decisions they make.

(Editor’s Note: Don Pennington of Windermere Real Estate in Silverdale, is a retired Naval officer and has worked in the profession here more than a quarter of a century. Known as “The Dean of Kitsap Real Estate,” he was the first agent in Kitsap County to secure a SRES designation. Pennington may be reached at (360) 731-0977 or donpenn@windermere.com.).