ORLANDO, Fla. – Sept. 4, 2014 – As the baby boomers retire, a significant number follow the same path their parents did – they move to Florida. And historic retirement sites in Southwest Florida continue to draw a significant number of older adults.

RealtyTrac conducted a study on two ends of the age spectrum: the baby boomers and the millennials. To spot trends, RealtyTrac analyzed Census population data between 2007 and 2013 in more than 1,800 counties nationwide to identify shifts in populations, and it overlaid that data with information on median home prices, price appreciation and rental rates.

In Florida, four counties made the top 10 list for baby boomer population growth:

• Charlotte County – Punta Gorda (32.9% were baby boomers in 2013, a 34.3% increase since 2007)

• Citrus County – Homosassa Springs (32.1% boomers, 28% growth since 2007)

• Lee County – Cape Coral-Fort Myers (28.1% boomers, 27.6% growth since 2007)

• Lake County – Orlando-Kissimmee (27% boomers, 26.5% growth since 2007)

No Florida county made the top 10 list for baby boomers moving out or millennials moving in; but it appears that one county, Citrus, is trading millennial residents for baby boomer. Citrus County not only made the top 10 list for baby boomers moving in, but it also made the top 10 list for millennials moving out. In 2003, 12 percent of the population was a millennial, a decline of 26.9 percent since 2007.

While RealtyTrac’s statistics don’t draw a direct connection between declining baby boomer markets and those on the upswing, many new Florida residents could come from Georgia, which had four cities on the top 10 list of declining boomers: Fulton County (boomer population down 21.9% since 2007), DeKalb County (down 20.1%), Clayton County (down 15.5%) and Cobb County (down 13.7%).

Overall, RealtyTrac notes four trends in their tracking:

• The millennial generation is generally moving from lower-priced to higher-priced markets for both buying and renting, with the tradeoff being more jobs (lower unemployment) and higher median incomes in their target markets.

• Millennials are also moving from counties with a smaller population (average 178,277) to counties with a larger population (average 587,522).

• The baby boomer generation is generally moving from higher-priced to lower-priced markets for both buying and renting, with the tradeoff being lower median household incomes and slower home price appreciation in their target markets.

• Baby boomers are also moving from counties with a larger population (average 809,464) to counties with a smaller population (261,232).

“The above population trends are also evident within the same metropolitan area, with millennials moving from lower-populated counties to higher-populated counties within the same metro, and baby boomers doing the opposite or moving out of the area entirely,” says Ginny Walker, RealtyTrac’s public relations supervisor.

© 2014 Florida Realtors®