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National Debt Called a Threat to Well-Being of the Elderly
 The national debt poses a growing threat to the nation’s senior citizens and to the record numbers who will soon be joining their ranks, according to former Comptroller General of the U.S. David Walker, who is president of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation.
The interest on the debt is costing the U.S. $1.20 for every dollar it spends, Walker said in a timely keynote address to the recent 2008 Aging Revolution II conference in Philadelphia. “We’re the world’s largest debtor nation,” he said. “We’re not only not paying our bills — we’re eating our seed corn,” he said, and reducing expenditures in such vital areas as research and development and education.
He listed four factors that have painted the U.S. into an economic corner:
- A disconnect between those who benefit from government policies and those who eventually will be asked to pay the price for them
- Off-balance-sheet expenditures that understate the scope of the current challenge
- The packaging of bad investments with good and then giving them AAA ratings, which has undermined lender confidence and reduced cash flow
- Financial regulators who have been asleep at the wheel
Hopefully, he said, a “true leader” will emerge from the Presidential elections to tackle the fiscal and ethical dimensions of issues with a top priority for aging Americans — health care, housing and Social Security.
On Social Security, he suggested that recipients who are financially better off receive proportionately fewer benefits.
Walker would begin fixing health care by targeting Medicare and Medicaid benefits to those who need them the most — and he noted that people of means may not need them at all. He believes that taxing health benefits, indexed to income, would be a good idea, and that there needs to be line-item budgetary limits for federal health care assistance. Currently, he said, there are none.
Finally, he recommended creating a national panel on the future of the country to define fiscal problems and their solutions and present its findings to Congress for an up or down vote.
Walker said that the mission of the Peterson Foundation is to promote fiscal responsibility and accountability today in order to ensure economic opportunity in the future.
The foundation was created with a $1 billion allocation by Peter G. Peterson, one of the founding partners of the Blackstone Group.
The Aging Revolution conference was presented by the Wesley Enhanced Living Foundation, an arm of Wesley Enhanced Living, a Pennsylvania-based provider of retirement and continuing care communities.
For more information, e-mail Ann Marie Moriarty at NAHB, or call her at 800-368-5242 x8350.
 Revolutionize How You Think About 50+ Housing
Plan to attend the 2009 Building for Boomers and Beyond: 50+ Housing Symposium on April 27-29 in Philadelphia and revolutionize how you think about, and are engaged in, the 50+ housing market.
The symposium includes information and educational sessions covering all aspects of the 50+ market, as well as a special housing tour of 50+ communities in the greater Philadelphia area.
For more information and to sign up to be notified when registration opens, visit www.nahb.org/Build4Boomers.
 Improve Your Focus on the 50+ Market With Publications From BuilderBooks.com
The 50+ market provides some great opportunities for builders today. BuilderBooks.com brings together the essential resources for builders seeking to grow their businesses while bringing high-quality product to this demanding, often affluent consumer group that has planned well and is ready to build or buy.
BuilderBooks.com also offers publications on customer service so builders can start building strong relationships before breaking ground and turn these experienced consumers into enthusiastic sales people.
To view or purchase these and a wide variety of industry publications online, click here or call 800-223-2665.
 CAASH in on Boomer Buyers
The Certified Active Adult Specialist in Housing (CAASH) designation gives housing professionals serving the rapidly burgeoning 50+ market the essential knowledge, tools and skills that will help them succeed — from conducting initial research to design considerations and features to serving the customer.
Find upcoming CAASH classes by clicking here.
For more information, call the Professional Designation Help Line at 800-368-5242 x8154 or e-mail CAASHinfo@nahb.com.
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