ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a review of the potential for and problems with attracting retirees as a rural development strategy. It presents the economic and community impacts of retiree attraction. The chapter deals with a discussion of policies used to enhance retiree attraction. Rural areas that have attracted retirees have outperformed others on abroad array of development measures, including growth in income, employment, and population. Recognizing the importance of retiree attraction to rural economic development, the Economic Research Service of the US Department of Agriculture identified 515 nonmetro counties as particularly popular destinations of retirees. The export or economic base model may be used to demonstrate the relationship between retiree attraction and economic development. The developments can be attractive additions to an area and impose little in the way of environmental burdens on the community. The economic impacts of retiree attraction are primarily in the area of increasing population and employment, especially employment in service industries.
