How to Cash in on the Great Baby Boomer Sell Off

The American economy is about to be completely disrupted by a tsunami I like to call “The Great Baby Boomer Sell Off.”

The concept here is both simple and inevitable; people tend to sell stuff off as they get older. Many of these will have to move out of their homes at some point and all of them will die. At that point somebody will have to dispose of their possessions, which will create some tremendous business opportunities.

Those opportunities are growing because of simple demographics; because there are around 74.9 million Baby Boomers, and they are definitely getting older. The standard definition of a “Baby Boomer” is a person born in the 20 years after World War II; defined as either 1946 to 1964 or 1945 to 1965, depending on who you ask. That means the youngest boomers are 51 to 52 years of age – while the oldest are now 72 to 73.

Not surprisingly there are some ways that younger generations can cash in on the Great Boomer Sell Off. They include:

• Estate sales and yard sales. Try showing up near closing time on the last posted day and bring cash. Offer to take stuff away for free. Look for collectibles that you can sell on eBay or Amazon and things you can flip.

• Trash out/Junk removal. A lot of aging boomers’ homes are full of junk nobody wants, when they die or move out somebody will have to dispose of that stuff. Since many relatives lack the time; or willpower, to pitch those possessions they will hire somebody to take care of the chore. This will be a great opportunity for hard workers that own trucks. There are some franchises such as 1-800-Got-Junk that can help you get started.

 

• Dumpster rental. When Boomers die or move out a lot of their stuff will need to be thrown away and there will be too much to fill trash cans. That means there’s going to be a huge demand for roll offs and dumpsters.

• Estate auctions. The big money here will be made by the auctioneers. If you have a good voice, consider auction school.

 

• Estate sale companies. This is a real business, and a growing one. If you love yard or estate sales; and you are good with people, consider it.

 

• Avoid real estate for a few years. House values are about to plunge; if you do not own, don’t buy now. As an alternative try shorting the real estate market.

 

• Sell your home and other real estate; prices in much of the country have probably peaked.

 

• Store up a lot of cash. Put your money in CDs, money markets, savings accounts or highly liquid investments such as cryptocurrencies. A great way to do this is through an online bank account.

• Avoid those stocks Boomers love. This includes sentimental favorites; like Disney (NYSE: DIS) and Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.B), and beloved brands; such as Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), these shares will fall because lots of them will be dumped on the market as cash-strapped Boomers sell.

 

• Invest in real estate or businesses in fast-growing retirement areas; such as Yuma, Arizona, and Hilton Head, South Carolina.

 

• Buy stock in companies that might profit from all those sales of Boomers’ junk. This includes eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY); and Etsy (NASDAQ: ETSY), and Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) which owns realty companies.

 

• Cash home buying/Flipping. During the next two decades a lot of people are going to unload a lot of residential property fast. Persons that show up with cash may get some real bargains. Be highly selective and buy low because a lot of property will never recover the value it has right now.

 

• Junkman/Tow truck driver. Somebody is going to have to haul all those old vehicles that aging boomers will leave behind to the scrapyard. So there will be opportunities for those with tow trucks or car haulers. A lot of other Boomer possessions including appliances, lawn furniture and grills will also need to be recycled.

 

• Demolition/Remodeling. A lot of Boomers’ homes will be unsellable in the 21^st Century real estate market. That means somebody will be making good money either demolishing or remodeling those houses. One big activity will be bulldozing single family homes to make way for apartments and other multifamily structures. Another will be remodeling McMansions into apartments or office space.

Everybody needs to be aware of the Great Baby Boomer Sell Off because it is coming straight at us. Those that see it coming will make a lot of money, the persons that don’t will be wiped out the Boom generation’s last hurrah.