How baby boomers are putting their market winnings to use at an upscale retirement community outside Chicago. By Debbie Carlson
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Bryan and Kay Keenan just paid $2 million for a 1,600-square-foot apartment in The Mather, a swank retirement community here. The couple travels all over the world and enjoys dining out often, yet they are wealthier than when Bryan retired five years ago.
"We have now lived on our investments since 2020 and our portfolio is larger than it was then," says Bryan, a former tax and business attorney. "We didn't blanch at the cost to come to The Mather."
Rising equity markets have lifted retirement incomes for stock-owning seniors all over the country. If retirees hit a down market in their early years of retirement, it can lower their incomes for the rest of their lives. The opposite is true of a rising market.
The S&P 500 had a total return of 676% between 2010 and September 2025, which comes to an average annual return of 14%, above the average long-term stock market return of around 10%. The index has returned roughly 14.5% so far this year, so the wealth effect has only grown.
Much of the extra money is going to people (the baby boom and silent generations) born before 1965, who hold 52% of all wealth in the U.S., according to Visa Business and Economic Insights. Each $1 increase in their wealth produces about 11 cents in additional spending, the credit-card company calculates. That compares to just four cents in additional spending for younger Americans.
"With significant wealth, affluent boomers have been consistently spending more than other consumers," say Visa's Michael Brown, principal U.S. economist and Sean Windle, U.S. economist.
The wealth effect is apparent at The Mather, home to 350 people over age 62. The twin 11-story buildings feature gourmet restaurants and promise seniors healthcare for the rest of their lives. The grounds include ornate gardens, raised garden-bed plots for residents, and art by sculptor Richard Hunt, donated by a current resident. A rooftop outdoor deck gives 360-degree views and has a room for meetings and parties.
Evanston is home to Northwestern University, and The Mather is nestled in a highly walkable neighborhood, steps away from Evanston's downtown and Lake Michigan. The lobbies of The Mather buildings feel like a five-star hotel and they are connected by a tunnel filled with artwork, so residents don't have to cope with a Chicago winter as they move around the complex.
Floor plans range from 830 square feet to 2,631 square feet and the entrance fee ranges from the mid-$600,000s to $3 million. In addition to the entrance fee, monthly fees at The Mather range from $4,300 to $12,500, depending on floor plan and location, choice of long-term care plan and if there are one or two occupants.
Donna Tewart, 79, and her husband, John Tewart, 75, sat on the wait list for 4 1/2 years. They moved in three years ago and paid $1.8 million for their two-bedroom and a den apartment.
The Tewarts have been retired since 1998, when Donna took a "golden parachute" offer from her former employer, Levi Strauss.
The couple each have pensions and waited until the maximum age of 70 to claim Social Security, and until recently John managed their investments. Donna says even during the dot-com burst and the 2008-2009 financial crisis John kept their money invested. She says their portfolio is more than she expected.
Nonetheless, putting down $1.8 million for their apartment in The Mather was nerve-racking. "What scared the devil out of me before we moved in here was the initial investment. I mean it's not a couple of hundred thousand," she says.
They were drawn to The Mather's healthcare offerings in case they need it in the future. "Sure, it's a gamble," she says. "We're gambling that we're going to need skilled nursing, and it's prepaid for us, and they're gambling that we don't use skilled nursing. But it gives you a lot of peace of mind."
Donna jokes about some of the financial readjustments they made. "What are we going to tell our nieces and nephews who think they're going to get some money? Well, you're only going to get..." and she trails off.
Their apartment building is owned and operated by Mather, which was established in 1941 by philanthropist and inventor Alonzo Mather, "for ladies of refinement" whose husbands died in World War II as one of the earliest continuing care retirement communities. It remains a nonprofit and operates a similar project in Tysons, Va.
Gale Morgan, senior vice president for Mather, says the baby boomers are more willing to spend in retirement than the generation that came before them. "In 2008-2010, many older adults worried about living a retirement lifestyle that would leave significant resources for their children. New retirees are less focused on this," she says.
The Mather's entrance fee is 90% refundable when seniors vacate their apartment, which is an attraction. "It's still a nest egg that residents are leaving behind," she says.
She says boomers are more lifestyle focused as well. The Mather has bourbon clubs and wine clubs with mixologists and sommeliers on staff.
Within its monthly fees, The Mather has a flexible culinary plan for residents to eat at any of its five restaurants, ranging from a casual grab-and-go lounge to a high-end prix fixe restaurant open two days a week that is always sold out. Demand for the prix fixe restaurant is so high that The Mather is thinking of opening for a third day of the week.
Kay Keenan says one of The Mather's draws was its fitness and wellness classes. In addition to a high-end gym which includes exercise machines that use pressure instead of weights to help build strength, the building has a saltwater lap pool and offers classes ranging from Pilates to high-intensity interval training. Those amenities are included in the monthly fees, but Kay Keenan pays extra for a personal trainer.
Chrissy Fernandez, spa and fitness manager at The Mather, says she's seeing increased demand for massage therapy as well, which also has an add-on cost. Some residents may see the massages as pampering, but others view it as an investment in themselves.
"They see it like they're maintaining their body," Fernandez says.
Increased Spending, but Not Conspicuous Consumption
Residents of The Mather pay up for luxuries, but they still embody a Midwestern sensibility of practicality and not flashy spending.
Mary Ann Sanders, 84, has lived in The Mather for 13 1/2 years. She says her investment portfolio has been growing despite her expenditures. In 2019, she traded in her Toyota Camry for a Subaru SUV. She expects it to be her last vehicle.
She has increased her charitable donations to her alma maters and where she taught, in addition to other organizations such as Doctors Without Borders and Habitat for Humanity.
And she is spending more money on travel, a passion. She tries to take at least one annual trip, and in the past five years she's started to fly business class, particularly on long trips. She booked business class for a 17-day trip to Turkey in October.
"I figure why not? The number of years I'm going to be living is shorter, " she says.
While she is spending more in areas that matter to her, she isn't increasing her spending wholesale. Rather, being financially secure is itself a luxury.
"One feels very privileged to be able to have comfort in their future," she says.
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October 31, 2025 21:30 ET (01:30 GMT)
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