While some are choosing to stay local and move to a retirement community, others are moving away to more affordable areas. The high cost of housing as well as the cost of living is certainly a factor in Silicon Valley.

California ranks among the nation's most expensive markets for active adult homebuyers. Homes occupied by owners ages 55 to 74 in Santa Clara County totaled 96,966 and the average dollar value of the homes owned was $556,947.

Realtor John Leslie of Alain Pinel Realtors in Los Gatos says the senior market is really comprised of three age brackets, each with distinctive goals and needs.

"The 50- to 60-year-olds are still in their family homes and are usually going to stay put until all the children have moved once or twice. They are usually planning retirement and deciding where to live next. Some of these folks are buying second homes either for themselves or for their children," Leslie said.

Then there is the 60-year-old to 70-year-old age group that is busy downsizing and buying retirement homes. They no longer want to take care of the yard or maintenance. Town homes and condominiums attract this group, says Leslie, but there are not enough of them in the South Bay to meet the demand. He finds significant numbers of these seniors moving to the Del Webb developments in the Sierras and the new communities that have been developed just below the snowline in the Gold Country counties.

Leslie says the 70-plus age group usually do not want to leave their homes until their children have them move in with them, or else they need assisted living. "They like to defend their resistance to moving, saying they are too old to move or don't know where to move. Poor health eventually causes them to move," he said.

Many seniors who have owned their homes for 30 or more years have plenty of equity and are looking into ways to put it to use.

"Currently, I have three clients trying to sort out whether to pull money out of their home equity and invest in multiple properties in California, Oregon, Texas and Florida, where houses are cheap to buy and easy to rent," Leslie said. "I have been cautioning all these clients that they need to visit in person since I lived through the era of those selling swamp land in Florida and pine mountain lake homes to my parents' generation."

Leslie offers his clients a word of caution with the old adage, "if it sounds too good to be true, it definitely isn't true." He offers to check out the investments for his clients since he believes they need to know the good and risky side of any investment.

Realtor Dennis Byron of Byron and Associates in Los Gatos sees a lot of baby boomers selling and leaving the area. During the past year, he has sold several homes where people took their equity and moved to more affordable regions of the country.

"I am currently selling a home for a couple who will take their million dollar­plus profit and buy a home in Cambria, a small town on the Central Coast. Another couple moved to Las Vegas and bought a home for around $500,000. One of my friends is preparing to sell his house in Aptos and move to British Columbia, where he can buy a 3,000-square-foot home on the water for $375,000," Byron said.

He cautions seniors to consider all the options before moving from the area, because once someone leaves it is hard for them to move back.

"These seniors see the benefit of taking their money and running. However, all is not roses. They must look at the downside as well. They may trade equity for weather, conveniences and friends. These are things that need to be well thought out," Byron said.

Josie Gambera, a senior housing specialist and Realtor with Prudential California Realty, works primarily with seniors. She finds that many are divesting their investment properties because they are becoming too much to handle.

"My younger seniors are moving out of state to Maine, Florida and Las Vegas. Some are investing in second homes in Hawaii, North Carolina and smaller California counties inland like Madera," said Gambera, who enjoys working with seniors because they are very loyal clients that value honesty and thoroughness.

Realtor Jim Magill of Village Square Realty in Los Gatos advises seniors to get more than one opinion and to interview several different Realtors to get the right one who will pay extra attention to the circumstances of the seller and the timing of the sale.

"It's important that agents who work with seniors emphasize counseling over selling. That extra care involves asking all the right questions and sometimes just being patient. This is an emotional time for the sellers and everything should be in order," Magill said.