The RGV just doesn’t get it. Retirees have traveled the world for their jobs and during their vacations. They EXPECT some style and class for their hard earned retirement dollars. Destination areas are fun areas.
They have no desire to live in a compound setting, surrounded by barbed wire, in a location where English is a second language, yet Medicare is available. If you need to learn a language, go somewhere exotic and travel adventurously.
If you’re the type that never left the farm, then I’m guessing the RGV would seem exotic at an affordable price. Maybe that is the demographic for the area, and should be courted.