Let’s talk about what “home” means to you. Over the years most of us senior citizens have had many homes. Some of us have grown up in one home, others moved one or more times while young. After high school some of us went to college, some of us went into an apartment to begin adulthood. Then some of us married and moved one or more times as we raised families. Well, now we have somehow fast forwarded to 2023 and we are not alone. The Alliance for Aging Research asserts that by 2030, over 71 million people will be over the age of 65, and over 33 million will be over the age of 75. We are finding ourselves making decisions on retirement, downsizing or preparing to age in place in our current home.
In this series of articles, Part One has me talking to fellow Seniors about getting your home ready so you can “age in place”. I encourage you to do this in your EARLY senior years so that you can formulate a plan BEFORE you need to make a snap decision. I’ve worked with Seniors who delay and delay this step, then out of nowhere they or a spouse have a health crisis which they are unprepared for. So, this is designed for healthy individuals anticipating that their needs will change as they age. Is your home going to be Senior friendly as you age? How do you decide? If you live in a 2 story home with your main bedroom on the second floor, really put some thought into evaluating if this is where you want to age in place. As you age, you very well may have difficulity managing the steps every day. Check into an elevator or a stair lift now BEFORE you need it to see if it’s a possible fit for your home. Stair lifts are the less expensive choice especially if you have a straight stairway to the second floor. If you have a curved or stairway that has a landing and a turn half way up it may be a bit more involved requiring structural changes. There are also small elevators that require less space than you’d think. They use a pressurized air system, and remind me of a much gentler, vertical system that we use at a drive up bank. In the bathroon, adding grab bars in the shower or tub is a somewhat easy fix. Make sure you have handrails on stairs both inside and outside where needed. Check out Seniors at Home to get other ideas. If your current home isn’t adaptable, you might consider choosing a different lifestyle for your older self. In Part 2 we will cover selling your home and downsizing into another single family home with one level living
