As many are living longer, there is a growing desire to "age in place." Hence the need for home health care has been on the rise. Now, I personally believe that when people say "age in place," they really mean live in the comforts of a home they can call their own and the desire to avoid moving into a nursing home or hospice. Importantly, there are many ways to achieve this objective, and it all depends on the needs of the individual.
One way to achieve this is to literally live in the house you've been in for years, but make adjustments to that the house can accomodate your needs as you age in place. This can work well if the master bedroom is on the main level, so that you avoid the need for steps (which may get increasingly difficult to traverse. Or, this could involve moving the main bedroom to the main level (e.g. moving to a guest room or converting a room into a bedroom). Or, it could mean installation of an automatic chair to zip up and down the steps.
It would also entail making safety adjustments to the home (e.g. widening doorways, installing grab bars in the bathroom and shower, making sure the flooring is safe, adding in better lighting and easy switches). In fact there are many adjustments that you can make and if you live in greater New York area, the professionals at LWS Home Care can help do an accessment for you to improve safety and ease of use.
An alternative solution is to move and find a more comfortable home to age in. Here in the New York area, I see many people doing this. The majority of houses in the New York suburbs have the master bedroom on the 2nd floor. So, at some point, many will make a move to make their lives more comfortable. Often, this will happen after the kids have graduated from school, especially if they are in a high tax neighborhood. Some of them find houses that are either 1 level or have a master bathroom on the 1st floors. Others will move into a condo or co-op, again to avoid the steps, but also to have a lot more conveniences available to them (e.g shopping within walking distance, people around them for company and safety). Many times people do this to reduce the need for maintenance of the home (i.e. someone else takes care of shoveling the snow, moving the lawn, raking the leaves, cleaning up the common areas, etc.).
Another variation on this theme is that some aging adults, especially grandparents, choose to move near where their kids and grandkids are now living. Having grandkids around is fun and helps add some youth and excitement into your life, and being around family is a wonderful thing. Sometimes, this is especially appealing if your kids have moved to a warmer climate.
Everyone's stage of life, needs, preferences and budgets are different, so there is no right or wrong on housing choices. But, regardless, make sure that whereever you (or your parents) plan to live that it is safe.
