last house before retiring .. or condo?
- Thread starter albireo13
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Starting that next month. All new, 3 story, 2 car garage, high efficiency and high end appliances and HVAC. All units built with stacked closets and ground floor pit that can be purchased with an elevator up front rather than wait until needed. We went for the elevator, knowing that it would be seldom used (slower than taking the stairs), but is there if we need it or for loads. All units designed with handicap access. Resale on the few units that have gone for sale was high and fast. Elevators are a big plus in resale in communities with more aged residents.
Teacher Terry
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One reason I wanted to downsize is I didn’t want a big space to clean .
Fedup
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I’m in the camp, what dirt, I don’t see any dirt, haha. My husband occasionally vacuums the areas where we frequent, especially when I’m in my art class. It’s a big house, 2-3 rooms we rarely use. Except when the kids come back, he vacuums their rooms.
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jimandthom
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We sold our 2400 sg ft brick/stone ranch(mostly all redone) in 5/2016 on a whim and moved to to 3 story 120 yr old Vic needing lots of work. We also went from very modest snow fall area to 12ft or so each year.That was my official retirement-spouse had been retired since 2011.
The stairs have provided me calf and thigh muscles, breathing stamina and 1+ size smaller waist--almost back to a 32. And, BP generally in the 100's over low 70s.
We do have a room on the 1st floor that could become a bedroom and a gameplan to expand the 1st floor bath as needed. Most old houses up here were built 3-4 ft off the ground to accommodate snow/wind totals so while we could make the interior workable, getting in and out of the house could require a rather long ramp.
We will adjust accordingly as time goes.
The stairs have provided me calf and thigh muscles, breathing stamina and 1+ size smaller waist--almost back to a 32. And, BP generally in the 100's over low 70s.
We do have a room on the 1st floor that could become a bedroom and a gameplan to expand the 1st floor bath as needed. Most old houses up here were built 3-4 ft off the ground to accommodate snow/wind totals so while we could make the interior workable, getting in and out of the house could require a rather long ramp.
We will adjust accordingly as time goes.
Cut-Throat
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Yes, I'm with you on that one! .... We live in a perfect retirement house.. 3600 sq feet finished. 2 Bedrooms, 3 Baths, a couple of Dens, a couple Living rooms...Big rooms with fewer walls.....Townhome with no outside Maint.
The only problem is that it is just outside of Minneapolis, which is too cold for me... So, we spend the winter in the Bahamas, Florida, Australia, this year Hawaii....
When we want to settle down in the future, it might be Florida or Hawaii... Moving would be a Big Pain in the Ass.
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SomedaySoon
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My 2cents. I loved the full college experience with fraternities, sports, social activities, etc. Then I graduated and married and had kids. I bought a house @ 25 and lived there for 30 yrs. During that time I was your basic workaholic, with no social life. Worked, mowed the lawn, cleaned the pool, shoveled the driveway, fixed what need to be fixed in an old house, repeat. @55 I was laid off and decided to retire. We bought a SFH in a brand new 55+ condo community 5 years ago. One floor energy efficient living with all outside care done by professionals. Since then it has been like being back in college. DW and I go out to eat a couple of nights a week with new friends. I bowl, play golf, pickleball, etc., just about every day. I volunteer @ the local soup kitchen with 5 other guys in the community and it is more fun than you can imagine. There are restrictions on what we can do outside our house, but it is something we can definitely live with. I vote for condo living !
We have been thinking about the same topic and really put it on hold. DMIL just moved from independent to assisted care and she wants us close for both stages and future ones. This limits our choices so we are just staying put. We live in a 70's 2 story, 4 bedroom 2000 sqft home on half an acre. We have upgraded the mechanical components with high efficiency low maintenance ones. We have thought about staying and putting in an elevator, but I don't expect that to be needed for 20+ years. We will want to move to a smaller yard as our 1/2 acre can be a lot of work as we age. Again, not much of an issue for years.
We have thought our son's house would be a good retirement home. A 2 story with the master on the first floor. In fact everything you need on the first floor. The partial second floor has 2 bedrooms and a bath. This would be perfect for guests/kids.
If I were you I might try buying one of those ranches if I liked the area and base floor plan. Then rehab it to suit your needs. Make sure the base structure is solid. From past posts I recall you are an engineer. I would assume you could handle this.
One of our other thoughts is to wait a while as they are building condo retirement homes that seem to be already for the aging. I'm thinking that we will have a slow down in housing and could pick up a condo a bit cheaper as residents pass or more to higher levels of care.
IIRC you are about 5 years older than me.
As I note, I've put the move on hold until we can open up our geographic options.
We have thought our son's house would be a good retirement home. A 2 story with the master on the first floor. In fact everything you need on the first floor. The partial second floor has 2 bedrooms and a bath. This would be perfect for guests/kids.
If I were you I might try buying one of those ranches if I liked the area and base floor plan. Then rehab it to suit your needs. Make sure the base structure is solid. From past posts I recall you are an engineer. I would assume you could handle this.
One of our other thoughts is to wait a while as they are building condo retirement homes that seem to be already for the aging. I'm thinking that we will have a slow down in housing and could pick up a condo a bit cheaper as residents pass or more to higher levels of care.
IIRC you are about 5 years older than me.
As I note, I've put the move on hold until we can open up our geographic options.
jimandthom
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We are in the somewhat more tropical end --extreme eastern UP in the Soo. Would have preferred Marquette or the Keweenaw peninsula for the more wilderness and harder winters. But, we lived in the Soo in our more youthful days and felt comfy there.
street
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I built my home myself 35 years ago. We had in mind that we could most likely be here in our golden years and built it accordingly. We have a 1900sf one level home. It is a 2 step (16 inches from ground) to get into home.
I personally like one level homes I grew up in a two story and a down stairs with a flight of stairs.
I personally like one level homes I grew up in a two story and a down stairs with a flight of stairs.
friar1610
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We've lived for 5 years in a 2400 sq ft duplex in a small (14 unit) over-55 condo community in coastal MA. As with others who have posted, it's 2 stories but we can easily live on the main floor if it ever comes to that. We don't really need all the room but it's nice to have.
At this stage (73) I'm still capable of doing yard work but it is sure nice, after 35 or so years of home ownership, to have someone else do it. Although it's not always done as carefully as I might like, I don't sweat the small stuff any more. There are a few things that are mildly irritating about the condo form of ownership but not so bad that I'd consider moving. (I was on the condo board for 2 years and I know from personal experience that not everone is happy all the time. I wasn't happy with everything about my single family houses all the time, either.)
The couple in the other half of the duplex is pleasant, quiet and we've become good friends. Nobody in the community seems to generate a lot of noise.
For us, both the physical attributes of the house and the condo form of ownership have worked out well.
At this stage (73) I'm still capable of doing yard work but it is sure nice, after 35 or so years of home ownership, to have someone else do it. Although it's not always done as carefully as I might like, I don't sweat the small stuff any more. There are a few things that are mildly irritating about the condo form of ownership but not so bad that I'd consider moving. (I was on the condo board for 2 years and I know from personal experience that not everone is happy all the time. I wasn't happy with everything about my single family houses all the time, either.)
The couple in the other half of the duplex is pleasant, quiet and we've become good friends. Nobody in the community seems to generate a lot of noise.
For us, both the physical attributes of the house and the condo form of ownership have worked out well.
We were thinking maybe buying property first and build a home but that could be a lot more expensive. Real estate is not cheap in these parts.
We've been considering 55+ communities but, am wondering if they are financially good long term. I wonder if they'll end up like time shares ... popular now but, 20 yrs form now hard to sell if/when we need to move to a CRC.
Another thought is to wait another 5 years until we are both retired. At that point, our location options are greater ... no longer have to factor in commuting requirements. The challenge might be getting a mortgage when our income level is low.
We've been considering 55+ communities but, am wondering if they are financially good long term. I wonder if they'll end up like time shares ... popular now but, 20 yrs form now hard to sell if/when we need to move to a CRC.
Another thought is to wait another 5 years until we are both retired. At that point, our location options are greater ... no longer have to factor in commuting requirements. The challenge might be getting a mortgage when our income level is low.
We enjoy condo living. We bought our So CA oceanfront condo in 2003 when we were in our early to mid 40’s. We liked the view & location but it has the added benefits of no required stairs (we take stairs now because we can, but there are elevators), very walkable neighborhood, and public transportation literally right outside our building’s front door. While there are some trade-offs, generally we prefer the “lock & leave” feature of condo living as we typically travel a few months per year. We envision staying in our condo until the end.
YMMV
YMMV
Floridatennisplayer
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Nice thread! I like hearing and visualizing how everyone lives. Our main residence is in Central Ohio. In a golf course community. Daughter and husband and our two grandkids live in the cul de sac right behind us! It’s wonderful. Just a block away is a beautiful passive park with a great playground. We all walk there pretty much every night.
I grew up in a ranch home. When we got married at age 23 we built a large ranch home with an inground pool. Lived there for 22 years until we built our current home. 3,400 sq ft. Two story. Master bedroom on the first floor with a 2 story ceiling from our first floor living room and kitchen looking upstairs to a large loft on one side and a great room and 2 bedrooms. I have an office also on the first floor.
My wife pretty much hangs around in the living room downstairs watching lifetime or Hallmark or HGTV while I am upstairs in the bonus room which is over top of our garage and master bedroom and watching the tennis Channel.
We also have a condo in Southwest Florida and third-floor and he got it it’s 1344 ft.² and we love it. With our entire family living in Ohio I doubt we would ever move to Florida full-time my sister and her husband and my mom also have condos about five minutes from us in Florida . I like the simplicity of the condo never anything to worry about lock the door and head back to Ohio.
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0EiEKeZnN4cmDMvdf-h63Tj5A#Canal_Winchester,_OH
I grew up in a ranch home. When we got married at age 23 we built a large ranch home with an inground pool. Lived there for 22 years until we built our current home. 3,400 sq ft. Two story. Master bedroom on the first floor with a 2 story ceiling from our first floor living room and kitchen looking upstairs to a large loft on one side and a great room and 2 bedrooms. I have an office also on the first floor.
My wife pretty much hangs around in the living room downstairs watching lifetime or Hallmark or HGTV while I am upstairs in the bonus room which is over top of our garage and master bedroom and watching the tennis Channel.
We also have a condo in Southwest Florida and third-floor and he got it it’s 1344 ft.² and we love it. With our entire family living in Ohio I doubt we would ever move to Florida full-time my sister and her husband and my mom also have condos about five minutes from us in Florida . I like the simplicity of the condo never anything to worry about lock the door and head back to Ohio.
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0EiEKeZnN4cmDMvdf-h63Tj5A#Canal_Winchester,_OH
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brucethebroker
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Yeah, that is part of my reply also. Here are some ideas I have seen:
1. As a Realtor, I see many 60's-80's homes that are 2 story but have a separate living room plus a family room or large den on the first floor. Some of those rooms could be converted to a first floor master.
2. Tri-levels. In our area of the Midwest, the tri-level (true tri level has 3 floors including a lower level with windows above the ground) was a popular design in the 60's-70's. Most have a lower level with only 3-4 steps and not too steep. Often, there is a family room, spare room/guest room with a 1/2 or full bath on that lower level. We have owned two with ground level back doors that enter the lower area without steps.
3. Two story with a "straight" (no landings) staircase to the second level. Suitable for a chair lift to be installed.
4. Any two story home with enough land to add on to the lower level, adding enough room for a new master and bath.
Good luck!
audreyh1
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
LOL! It really is amazing how quickly one can get used to stairs. In Holland they have crazy steep stairs, sometimes even curving with barely enough room for your feet. We call them crazy Dutch stairs. We used an apartment for several weeks up 3 flights of long very steep stairs, and another curvy set inside the two story apartment! The first day was tough. After a few days, we didn't think anything of those stairs. We went up and down those stairs several times every day.
We stayed in a B&B in Antwerp. 5 flights of stairs to the top. Guess where our room was located? Mrs Scrapr was not amused. (but she had a bad cold) I carried all the luggage up/down
Owner was redoing several floors. He might have had a rabbinical student on one floor. His finished area was very nice
We went to leave and the owner says something about the payment. I had thought we pre paid. Had to run down to an ATM real quick
Used to see think I would retire in a cabin
A few years back, I built a 1,500 sq.ft. 3 bedroom 2 bath rustic cabin with a panoramic view of the mountains. I thought I would retire there .. the views were amazing, but the downtown is like 20 minutes away and most neighbors were part-time residence. One neighbor was also a dick for cutting all the trees and making a part of the mountain bald .. he had no concern for the environment. Lastly, a loghome is high maintenance, with carpenter bees burying itself in the logs and restaining it every 3 years. We sold it. So, I am settling for my brick home near the big city
Once in a while we just rent a cabin whenever we want to be in the mountains.
A few years back, I built a 1,500 sq.ft. 3 bedroom 2 bath rustic cabin with a panoramic view of the mountains. I thought I would retire there .. the views were amazing, but the downtown is like 20 minutes away and most neighbors were part-time residence. One neighbor was also a dick for cutting all the trees and making a part of the mountain bald .. he had no concern for the environment. Lastly, a loghome is high maintenance, with carpenter bees burying itself in the logs and restaining it every 3 years. We sold it. So, I am settling for my brick home near the big city
Once in a while we just rent a cabin whenever we want to be in the mountains.Attachments
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We have a tiny (960 sqft) house but added a 300 sqft lanai. We live in Maui so the lanai is pleasant to sit on 365 days a year and we spend a lot of time on it. Property is 2 acres which means we cannot see or hear any of our neighbors. The nights are inky black with lots of stars and the neighborhood is very quiet except all the birds. The yard is a bit of work but I enjoy it. I surf 2-3 times a week with a bunch of other geezers, one of whom just turned 80. DW is a water color painter and runs all over the island with her painting group, painting stuff. We're having fun.
googily
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I'm in a 110-year-old two-story townhouse in the center city. It's not a house to retire in--only a half bath downstairs if I stop being able to climb stairs, and I'd have to turn the dining room into a bedroom. But it's been home for 25 years, and the neighbors are great (other than their BARKING DOGS). Assuming the world doesn't fall down around us, I should have a pretty killer amount of equity when I do sell, and would probably move into one of the condo buildings not far from here (or even just rent in one of those buildings). But for now, the house is comfy, and last year after DH died I went on a big spree and replaced the windows and the HVAC and the shower plumbing and the washer and dryer and had most of the rooms repainted. I figure I'll reassess when I'm 60. Or so. (A neighbor down the street in a similar house is now 87 years old and she lives by herself. Using the stairs!)
NYEXPAT
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I always wondered how they do that when stoned?
Helena
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Buy whichever you can pay off asap, so you will be house debt-free in retirement.
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Buy whichever you can pay off asap, so you will be house debt-free in retirement.
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pb4uski
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
+1 we have a condo in Florida and a SFH in Vermont and my vote is for condo living too.
Go big AND go home
Statistical outlier here. DW and I just bought our retirement house, downsizing from 5 bedrooms to 7. Yep, you read that right.
I'll explain my thinking, and then you can all tell me, gently, whether I'm nuts.
We wanted to retire on waterfront. After considering beaches, riversides and lakes, we chose lake. This lake in particular offers everything we wanted, including just the right distance from the city to be both rural-quiet and civilization-accessible.
We figured three bedrooms max, with the spare bedrooms on the small side so freeloading relatives would feel a bit cramped after a few days and move on. (We have some experience with boomerang kids, but that's another story. )
A garage was a necessity. Either the house comes with a garage, or there must be space to build one.
We wanted our own boathouse, with a lift and a shed to store skis, life vests, fishing rods, paddle boards, etc. The dock had to be a short walk from the house.
So far, so good. We found lots of properties for sale which met those criteria. Then came the snag.
DW has MS, and while she copes with it in yeomanlike fashion, we figured it best to plan for reduced mobility. That meant single floor living: first floor master, walk-in shower, laundry, roomy kitchen, etc.
All the houses with few bedrooms were too small. No room to fit a wheelchair, all the bedrooms up stairways, and the kitchens were teeny tiny. If we wanted enough space for a future handicapped resident, we had to think larger.
Could we have just bought a plot and hired an architect and designed a custom house and dealt with builders and HOA boards and all that? Yeah, we could do that. But it would take about two years, and when it was all done we'd still find things we'd regret.
Also, on the lake most of the home's value isn't in the building. Location, location, location. A 1600 sq ft house on the same waterfront lot costs 95% of what a 3600 sq ft house costs.
So we found a house that had everything we wanted, plus some extra. It had a motivated seller, so we got it at a good price. We can always close off the extra bedrooms if we want. As for keeping them clean, the robotic vacuum doesn't complain about how many rooms it has to do. If it needs to work for two hours instead of one, it just goes back to its base for recharging more often.
Now, maybe you're thinking, "Hey, what's your hurry, anyway? Couldn't you have kept looking for a while until maybe the perfect, smaller house came on the market?"
The answer is "No." Having read on these pages about the difficulty in securing a mortgage once the W2 income ceases, I felt it was more urgent to buy the retirement castle soon while I still have a pay stub that will qualify for a loan. That gives me the most flexibility in choosing my exit date, or alternatively welcoming a layoff if it happens (there are rumors of imminent downsizings). Once we both are retired, we will sell our current (mortgage-free) house and pay off the loan on the lake house. But for now we're in the catbird seat, so we could choose to FIRE in two months or in two years, whenever it's convenient.
Sorry to go on so long. I hope most of this relates to the original topic. If not, I'll gladly refund your money. Thanks for reading.
Statistical outlier here. DW and I just bought our retirement house, downsizing from 5 bedrooms to 7. Yep, you read that right.
I'll explain my thinking, and then you can all tell me, gently, whether I'm nuts.
We wanted to retire on waterfront. After considering beaches, riversides and lakes, we chose lake. This lake in particular offers everything we wanted, including just the right distance from the city to be both rural-quiet and civilization-accessible.
We figured three bedrooms max, with the spare bedrooms on the small side so freeloading relatives would feel a bit cramped after a few days and move on. (We have some experience with boomerang kids, but that's another story.
)A garage was a necessity. Either the house comes with a garage, or there must be space to build one.
We wanted our own boathouse, with a lift and a shed to store skis, life vests, fishing rods, paddle boards, etc. The dock had to be a short walk from the house.
So far, so good. We found lots of properties for sale which met those criteria. Then came the snag.
DW has MS, and while she copes with it in yeomanlike fashion, we figured it best to plan for reduced mobility. That meant single floor living: first floor master, walk-in shower, laundry, roomy kitchen, etc.
All the houses with few bedrooms were too small. No room to fit a wheelchair, all the bedrooms up stairways, and the kitchens were teeny tiny. If we wanted enough space for a future handicapped resident, we had to think larger.
Could we have just bought a plot and hired an architect and designed a custom house and dealt with builders and HOA boards and all that? Yeah, we could do that. But it would take about two years, and when it was all done we'd still find things we'd regret.
Also, on the lake most of the home's value isn't in the building. Location, location, location. A 1600 sq ft house on the same waterfront lot costs 95% of what a 3600 sq ft house costs.
So we found a house that had everything we wanted, plus some extra. It had a motivated seller, so we got it at a good price. We can always close off the extra bedrooms if we want. As for keeping them clean, the robotic vacuum doesn't complain about how many rooms it has to do. If it needs to work for two hours instead of one, it just goes back to its base for recharging more often.
Now, maybe you're thinking, "Hey, what's your hurry, anyway? Couldn't you have kept looking for a while until maybe the perfect, smaller house came on the market?"
The answer is "No." Having read on these pages about the difficulty in securing a mortgage once the W2 income ceases, I felt it was more urgent to buy the retirement castle soon while I still have a pay stub that will qualify for a loan. That gives me the most flexibility in choosing my exit date, or alternatively welcoming a layoff if it happens (there are rumors of imminent downsizings). Once we both are retired, we will sell our current (mortgage-free) house and pay off the loan on the lake house. But for now we're in the catbird seat, so we could choose to FIRE in two months or in two years, whenever it's convenient.
Sorry to go on so long. I hope most of this relates to the original topic. If not, I'll gladly refund your money. Thanks for reading.
