General Chat

One-level living is good. I've done it overseas in three different houses and it's always easier, to whizz around with a vacuum cleaner without having stairs to clean.

Like you Sylvia, we extended our living space considerably but I'm trying to think ahead and, like you again, if anything happened to OH I would look for different accommodation unless one of the children took it over and built a granny flat in the garden with all that it entails regarding bureaucracy and such.

This house is ideally placed for me but it's far too big for one person and occasional visitors and the garden is large enough to kick a football about in.

OH, however, seems tied to the place.

I moved into a bungalow ten years, up to that time I lived in a lovely terrace house in one of the village surrounding Heathrow I love living by the airport but BA had started to buy up houses because of the third runway and I wanted to get out before prices fell.

I went to see this bungalow where I am now it had three bedroom one them was huge one bedroom the kitchen bathroom and hallway had been knocked into one room and there was a big extension. I thought the big room would make a love bedsit for my mum because its so big but she would not come so I travel a hour to visit her but the spare bedrooms do get used and I'm not going to move again.

I ought to mention that I retired to live a more leisurely life and to do what I please. I am lucky in that OH and I share the housework including cooking, ironing etc and where once he could not sit still I am training him to relax more and to sit for England in the same way that I can.

It just gets to me when I see some people struggling In homes supposedly designed for the elderly.

We bought a two bedroom house in 1972 in a suburb of a big city. I didn't drive, and we needed access to a good bus service so I could get to work and be independent of OH. I had a choice then of 2 buses to get where I wanted. Now there are 2 other routes as well.

Like a lot of houses in this area back then, it counted as a bungalow or rancher ............. one floor with a livable basement.

It had 2 bedrooms, and 1 bathroom ........ but we really liked was that the kitchen was literally in the centre of the house, between the living and dining rooms at the front and the bedrooms at the back. The house literally revolved around the kitchen. The basement contained a family room, a laundry and a workshop/storage area

4 years and 1 child later, we looked at upgrading ..... but couldn't find what we thought we wanted at a price we could afford ............ sound familiar???? Then we realised that we really liked the area, the neighbours and the convenience of what was here and of the bus services.

So we renovated .........built an addition onto the back of the house. We turned the bathroom into an ensuite for the master bedroom, the 2nd bedroom into a hall and bathroom, and added a new bedroom and a large family room.

So we had a house with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 family rooms (1 up and 1 down), 1 living room, 1 dining room and 1 kitchen.

We are still in that house ...... it was large enough when our daughter was still at home, and it is fine for us now. OH loves the small garden.

I have to go up and down into the basement with bad leg down, good leg up, as supercrutch does.

OH wants to stay here as long as we possibly can, and will do so even if something happens to me.

If anything happens to him, I will take my time, but I will move .... I don't like gardening and I can't do much housework, so keeping the house will be too much.

We do have a problem if daughter visits with her husband and grandson ............ 3 people don't fit into 1 bedroom :-)


When this house is finally sold it will be demolished and replaced with a 2-storey plus basement house that fills the full foot print allowed by zoning, and has 3-4 or more small bedrooms

Surprised myself Island and kept my tongue still.

I am still fit enough to do housework just not willing enough!

I can see that the government seems to want the oldies to move into smaller accommodation thereby releasing family homes for families - at least that's its current thinking. The only problem with that is there are not enough suitable homes being built in this area for the more mature (ahem) people to move into. Otherwise the area is entirely suitable - hospital, library, supermarkets etc all in walking distance - between 10 and 20 minutes - buses every 10 minutes.

So, I think OH's half suggestions make sense.

When I went house hunting 2.5 years ago (and you all came with me) my major concern was a house on one level with NO stairs. ie wheelchair friendly.
We didn´t just think about whist we had mother with us, but looked at our needs also. ..Could I manage stairs after copious amounts of vodka because Mother had driven me insane. :-D.
We needed space for friends and family to come us see us, as we were sure we might find some at some stage.
We also needed outdoor space where the dogs and myself could let off steam.

I wanted a bungalow, as that made sense. That isn´t what I got but what I got was right in the end and I love my house.

The article does have a point though, and I'd admit to be as bad as those who don't want to move (at least not at the moment). Even though the house prices in this road are middling high for the area, its a shame how these family sized properties only come on the market when the remaining owner dies.

The Government is trying to encourage HA tenants to move to smaller properties (The 'Bedroom Tax'). The 'head of mortgages at the Financial Conduct Authority' has directed attention to the private sector.

In both cases it highlights the lack of suitable smaller homes.
The in-laws went from a large (as in Sq Ms) house to a bungalow, then to a ground floor flat all in the Private Sector. Including expenses, the flat cost all of the bungalow selling price.

I'd call him something much more fitting than a wag Joy and I'll bet I wouldn't be alone!

You can get attendance allowances for domestic jobs that you can no longer do yourself.

AnnC, my OH thinks the same way as you. He's told me that they'll carry him out of here in a box so I'm here for the foreseeable. His only concern is that if I'm left to look after the garden it will be far too big for me and I'll need to get a gardener. My response is that I have offspring and grandchildren three of whom are keen gardeners whereas none among us is keen on housework so if I had money to spare it would go on a cleaner before a gardener.

Here's a funny tale.

When I was retiring several years ago one elderly gent asked what I was going to do with my time then he proceeded to say that he thought I'd probably do more housework. I was speechless for a split second before telling him I was not retiring to do more housework.

What a wag!

I upgraded. Got meself some stairs - and still had enough change for a bag of chips :-D

It was having stairs that kept my folks fit into their nineties.

What a bleedy cheek, they will be banning us from going out after dark soon :-D :-D

I am with you Ann C :-D :-D

Good for you Dermot :-D

I down-sized three years ago from a 4-bed detached house in town to a 2-bed semi, 15mins walk from the beach.

Main reason - money in my pocket. Greedy, aren't I! I'll do my best to leave enough to cover my funeral expenses - if I live that long.

And the cat seems very relaxed here too! ;-)

We moved just on 2 years ago. The main reason for choosing to move was that we lived in a lovely rural area but with no amenities and we started wondering what would happen if the time came when neither of us could drive - we would have to rely on taxis which would be expensive because they have to come out from the nearest town.

We also wanted to downsize the garden as the very large garden we had was becoming as bit of a chore and perhaps downsize the house a little bit but not much as the family live a long way away and I wanted space for them to stay.

We were lucky enough to find a house roughly the size of our old one but with a very different layout. It has a downstairs bedroom with an ensuite so if the time comes when we can no longer get upstairs we can live totally downstairs and have plenty of room, but in any case the stairs could be adapted for a stairlift. The garden is small which suits us now and, although we are in a quiet spot, there are buses nearby and plenty of inexpensive taxis. Best of all, we moved to an area where we already had several friends.

I do get cross however when people tell me that this is a family house and we should have gone for a little bungalow. Are they suggesting that I shouldn't have family or friends to stay?

I live on my own in a mortgage free three bedroomed semi - I have no intention whatsoever of moving - I like it where I am and I'm staying :-D

One reason we want to stay here as long as possible is that the situation is ideal. We live in a large village sprawl almost midway between two towns. There are two bus routes to both towns, one runs every half hour from the stop just round the corner - five minutes walk at the most, the other runs every ten minutes from a stop about 10 minutes walk at the most. both buses go to either town (i.e. start in one and go to the other. Both towns have a cinema and lots of restaurants, quite good shops and theatres. We are walking distance from doctor, dentist, optician and hairdresser plus a Tesco Metro. In the event we are unable to walk to any of these the bus from the top of the road goes hourly to the stop near them. (half hourly bus goes one way on the hour and another on the half hour.)

And we are pretty sure that a stair lift could be fitted if necessary.

Glad for you Super, it sounds as though you have everything sorted.

Lynda, a bloomin' good time sounds right up my street.

Gotta go and pick up younger grandson who is delightful company.

I read a while back, that you should move, if you're intending to, in your 60's when you have the energy, by 70 you put it off, and by 80, it's just too much to even think about. Of course it is only a guide, but I can see the reasoning behind it.

I've mostly lived in a big house, but as I get older I don't want the bother of cleaning rooms that I don't need or want, so intend to downsize, but it will have to be the right house, or I won't budge :-D

When downsizing has been done, we intend to spend the proceeds on having a bloomin' good time :-D

Yes, we have stairs that are suitable for a lift but having just had a annual ortho review I said that I'll continue with good leg up and bad leg down for as long as possible :-D

One of the reasons we chose this house was the access via the 1st floor to one of the outside seating levels.... ;-) ;-) ;-)

We have just had a disabled bathroom fitted which is great, as we had to pay for it ourselves it's taken 3 years of planning and savings but I can now be a grown up and bath myself :-)

I'll consider myself chastized.

Snoozepaper will stay the same though as it's one of two I read regularly (three if you count the local freebie).

OH likes the other one better but I think reading both does us good.

Tec, I entirely agree with you having recently visiting a friend where I had to make coffee and carry it through to the lounge because there was no room for a walker and a table and chair in the kitchen. This was a bungalow designed for the elderly where, as I previously mentioned, the stove was across the floor from the sink - dire for those whose hands shook.