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My daughter, son in law and I stopped at the Lennar model homes to look at these homes, where you have a little studio attached to a regular size home for an older person to live in. New way to take care of Gramma !
It sounds like a great idea and the models were gorgeous, of course. The in law apt has one bedroom, a sitting area, laundry, kitchenette, bath and a little courtside area outside. It has its own entrance, own garage and is separated from the main house by a door inside the home. My sil thought this was ideal for me, for when I will need help. I am far from that now, and unfortunately, my enthusiasm for moving from my 1776 sf house to a 600 sf place was not appealing. They had a few models, and most of them were around $380,000 plus or minus upgrades. The "big" house was at least 2500 sf so I would not even have a third of it. There were several psople viewing this arrangement and Lennar is anxious to get them sold, so they are taking "offers."
Maybe if I were in my 80s I would love this but right now, the major attraction is that I could lock and leave, and they would watch my pets ! And, I don't know if so much "closeness" would be good for us. There are times (alot of them) that I want my privacy and don't want relatives to come knocking.
Has anyone else seen this arrangement and really liked it enough to purchase? Of course, when the senior person passes, one could always rent the space to someone. It was definitely an eyeopener and an alternative to a nursing home !!!!!
Last edited by AZgarden; 08-24-2014 at 10:17 PM..
Reason: add info
Elderly relative who still wants independence.
Disabled relative or child who needs some assistance or security.
Someone who needs au pair space.
Someone who wants a caregiver to live in to care for them.
Someone with adult child who boomerangs or multiples who want a place to stay that is more private when they return home.
Someone who wants to provide housing on a regular basis to a foreign exchange student with a little more privacy or share housing with someone with a need like student or traveler.
Lots of ideas here that ordinary houses do not provide. In places like Santa Fe, these "casitas" are rentable too.
We are finding that mother does much better in a senior apartment complex due to the community and friends this provides. Living in a unit on our house would be socially limiting at this point in her life.
I would be thrilled to have this arrangement with one of my kids. We'd establish ahead of time the mutual need for privacy and the ground rules. Sounds wonderful.
If I reach that point although I get along very well with the family I would prefer to move where I would have the ability to socialize with people my own age. My father lived in independent living until he passed at 97 and always had someone with whom it talk, eat meals, play games, entertainment, etc. He also had his own little apartment to retreat to should he prefer privacy.
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We looked at the Lennars and she thought a separate kitchen seemed a little too closed off. She wanted a more multi gen family feel......
Your mother could simply use the main kitchen, if that is mutually agreeable. The existence of the separate kitchenette could be "ignored" or used whenever convenient.
The arrangement described in the OP would have been ideal for my mother if my sister had had such a place at the time she considered moving our mother in with her and her family. One of the two main reasons that move never happened is that my sister's house was not suitable. My mother was having trouble negotiating stairs, and there was only a half bath on the main floor where the kitchen was. If she had lived in that library/den/bedroom with its half bath, she would have had to go either up or down stairs to a full bath in order to shower or bathe.
The other primary reason was that our mother would have been socially isolated living with my sister - different city where she knew no one.
This is why we're upsizing, a bigger house that can absorb Mom when she needs assistance and doesn't want to be on her own.
We looked at the Lennars and she thought a separate kitchen seemed a little too closed off. She wanted a more multi gen family feel.
Notice the increase of one level homes with two master suites. Also the wave of the future.
Instead of a separate kitchen, I've seen some that have a small setup with a microwave, small fridge, sink, small food prep area. It gives a sense of privacy for late-night snacks, convenience, etc, but doesn't make the person feel excluded from the main home. A setup like this could always be added.
Some cities/municipalities have zoning that prevents this. I think Raleigh is one. You are prevented from having two kitchens on one properrty. So short-sighted.
My MIL was living with us when her independent living apartment in CA became too expensive for her to continue living there. When we moved to TN, we gave her the master on the ground floor and we took over the upstairs for our bedroom. Even with constant contact (shared living room and kitchen) with us and a few of the neighbors around us, she felt too isolated and after about 6months, requested to move to an independent apt here in TN (they're much cheaper here). She is much happier with the daily contact with the other tenants and staff. I thought a MIL suite would have been perfect, but now I see it wouldn't have worked for us. So glad we didn't buy a home based on that idea only to have her reject it.
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