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There is alot of pent-up demand for housing and in the "better" areas if you want in under $300k you need to buy now. Run don't walk. The grandma brick 2 or even 3br in Madeira are being bought by developers and regular people are just on the brink of being outof luck for a starter in Madeira. You can fare a little better in Mariemont as only one flipper has shown up here so you have a few years, OTOH the taxes in both Madeira and Mariemont will kill you so she is better off in a township like sycamore twp. Or columbia twp. That will be cheaper in the long run.
Phrases like that get me walking. If the general attitude tends towards hysteria, it's a terrible time to buy. Right?
Just have to throw a comment in here. Too many of us do not consider what happens as we age and frailties occur, in other words our bodies wear out.
I have a friend and former coworker who's son had a crippling injury at a young age from a gymnastic incident at the U of M. Nick decided right then and there he needed a handicapped house. He got with an architect and basically designed his own house. Nick is an engineer and very capable at design. He built a home, not overly large but sufficient, and truly unique. All one floor and not a step anywhere. No basement because then you need a method to get there.
You start with the entrances and hallways. Typical design has no provision for a modern powered wheelchair. Nick designed wide doors and hallways everywhere, including the bathrooms. Built a truly handicap design house, and he did this over 20 years ago. His son has the use of his arms and hands, drives a hand operated car (Expensive), and can earn a living as a computer programmer.
Just have to throw a comment in here. Too many of us do not consider what happens as we age and frailties occur, in other words our bodies wear out.
I have a friend and former coworker who's son had a crippling injury at a young age from a gymnastic incident at the U of M. Nick decided right then and there he needed a handicapped house. He got with an architect and basically designed his own house. Nick is an engineer and very capable at design. He built a home, not overly large but sufficient, and truly unique. All one floor and not a step anywhere. No basement because then you need a method to get there.
You start with the entrances and hallways. Typical design has no provision for a modern powered wheelchair. Nick designed wide doors and hallways everywhere, including the bathrooms. Built a truly handicap design house, and he did this over 20 years ago. His son has the use of his arms and hands, drives a hand operated car (Expensive), and can earn a living as a computer programmer.
Absolutely! There is a fairly decent movement in this City towards what is being coined, 'visitability,' the basic idea is to start with simple changes that make homes visitable for people relying on wheelchairs. slightly wider doors, positioning of the bathroom relative to other rooms in the house, and leaving room for rotation of a chair are minor changes that can make a big difference.
my step mom can't really come to our house because we don't have a first floor bath and to even get to the front door is a series of steps. it is something that homebuyers and builders should consider.
Absolutely! There is a fairly decent movement in this City towards what is being coined, 'visitability,' the basic idea is to start with simple changes that make homes visitable for people relying on wheelchairs. slightly wider doors, positioning of the bathroom relative to other rooms in the house, and leaving room for rotation of a chair are minor changes that can make a big difference.
my step mom can't really come to our house because we don't have a first floor bath and to even get to the front door is a series of steps. it is something that homebuyers and builders should consider.
You got that right. So much to consider for accessibility. As have said already I consider our typical subdivision house an expendable, typical design. Took the dining room and the bedroom above and installed an elevator. Moved the dining room to the living room, much more space and on the rare occasions the kids come today can actually hold everyone. I am not sure how many times we actually used that living room anyway.
Currently looking at the expendable design. My son, also an engineer, and I are thinking of expanding the 1/2 bathroom 1st floor space into a full handicap accessible bathroom. We have a space, obviously intended to be a first floor laundry, right next to the bathroom but used as a pantry. Strongly considering putting a new door into that area off the kitchen/eating area and installing a handicap shower. I have said I consider this house expendable. If I can provide my wife a comfortable living condition, that is all I care about. Unless I go hog wild, there will still be plenty of house here for someone with similar circumstances.
Again, consider your frailties when considering a new property.We all feel infallible but it is not to be. I have resolved this house will hopefully be our last. I will do anything to stay here, Mason is one of the Most Tolerable places to be for Senior Citizens. If I have to, I will reconfigure this house to meet our needs. After we expire they can tear it down far as I am concerned. This much I know, our 1 acre of ground will be worth something in the future, it is just beautiful.
Good luck with your updates, kjbrill. I have the feeling you will be adding significantly to the property's value....those kind of features are in higher demand than most people realize. Someone looking to move into an accessible property has extremely limited choices, and the number of folks needing such a place is only going up.
Back to chemistry_guy's original topic, I looked at the real estate listings for pleasant ridge yesterday and again today. between then and now, a new listing of a fairly typical 3/1 pleasant ridge house at $180k has shown up on the MLS and gone pending. I'm not sure what that means or how a place could show up and go pending the same day, but to me it suggests that the market is a bit goofy and overexcited right now...
This forum has not had much commentary on the importance of accessibility issues in house selection. That is why I quickly directed the OP to a one floor home for downsizing his M-I-L. Many active seniors do not take the importance of this seriously enough.
Preventing falls by seniors is more important than diet, exercise, cholesterol, blood pressure, mammograms and PSA testing combined. And, falls are preventable.
One of my old acquaintances, Marion Lucke, was a pioneer in building affordable, wheel chair accessible homes when he built his first tiny accessible ranch with ramps, wide hallways, and low counters, etc, 50 years ago in Mt. Washington for a former customer who had had events render him immobile.
I am looking at this issue for myself, and I think it is important to highlight it whenever possible to help our seniors.
From the CDC:
Among older adults, falls are the leading cause of both fatal and nonfatal injuries.
I know some people in this forum pay attention to real estate trends in the area, and I wanted to see if others can corroborate my observations. I was out with some of my friends the other night who live in Madeira, Mariemont, and Hyde Park and we had a short real estate discussion. Basically, we all agreed that it is quickly becoming a seller's market, as there is not a lot for sale right now.
I pay close attention to the listings in my own neighborhood, Amberley, and the number of properties on the market is at an all time low since I bought my house in 2010. I can walk my dogs for a mile in several directions without seeing a single 'For Sale' sign. My best friend, who lives in Madeira, says that on his street most houses are sold within a week of going on the market. My friend who just bought a house in Mariemont indicated there are only a small handful of single family homes available there, and most of them are on the outskirts of the village. In all of our neighborhoods the smaller, (2-3 BR) houses priced 200-325K or so, are selling like hotcakes.
For me personally, this doesn't seem to be a problem. Who doesn't like to see market forces push up their property value without having to invest thousands in renovations? However, my soon-to-be mother-in-law is interested in downsizing from her big 5 BR Bridgetown house and buying something a bit closer to her children and friends. She is interested in buying a 2-3 BR house in a somewhat upscale neighborhood in an east side neighborhood along I-71 (Montgomery, Pleasant Ridge, Madeira, Sycamore twp., Mariemont, possibly Oakley.) She does not want a big house, but she is a gardening enthusiast and she wants at least 1/3 acre, possibly more.
She is in no hurry at all to move, although she browses the listings on a regular basis. Fairly recently, a house in Pleasant Ridge went on the market that checked most of her boxes. It was sold in a week, and was pending sale before she could really even consider it.
My question is this: Is it likely in the next 5 years or so that the market will have more houses of the type described available, or is there an incentive for her to actively start looking now?
You seem to have skipped over the most important point of all, namely, how old and able is the lady?
It's one thing to be about 50 and have a sense of "too much around" and quite another to be 60 and be wondering how to take care of everything. Add five years on either one and the perspective changes.
Be closer to children and friends? She is (now) too much out of the way for them or vice versa?
There are about 75 parking spaces for the apartment building underfoot (enough for about half of the residents). It is not beyond some of them to smile and say, "Oh, I still drive" -- to which an appropriate answer is: "How far?" I can assure it's not likely to be the length of the bridge which is in plain view from the front door.
As one gets older, the body does not readily do what the mind has been accustomed to doing, and finding a place with "just three" bedrooms instead of five won't make that much difference.
You seem to have skipped over the most important point of all, namely, how old and able is the lady?
It's one thing to be about 50 and have a sense of "too much around" and quite another to be 60 and be wondering how to take care of everything. Add five years on either one and the perspective changes.
Be closer to children and friends? She is (now) too much out of the way for them or vice versa?
There are about 75 parking spaces for the apartment building underfoot (enough for about half of the residents). It is not beyond some of them to smile and say, "Oh, I still drive" -- to which an appropriate answer is: "How far?" I can assure it's not likely to be the length of the bridge which is in plain view from the front door.
As one gets older, the body does not readily do what the mind has been accustomed to doing, and finding a place with "just three" bedrooms instead of five won't make that much difference.
Some very good points. I am realizing the size of a house is not what is important but how accessible it is, as as you age. As stated, I consider my house expendable. When 4 kids were living here it was extremely functional, 5 bedrooms, 2-story and all. Today the traditional design is just that - traditional and not functional as we age. But when I look at the cost of new construction is when I say to myself the house is expendable. I looked at what they called patio homes, small, and none designed for handicap accessibility.
So I am looking at my oversized 2-car garage and thinking I can shave two feet off the width at the back which is the 1/2 bath downstairs wall. Then take the 1st floor laundry used as a pantry which is adjacent and put a new door into the kitchen. That can make a fine full bath with wheelchair access, the plumbing is already there. Buy a cabinet to put the pantry goods in, big deal. The kitchen eating space held a table for 6 years ago. I may cramp that somewhat, but how many are having 4 kids today?
As I said, considering this house expendable. So I might make some substantial alterations to it, but so what? The wife is out with her caregiver this afternoon shopping. Just told her when she left, buy ground whatever and something to mix it with - only criteria.
I am new to the area myself and had the same challenge with my mother finding a place. There's a street in the Kenwood area of Sycamore - Donjoy Dr. - that has perfect grandparent ranches. I have yet to see one on the market - perhaps because they are so charming.
I am new to the area myself and had the same challenge with my mother finding a place. There's a street in the Kenwood area of Sycamore - Donjoy Dr. - that has perfect grandparent ranches. I have yet to see one on the market - perhaps because they are so charming.
Actually, there have been a lot of sales up there recently. It is a great area, just as you described it. I think we would call that Blue Ash. A similar area can be found on the west side of Montgomery Road between Galbraith and Cross County Highway. Look for streets like Highgate, Appleknoll, Glenover.
The houses on Donjoy have been selling mostly in the 150-200 range.
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