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It's a beautiful home in an area I love. It looks like it's either take 22 steps to get to the front door or go in through the garage and then basement and up a flight. Would that be a deal-breaker?
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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It would be now that we are 65 and 64, anticipating eventual knee or hip issues. Even before, with 3 kids it would have been a factor unless the garage was level with the house, for bringing in all those groceries and other stuff. A lot of townhomes have garage level entry, then up stairs to the kitchen/living area, and up more to the bedrooms. It maximizes the number of homes on the lot, so is more profitable, but I wouldn't like it at any age. If you are young and fit, it shouldn't be a big deal if the house is otherwise what you want. When it comes time to sell, the fact that you are asking means that many buyers will also hesitate.
It would be now that we are 65 and 64, anticipating eventual knee or hip issues. Even before, with 3 kids it would have been a factor unless the garage was level with the house, for bringing in all those groceries and other stuff. A lot of townhomes have garage level entry, then up stairs to the kitchen/living area, and up more to the bedrooms. It maximizes the number of homes on the lot, so is more profitable, but I wouldn't like it at any age. If you are young and fit, it shouldn't be a big deal if the house is otherwise what you want. When it comes time to sell, the fact that you are asking means that many buyers will also hesitate.
Thanks. Those are important things to consider. I'm 38 and healthy though I want to live at the place for a long time. My dad in his 50s developed a disability that prevented him from being able to walk on his own actually. I also have a dog and would have to bring her up/down when I wanted to walk her rather than just let her out in the backyard. I've been waiting a long time for a home in this community, though, and the home is really nice.
If you really love the place, remember that you can get a chair lift if and when you need one. They're ugly IMHO, but as the ads say, they're cheaper than moving (or in your case, better than settling for a house you like much less).
It's a beautiful home in an area I love. It looks like it's either take 22 steps to get to the front door or go in through the garage and then basement and up a flight. Would that be a deal-breaker?
Not a deal breaker for us. We have a basement garage and either have to come up the stairs from the garage to the main living area (lots of times carrying groceries) or up the deck steps, which entails even more steps. I am fortunate that when I walk the dogs, I can go out the front door and down 4 steps to the yard, then to the gate and out onto our gravel road.
It's a beautiful home in an area I love. It looks like it's either take 22 steps to get to the front door or go in through the garage and then basement and up a flight. Would that be a deal-breaker?
I lived that way for 11 years. It got really old after awhile even though I'm a very active person. Not sure where you live, but shoveling all those steps really sucked in the winter.
Our current house now has 16 steps, whether coming up to the front door, or up from the garage. We knew we didn't love all those steps, but we were on 3-day house hunting trip and pretty much had to buy something. Now, 3 years later, we're moving again so this house is on the market. One of the complaints we hear from prospective buyers: too many steps to get inside.
Honestly, I didn't mind the steps personally, as I'm in my mid-50s and good health, but we knew if we stayed here we'd eventually put in a pneumatic elevator.
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