Retirees Spend a Lot of Time and Money to Buy Their Forever Home. Then They Sell It. (states, retired)
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I think a lot of your ideas are truly fun and interesting to consider, but I see so many problems.
[1] -In major cities with lots of people, a new three bedroom, 1500 sq ft townhome is $750k. I can't imagine how the young couple would afford such a place when many can't afford an efficiency.
[2] -I had considered combining a renter with raising a family (and I had two empty bedrooms) but the legal and safety ramifications ultimately convinced me the risk was not worth it. The sweet single mothers are often fleeing violent partners (can't have that around my kids) or unstable employment (evictions aren't free or easy - and I wouldn't be doing it out of charity).
[3] -Both sets of grandparents had multigenerational/extended family homes. My grandmother raised her family in a duplex where her sister and her family lived next door. My other grandmother had both her mother and my grandfather's aunt living with them. These arrangements worked out just fine.
[4] -I personally love the idea of always living with one of my kids provided I have some small private spaces (bedroom and sitting room).
Under current conditions and economic framework, I concur. There are many problems to solve.
[1] In my locale, NW Georgia, housing is inexpensive compared to other metro areas. A "typical" home runs around $125-$250K. https://www.trulia.com/p/ga/carrollt...17--2520801274
. . . .
A couple starting out, will definitely be priced out of most markets. That's why I suggested a multigenerational / extended family. I also would expect that the "clan" might have 2 or 4 capable adults who could build 95% of the house, reducing the overall expense to just the materials. That would bring down the price to $15 - $20 per sq ft enclosed space. A 3000 sf design might run $60,000 when completed.
[2] Tenants can be a problem. It helps to have references you can verify, or referrals from trusted folks. And build concrete walls, and floor. And Soss invisible hinges for the outward swinging steel clad exterior doors - tamper resistant. (Battering down an outward swinging steel door would be an exercise in futility)
[3] When I was young, we lived near a family (eastern European descent), that had a married couple, with 7 children, 1 grandma (statababa?), 1 or 2 maiden aunts, and 1 uncle, who all helped caring for the brood. They had an old coal fired stove in the kitchen. On cold wintry mornings, oh yeahhhh. Fond memories of visiting them.
[4] Agree that having some "private" space is necessary - for yourself and from others. One of my ideas had apartment wings on either side of the main house, with a connecting double door (not unlike some hotels) to expand the bedroom into the efficiency apartment. So if you wanted a "luxury" suite, pop open the doorway, and there you are. . . the bedroom becomes a sitting room, and the larger efficiency apartment is the "Master" bedroom, with kitchenette and bath.
I'd also make 1 or 2 ground level efficiencies into "universal access" wheelchair friendly designs, with walk-in tubs, drop down upper cabinets, and other suitable modifications.
It also might be wise for a couple to endow their youngest with the main house, so that when they're old, the youngest would still be capable of caring for them. And likewise, the youngest grandchild would inherit the main house, continuing the cycle for his parents.
I've spoken before about the eerie quiet of our Scottsdale neighborhood and the neighbors who seem to barricade themselves in their homes lest somebody try to speak to them.
Yes, we made a mistake. But I don't see how we could have predicted this. You don't get a chance to interview your neighbors before you make that big down payment.
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Originally Posted by evening sun
I would never expect neighbors to be my prime source for friendships.
exactly, in blue. it is nonsensical.
it's the atmosphere, sociology, psychology, affluence, privacy, apartness from walkability, lack of neighborhood activity, the worst aspects of suburban living at play -
all of which people can easily be attuned to before buying
Last edited by matisse12; 11-19-2021 at 01:57 PM..
Reading some of these posts has been a learning experience that I had put on the back burner 25 yrs ago after buying my lot and building my own home. After studying architecture in college I had an idea on what to do plan wise and the needs that entail. I had envisioned the end result to be used by my children and grandkids on weekends etc. I was 65 and retired as a business owner of 36yrs so NO problems CORRECT? I did all of the woodwork personally and contracted out the cement/brick work,. Put in a large fireplace. Lge viewover looking the Pacific ocean and beach 1/3 mile away What more to ask....all a waist as no one bothered to come down here. I had hoped the place would be usede annd later on a rental to Americans as it has come to the point today there are so many down here. 25ys of NO rent to pay or any mortgage payments as I paid cash or CC in full during construction....all clear. 4 yrs back broke my hip and sionce then my health is declining. Eyesight, hearing and my bi level hjome with the stairs is becoming more and more difficult every day. So I have posted a 4 sale sign in the upstairs window. Needs some repairs that have been difficult for me to do and getting locals for work repair as my spanish is limited and most do not speak any English so communication is difficult. Am showing home to be a fixer upper and a great deal for a young person to work on since the home is a lot cheaper here then in Calif high prices. CaSHING OUT ON THEIR OWN HOME SALE would pay off this home in full with NO rent/mortgage to worry aqbout. My 25 yurs speaks for itself. Sorry about my lengthy dialouge here ....after all I am 90 yrs old.
Reading some of these posts has been a learning experience that I had put on the back burner 25 yrs ago after buying my lot and building my own home. After studying architecture in college I had an idea on what to do plan wise and the needs that entail. I had envisioned the end result to be used by my children and grandkids on weekends etc. I was 65 and retired as a business owner of 36yrs so NO problems CORRECT? I did all of the woodwork personally and contracted out the cement/brick work,. Put in a large fireplace. Lge viewover looking the Pacific ocean and beach 1/3 mile away What more to ask....all a waist as no one bothered to come down here. I had hoped the place would be usede annd later on a rental to Americans as it has come to the point today there are so many down here. 25ys of NO rent to pay or any mortgage payments as I paid cash or CC in full during construction....all clear. 4 yrs back broke my hip and sionce then my health is declining. Eyesight, hearing and my bi level hjome with the stairs is becoming more and more difficult every day. So I have posted a 4 sale sign in the upstairs window. Needs some repairs that have been difficult for me to do and getting locals for work repair as my spanish is limited and most do not speak any English so communication is difficult. Am showing home to be a fixer upper and a great deal for a young person to work on since the home is a lot cheaper here then in Calif high prices. CaSHING OUT ON THEIR OWN HOME SALE would pay off this home in full with NO rent/mortgage to worry aqbout. My 25 yurs speaks for itself. Sorry about my lengthy dialouge here ....after all I am 90 yrs old.
I would never expect neighbors to be my prime source for friendships. Join some clubs or volunteer.
I never said I expected the neighbors to become friends. My bar is pretty low: I would just like to meet them. Hasn't happened in the three years we've lived there.
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As for checking neighbors before you buy, as long as they keep their yards tidy & don't play loud music at all hours, I'm good.
"Keep their yards tidy." LOL! In this neighborhood, the going price of gardeners/landscapers is $500/month. You better believe the yards are "tidy"!
Last edited by fluffythewondercat; 11-19-2021 at 06:05 PM..
The idea of a "forever home" is foreign to me. If I want to move for any reason, I pick up and go - I've done it 4 times since 2002, though the last two have been within the same city. Life's too short, especially as a retiree in her 60s, to live somewhere that doesn't suit me, and other than my furniture, clothes, and kitchen ware, I don't have a lot of "stuff," so packing takes a day and the day after a move I have everything in place, including pictures hung on the walls. So it's just not that much hassle.
03-19-2021, 09:35 AM
fluffythewondercat
Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Scottsdale, AZ and Redwood City, CA
We moved and are still moving from the Bay Area to Scottsdale, Arizona.
Super-friendly and helpful people. We like our neighbors. No one talks about politics or gets into your face or tries to shame us for living in an upscale area and not being "woke". We can be ourselves here.
This is a great place to live.
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Old 10-27-2021, 08:22 AM
fluffythewondercat fluffythewondercat started this thread
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Scottsdale, AZ and Redwood City, CA
We would probably have more of a relationship with the neighbors if we lived in a walkable neighborhood. That's one of the things I miss about Redwood City. It's 1 1/2 blocks from our house to the supermarket, a number of restaurants, 4 banks, a hardware store, a hobby/crafts store, the UPS store, and oddly, 2 paint stores next to each other.
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Old 07-22-2021, 12:30 AM
fluffythewondercat
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Scottsdale, AZ and Redwood City, Calif
People here tend to have elaborate back yards...pools, spas, ponds, outdoor showers, "sports courts" for the teens, outdoor TVs on their patios...and spend a lot of time there. I have one neighbor I haven't seen since she brought us cookies shortly after we moved in. That was December 2018.
Last edited by matisse12; 11-19-2021 at 06:03 PM..
I have lived here in this neighborhood for eight years and I am second in neighborhood seniority. My 90 year old next door neighbor has been here longer. Every other house nearby has turned over at least once. I know the young couple closest across the street because they invited me to their backyard wedding reception. The two other houses closest on my side are newly built and I have met them because they incorrectly gave my address as their own and I often get their mail. They mostly have that fixed.
One thing we learned when we first moved 150 miles away from family and friends in the 1970s is that they simply cannot travel that far. They have a hard time going across town. The highway only worked for us to go there. Later on we got used to it and that was just the way things went. So when I moved another 1,000 miles away in retirement I figured the same was true but because I was located a few miles from two major interstates crossing in a place with some actual tourism interest, I see people more often. They will drive 1,000 miles. That's great -- I planned for that and happy to have the visitors. Instead of them staying a few hours and racing back to safety in the city, they stay for a few days or a couple weeks. It is just a odd quirk of reality.
... we live in coastal FL with the threat of hurricanes, so a forever home here could become an oxymoron one day. ...
I concur that the typical wood frame house in America is inadequate to deal with natural disasters.
You might look into thin shell concrete dome homes. They have a great reputation for enduring high winds, etc.
(The wall is a sandwich of polyurethane foam insulation and shotcrete)
Alternately, you might look into SCIP (Structural Concrete Insulated Panel) houses, if you prefer rectilinear construction.
These are made of an EPS foam core with 2 skins of sprayed concrete. (Which is the opposite of ICF - Insulated Concrete Forms - which are hollow and filled with concrete.)
Close to family, no more sweaty shirts several times a week from doing exhaustive yard work on 1.5 acres of land, and no more stairs to climb. 3 mistakes and 3 solutions brings me back to zero. Now, on to the next mistake!
Completely understand your particular reasoning for moving away from the home with the 1.5 acres.
But one observation growing up out here in the heartland of the Midwest, the men and women that were still hale and hearty in the late 80's and into their 90's were the old farmers that worked their a** off from dawn to dusk. Many of those old timers were out on a tractor in the field or repairing their barns and outbuildings, whatever it took - and they did it pretty much right up until the time they were put in a box for carcass viewing.
Now if you have a physical limitation or disease that's another story, but the point is that having a property that requires maintenance and keeps your body moving is a good thing. A more current example is a neighbor in his mid 80's that has about 3 acres. He enjoys maintaining his property, out there every day doing something and in my opinion it keeps him active and mentally and physically fit. I hope that one day he drops dead on the spot, right on the patch of ground that he loves. In my mind, there is no better way to leave this earthly realm.
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