What To Consider When Searching For Your Retirement Home

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When I put my house on the market, nobody told me about the flurry of real estate agent meetings, showings, open houses, and staging appointments. When you add the paperwork, I was overwhelmed. After the process was over and I left the closing, I decided to create a website that focused on all of those things that I didn't know I'd have to do. My goal for this site is to make sure that other first-time sellers have a resource to learn what they can expect from the sale and closing process. I hope that the posts here help you prepare for your first sale with the confidence of an old pro.

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What To Consider When Searching For Your Retirement Home

26 March 2018
 Categories: , Blog

If you are approaching retirement and are looking to downsize, your needs for a home will be quite different from when you were starting a family. You'll be thinking about several of your needs as you reach an old age, and that can affect how you search for a home. Here are a few things to consider when looking for your next home to start retirement.

Smaller Square Footage

A large house was fine when you were raising kids, but it is just not practical in retirement. Consider looking for a home that just has two bedrooms; that way you can still have a place for guests to stay when they visit.

Having a home without a ton of square footage also has its own benefits. There will be fewer rooms that need to be cleaned, which means less work to maintain the place over the years as you get older. A 55 plus realtor can help you find small homes suitable for retirees. 

Room Layout

Another consideration is the layout of the home. You may be looking for a ranch-style home where everything is one one level. This will prevent the need to constantly go up and down the stairs for bed as you get older in age.

If you do select a home with two floors, pick one that has the master suite on the first floor. A main bedroom with an easily accessible bathroom will be a huge perk of a home when you get older in age.

Handicap Accessibility

It is important to look at how accessible the home is if you were to become handicapped later in life. For example, are the doors, hallways, bathrooms, and kitchens large enough to accommodate a wheelchair? If not, you could find yourself in trouble if you need to use a wheelchair or walker to get around your home.

Attached Garage

Anything that you can do to put less stress on your body as you age is going to be really helpful. While a garage is nice, it will be even nicer if you can get an attached garage. This will make it safe for when you are walking to the car in the middle of winter, since there will not be any ice to slip on. You also will not have to clear snow off your car. Just plan to hire somebody to clear snow from your driveway, and you'll be set for the colder months when you are using your car.