A few option suggestions for empty nesters
After the children leave and parents are left alone in a house that might now seem too large and too expensive to maintain thoughts can wander in several directions forging the way ahead. Does it make sense to stay? Especially when one parent dies and the other is left to herself, what are the choices?
Parents might look to move to a senior continuing care retirement community or, alternatively, consider moving to be closer to adult children and their families or even combining families. This is where some creative planning can help to sell one house, possibly expand another by adding an “in-law suite” or combining finances to buy a home large enough for everyone. A knowledge of real estate, finances and personal preferences can result in a plan and here is one area where an experienced elder law attorney can help.
Multigenerational living, only one of many options, is likely to become more common as people live longer. Shared households can bring the added benefit of convenience and save expenses. Two households can share expenses including mortgage, property taxes, utilities, and so on.
A successful arrangement can depend on the level of flexibility that the generations have in dealing with each other and the specifics of the individual living arrangement.
One area where a joint living arrangement can be derailed is in misunderstood expectations on both sides. This is where it can help to have in writing, a family agreement, which describes what is anticipated. Joint living arrangements deal with finances, estate planning, and personal experience and convictions. Here are some successful examples our office has dealt with.
Parents and Adult Children Buying a House Together. Parents have been living in their house for most of their adult lives but the home either would need major modifications for handicapped accessibility or is located too far away from their nearest adult child to allow for regular visits. Adult child and family are open to the idea of purchasing a home together.