My last move - where to move to, please?

azureblue_2

Good solid information there, Lessonlearned, many thanks.

I wonder with trepidation how we will downsize from 5 bedrooms and 2 receptions to a bungalow with 1 reception, tiny kitchen and maybe 2 bedrooms. We can get a pushchair down the hall so would a wheelchair fit too? The bathroom is a problem and needs to be refurbished anyway, but the bath just fits in with whb and wc so no room for extra equipment, or enlarging due to where the windows are placed.

Ho hum, necessity is the mother of invention, and only time will tell what is for the best.

Savvy_Sue

azureblue wrote: »

We can get a pushchair down the hall so would a wheelchair fit too?

Not necessarily: wheelchairs tend to be bigger (not to mention heavier when they are occupied!) However there's a lot of variety, and you should be able to get advice and possibly borrow one to try out. It's getting round corners which can be particularly tricky!

azureblue wrote: »

The bathroom is a problem and needs to be refurbished anyway, but the bath just fits in with whb and wc so no room for extra equipment, or enlarging due to where the windows are placed.

worth considering a 'wet room', or at the least replacing the bath with a walk in shower. Or if that's not possible, adding another bathroom somewhere else? either ensuite or as a downstairs extension.

lessonlearned

Hi Azureblue

I agree downsizing is probably quite traumatic when you have to part with treasured possessions.

I've thought about how small bungalows would cope with mobility equipment - a friend lives in one and it was fine until she fell and broke her hip and femur. Now she has a number of mobility aids she does find it a bit cramped, although she's not parting with anything yet because she is determined to get better.

I think if it were me I'd look at knocking a few walls down and going for an open plan layout and perhaps widening door frames to allow space for manoevuring a wheelchair or walking frame. In a previous existence I used to sell new build houses.Some of the flats had open plan lounges/kitchen which felt very spacious. Problem is open plan living requires discipline and being very tidy - not always my strong point I must confess. And of course, there might be cooking smells to think about.

A bathroom and bedroom could also be knocked together to form some form of en-suite arrangement, problem is other people would need to go through your bedroom to get access to the bathroom. However, this problem can sometimes be overcome by having what is known as a Jack and Jill bathroom (two access doors - one from the hall and one from the bedroom - sliding doors might be better if space is tight).

Wheelchairs do come in various sizes and widths, for us it's been trial and error and I'm afraid paintwork does get bashed about a bit. We also had to resite a radiator in the hall which is quite narrow.

I've found most problems can be overcome - we just need to think things through and plan around mobility issues. In the long run, if we still can't sell up and if my husband's condition really deteriorates and his mobility gets worse, I've thought about knocking through into our integral garage and making a downstairs bedroom and bathroom. Expensive perhaps but at least he could still be here and not in a nursing home.

As other posters have said - there is an awful lot to think about and it's probably best to avoid rushing things. In our case, my husband's illness has rather forced the pace of change.

kittyscarlett

@lessonlearned - well I glad to see someone speaking up for sheltered housing ! ( seeing as the Govt/local authorities seem to be hellbent on destroying it in an insidious fashion ) Speaking as someone who works both as a sheltered scheme manager for a HA ( yes, wardens DO still exist, but that's what we are mostly called now ) AND at a control centre for a council community alarm service ( the " alarm buttons " that have been mentioned in this thread ) I do have to say I am saddened by some of the more negative comments.

Of course, there are good and bad sheltered schemes, as with any type of housing and shared living spaces. But not all of them are full of stereotype " old " people being frogmarched into communal activities etc ! Mine doesn't even have a communal room and everyone has their privacy respected and not treated by me like graying kindergarten kids. We have a huge age range of residents from 56 to 90, there is a wonderful variety of people and personalities.

True, I do not go around and give medical or domiciliary care etc, but I can arrange for those things as needed. The residents find themselves in a good standard of accomadation and a community where they have friendly /professional support & help from me as well as neighbours who understand and share the experience of the differing challenges of getting older.

I hope the OP finds somewhere decent and suitable and as for sheltered housing, make the most of it whilst you can, as if the powers that be have their way it will just all be alarm buttons ( which are great but don't solve everything ) and the odd fleeting flypast visit or call from a " floating " warden and no personal touch at all !

EdInvestor

kittyscarlett wrote: »

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I hope the OP finds somewhere decent and suitable and as for sheltered housing, make the most of it whilst you can, as if the powers that be have their way it will just all be alarm buttons ( which are great but don't solve everything ) and the odd fleeting flypast visit or call from a " floating " warden and no personal touch at all !

What's all this we hear about 'assisted living' then? Isn't that some kind of modern sheltered housing approach?Or is it a commercial arrangement just designed for the well-off?

hethmar

Have you thought of somewhere like Lime Regis, Weymouth or Sidmouth. Still in easy travel time of Wells.

What is your max price? Just browsing. Very nice flat in centre of Wells for £149k. This is nice too, in Minehead:

http://www.propertyfinder.com/cgi-bin/rsearch?a=o&id=503030295&f=20&p=10&t=res&ty=&fmt=&header=&cc=&regionid=4&tb=Somerset&c=32658454&tm=1241532787

hethmar

http://www.findaproperty.com/displayprop.aspx?edid=00&salerent=0&pid=3653076

http://www.findaproperty.com/displayprop.aspx?edid=00&salerent=0&pid=3155485

Savvy_Sue

EdInvestor wrote: »

What's all this we hear about 'assisted living' then? Isn't that some kind of modern sheltered housing approach?Or is it a commercial arrangement just designed for the well-off?

It's both ...

D_e_n_i_s_e

intresting topic . . .

just to put my two pence worth in . . . i wouldnt move

not at that age, i think relocating post 50 years of age is too big a move to make.

by that age most people have settled within an area, have family / friends and are familliar with the community they are in, they know who to trust, who to call should they need help. they are familliar with things within the area, they have a vested intrest and investment in the area allbeit an intangible one.

having to leave all that and move on to somewhere else, somewhere new, somewhere distant, make new friends, begin to understand people, trust people etc all for what may be a couple of years before you eventually cease, is it worth it?

id like to have familliar faces around me, be in a familliar setting, and be buried in a place where people who may pass by would know the person buried there!

I suppose my take is a little skewed, my family and friends are all within a mile of me!

Each to there own, but i will always try and keep my children near to where i am, so that i can watch them, then there kids grow up, right in front of me.

if they decide for the city life, and move hundreds of miles away then all the best to them.

hethmar

But the OP is moving near family - so thats a different situation really.

And at 60 she may have another quarter of a century or more to make friends! (My sister married at 60 BTW )