There are so many reasons that aging in place is attractive for people and why it works so well. It’s hard to pick a single reason, or even a top three. Still, being in the same home each day is one of those reasons because it provides stability and continuity to our lives as we get older – whether we work outside the home or not.
Just waking up in the same home each day is exciting. To some people who don’t like their homes all that well, it might not seem so pleasant; however, just the opposite can be true. Knowing that we have found our forever home gives us great peace of mind and eliminates all of the stress of worrying about finding a home just a little bit better, nicer, or newer than what we have now.
That’s one of the reasons they created home improvement and decor centers as well as remodelers. It doesn’t mean that there aren’t any changes in the existing that might be made or contemplated. It just means that no physical move to a new location is on the horizon.
Knowing that this is the home we have decided works for us – with or without any tweaks that we may consider – takes away the distraction of looking at and considering other properties. We can focus on enjoying the home and the lifestyle that we have – and those who share the home with us.
Some of the other reasons why we or anyone else would want to remain in our current homes include being in a convenient location that is accessible to shopping, recreation, and roadways.
We may like the architectural design and layout of our home. It might have been brand new when we bought it so that we are the original occupants and we were able to select many of the original colors, styles, and finishes. Possibly it was just a few years old when we purchased and moved into it. It could be a historic home built decades ago. Of course, it also could be a rental.
They may be many features in our home – whether the home came that way or we have added them since moving in – that offer us real pleasure and satisfaction. They might be attractive, comfortable or convenient to use, efficient, or otherwise something that we enjoy about our homes.
If we were to move into a different home – which we aren’t even considering – we would be faced with the monumental and unenviable task of trying to move everything that we have accumulated over the years or spending hours and hours sorting through all of our stuff to pare back on what we would actually move with us to another home. This one fact alone is enough to discourage many people from even considering a move even when they possibly could benefit from a different home.
Of course, moving into another home would mean a fairly substantial financial commitment. We would need to prepare our existing home for sale or clean it out to return to the property owner in the case of a rental. There might be minor repairs required to paint, fix, or otherwise restore walls, cabinets, appliances, flooring, lighting, plumbing, landscaping, exterior buildings, and other parts of our home to an acceptable condition.
Once we were ready to move, we would need to prepare everything we own to be moved – either ourselves or by hiring a moving company. Then we would need to be ready to have items broken, lost, or misplaced. This just seems to go with a move no matter how careful we are to plan for things going well.
All things considered – including the fact that we really do like our current homes and derive much satisfaction from living in them – it’s great to know that we can relax and wake up in the same home tomorrow without giving any thought to trying to find something different and the potential stress and disruption that would mean.