When did you move?

[Teacher Terry]

There are some pretty nice and well-suited for elderly condos around here but something I worry about that is that since a single elderly female, especially one without kids (which is what my situation will be if Huzz dies or goes permanently into skilled nursing first) is the biggest target for dishonest repair people. And since the roof over your head can be one of the expensive things to repair, a woman in that situation should probably rent where she lives. Renting of course can have its bad sides too and the apartment-kind of condos have less you're-on-your-own repair things than stand-alone condos; but I think for me, renting would be the way to go.

The building I live in is for all ages. However there’s a fair amount of seniors here. I have very little that is mine to maintain. I am only responsible for what’s between my walls. We have a central heating, AC and water boiler systems so all I have to worry about is my appliances. Renting would cost me more than double and then you have no control and might have to move when you are really old. No thanks to any of that. I have fixed up my condo really nice and only intend to leave feet first .

 

[Myrtle]

Our children are checking out some, & we hope to do tours of those on their short list. Have 3 pets & a husband having a hard time dealing with this. He loves his tools & bbq eqipment. I am ready to leave the work & cost of our house. Think maybe we waited too long.

One thing I will say for these CCRC facilities is that they are very pet friendly. It's one of the first things they mention. I guess they realize we are not leaving home without our fur family. I'm trying to figure out the timing too. I know I'm getting really old. I don't want to wait too long but I don't want to go so soon that I run out of money when I need help more. I don't really need help with routine things yet.

Maybe I should have gone for a senior condo instead of a house but I wasn't sure how I would feel about neighbors that close. Also, the HOA fees in condos are much higher than they are here in my neighborhood. The small house has been a good choice for 10 years.

About roofs, I have had that replaced and the house painted once since I lived here because of a severe hailstorm. That didn't really faze me as we have had to do that with other houses. Insurance helped with that.

I have a trusted handyman that helps me out with other things. He charges of course but I prefer to do that rather than ask family. I only ask them if I absolutely must and when I do they have helped. I do not want to be a burden. They have their lives and raising children is hard.

What's really helpful is talking this over with people of similar age and similar problems. I read every word posted here on this topic and you have all made me think of some things I had not considered. I appreciate you.

 

[officerripley]

The building I live in is for all ages. However there’s a fair amount of seniors here. I have very little that is mine to maintain. I am only responsible for what’s between my walls. We have a central heating, AC and water boiler systems so all I have to worry about is my appliances. Renting would cost me more than double and then you have no control and might have to move when you are really old. No thanks to any of that. I have fixed up my condo really nice and only intend to leave feet first .

Sounds great. The trouble with that around here is those kinds of places are eeeeeexpensive. There was 1 of the worst wildfires in Calif. history 30 min. away from here which burned down 25,000 homes; those poor people had to try moving here; and of course, prices on condos, single-family homes, and even mobiles homes just about doubled (tripled in some cases).The only thing that didn't go up right after the fire was rent prices which were sky-high already. The rents have increased just in the last year or so though. So now, just about nothing is affordable.

Another thing about renting as opposed to owning: if you ever need to try to qualify for MedicAid, it'll need to be at least 5 years (in this state anyway) since you sold/gave to a family member your house/condo/mobile before you can even apply; they call it the "lookback period."

 

[NorthernLight]

Another thing about renting as opposed to owning: if you ever need to try to qualify for MedicAid, it'll need to be at least 5 years (in this state anyway) since you sold/gave to a family member your house/condo/mobile before you can even apply; they call it the "lookback period."

I know a woman who works in social services and knows about eligibility requirements. She intends to unload all her assets by age 60.

My apartment is cheap, because I moved to a "dying" town. The nearby senior residence is slightly cheaper. One of my neighbors moved in there but moved out again; she said it was awful.

Years ago, when I was a single mother, a policeman friend warned me to stay away from subsidized housing. The waiting list was too long anyway.

I guess I'll take my chances on privately owned apartments. If I need help with housework, I can pay for it by cutting corners elsewhere. If I need personal care, oh well, that's the end of the line anyway.

Push come to shove, maybe there's a hut on a tropical beach....

 

[Teacher Terry]

Sounds great. The trouble with that around here is those kinds of places are eeeeeexpensive. There was 1 of the worst wildfires in Calif. history 30 min. away from here which burned down 25,000 homes; those poor people had to try moving here; and of course, prices on condos, single-family homes, and even mobiles homes just about doubled (tripled in some cases).The only thing that didn't go up right after the fire was rent prices which were sky-high already. The rents have increased just in the last year or so though. So now, just about nothing is affordable.

Another thing about renting as opposed to owning: if you ever need to try to qualify for MedicAid, it'll need to be at least 5 years (in this state anyway) since you sold/gave to a family member your house/condo/mobile before you can even apply; they call it the "lookback period."

I live in Reno and we are now more expensive than Sacramento. I assume you are talking about the Paradise fire. A friend of mine lost their home in the fire. We had a house to sell when we divorced so I both bought and sold in a very hot market. I consider that a wash. My condo is 44 years old so not new but I actually prefer older real estate since it’s built better.

I was a social worker so am fully aware of the Medicaid look back rules and support them. While I would like to leave my condo to my kids I consider it unethical to use Medicaid when you have assets. Also I have seen people give their assets to their kids with the understanding they would still have them only to see their kids take over the real estate and throw them out and/or keep all their money. It’s a risky game to play.