Redefining Residential Real Estate: Options for Aging Americans

As more Americans age, newer, creative options have emerged for residential housing.  One option is co-owning residential real estate with a friend.  Another is renting a room in the home and sharing meals and domestic tasks.  Yet, another option is living with family, creating a “multigenerational” home.  All of these scenarios assist in sharing the cost and upkeep of residential real estate while being able to remain and age in place.

What defines an “older” individual may be dependent upon one’s perception.  We all may agree that no matter what the age of the individual, as a person ages different needs arise.  This may involve medical issues which require oversight and support, affordability issues of maintaining the home, or aging individuals who are frequent travelers, seeking a housemate to take care of their real estate property.  Regardless of the reason or issue, aging individuals are redefining residential real estate in terms of seeking alternatives.

According to an AARP study, 75% of those fifty and older want to remain in their homes as they age.  Yet, again, it is how they live in their homes that is different.  For instance, nearly one million older adults were living with unrelated housemates or roommates in 2023, which is an 8.8% increase since 2021, and more than double the number two decades ago according to Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies.

Companies have emerged that provide home share solutions, by providing homeowners with potential housemates and background checks.  About 50% of those fifty and older who share or wish to share their homes indicate that they want companionship or extra income.

Further, there are cohousing communities that offer yet another residential real estate housing option.  These co-housing communities are typically self-governing, have teams that are assigned to specific responsibilities which manage and maintain the activities and maintenance of the community.  For instance, there may be three buildings with twenty units in which people communally live and age in place.

Developers are also marketing to older Americans.  Lennar, for instance, introduced a “home within a home,” after learning more about multigenerational households in Europe and the need for such homes in the United States.  While it may be a bit stressful to communally live, building homes for multigenerational living was redefined to include flexible floor plans that enhance privacy and encourage healthy boundaries.  Some of these homes are built as two homes in one, where there is an attached private suite with a separate entrance, kitchen, living room, bedroom, bathroom, and laundry.

Existing homes can also be transformed into ADUs, or Accessory Dwelling Units which are smaller, independent residential dwelling units also known as secondary suites, accessory apartments, and granny flats.  In a 2021 blog, we discussed how ADUs affected the South Florida real estate market by providing an alternative to traditional residential housing in terms of rentals and options for seniors to stay near family as they age.

What does this all mean?

People, in general, are re-thinking where and how they wish to live.  Regardless of circumstance, there are factors as to why people do not wish to live alone for which we, as a society, continue to evolve and create new housing options.  More and more of these cohousing, multigenerational, rent-share arrangements will continue to increase not only as our population ages but also as affordability remains an issue.

Should you have any questions or need assistance with a real estate purchase or sale, our title company, Weston Title & Escrow, Inc. is able to help you and can be reached at 954-384-6168. Should you have any legal questions about a potential purchase or sale or another legal matter, our team at Oppenheim Law can be reached at 954-384-6114.