When the house becomes too big for seniors

No sooner are the children out of the house than decisions have to be made: Move out or rebuild? Rent or sell? Retirement home or nursing home?

150 square metres of living space on 2 floors, 6 rooms, kitchen, 2 bathrooms, 600 square metres of garden, garage: It sounds like an offer from an estate agent, but it is actually the living situation of many senior citizens. For years, even the last room in the house was given up in order to leave as much space as possible for the children. But when the children move out, the parents are suddenly faced with a whole new question: How can the abandoned rooms be put to good use?

Now is the right time to realise the dream of a study or dressing room or simply a personal retreat. With advancing age, one's own property can become a burden. Many seniors, as a couple or single, occupy a house with too large a garden and are often overwhelmed by the situation. The personal life situation has changed a lot in recent years and it is time to adapt the living situation.
This can be, for example, the partial rental of a granny flat or individual rooms, but also moving out of the house.

It is not difficult for a family with children to fill a house with life. Not only acoustically, but also spatially, the offspring like to spread out and the parents put their own needs behind them. Mentally, they may sometimes already be looking forward to the children moving out, but when the time actually comes, they miss the hustle and bustle. The sudden emptiness puts such a psychological and organisational strain on some parents that the term "empty nest syndrome" was coined specifically for it. It describes the feelings of parents when or shortly after a child moves out: Abandonment, sadness, emptiness. In severe cases, empty nest syndrome can lead to depression or addiction.

But instead of mourning the busy times, looking ahead opens up the most tantalising possibilities: Always wanted a studio? Convert that beautiful bright attic room to your liking! The dream of a dressing room is easy to realise, after all, the former children's room is right next to the bedroom. There is now also room for a study and it can be moved up from the basement. With simple conversion and renovation measures, you can adapt your property to the changed circumstances, assign the rooms a new use and enjoy the generous space.

Learn more about the possibilities here

Every second senior household lives in its own four walls, 80 percent of them in detached houses or semi-detached houses. Houses that originally housed a whole family are now only occupied by one or two people. So it is not surprising that seniors have an above-average amount of living space thanks to their own property. With 60 square metres of living space per person, they live far more generously than young people, who are entitled to an average of 40 square metres per person. And although a good 2/3 of the senior citizens consider their property to be too large, 76 percent of the owners surveyed cannot imagine moving out of their home. After all, the familiar surroundings are full of memories of times gone by and are only reluctantly given up.

At the same time, however, assets are often tied up in the property and are not available for urgently needed renovation and conversion measures. Outdated heating technology and poorly insulated windows drive up ancillary costs, and the house and garden can only be kept in good shape with paid help. In the long run, a change is necessary.

Children and teenagers in the house bring unrest and hustle and bustle, they fill the house with rumbling and music. Sometimes perhaps too much, but at the latest when the offspring have moved out, you wish for a bit of everything back, because the big house only brings emptiness and silence. Clearing the field is not an option for you, because you are physically fit and want to grow old in your own four walls. Various possibilities help you to fill the empty rooms with life again.

One way to sensibly reduce the living space is to partition off a separate flat. This can be a whole floor or just a room with a bathroom and kitchenette. It is important that each flat has a bathroom and a kitchen or kitchenette and its own access. Houses that have two full floors can often be divided into two flats, each on a separate floor, with only a few conversion measures. In the case of family houses and bungalows, it is possible to create a granny flat.

Another possibility is to rent out rooms, whose occupants are allowed to share the bathroom and, depending on the agreement, the kitchen of your house. A tenancy for several weeks is concluded, for example, with students or interns, or by the day with visitors to your city or region. Various organisations have specialised in finding guests.

Those who are dependent on help in the house or garden will appreciate the model of "living against help". In these shared flats with reduced rent, mainly students take on tasks in the household or garden and, depending on the extent of the work, pay less or no rent or are even paid extra. Many student unions mediate in this model and advise both contracting parties.

Those who are dependent on nursing and medical services can make their granny flat available to a 24-hour caregiver.

You can find out more about the possibilities of partial tenancy here.

You've thought about it for a long time, but now the decision has been made: You're moving out. You're going to leave this collection of memories behind and move somewhere else. But what are you going to do with the house, sell it or rent it out? Both have their advantages and disadvantages, which should be carefully weighed up in discussions with your children and your house bank. In both cases, it is important to start planning early so that you can find a suitable place to live without time pressure.

And there are many possibilities, which are, however, largely limited by your state of health. If you are not dependent on nursing or medical services, you are spoilt for choice: a chic city flat near your children, a senior living community, assisted living or a senior residence with additional services. When the household can no longer be managed alone and comprehensive care is required, a move to a nursing home is usually necessary.

Find out more about selling a house, renting it out and your options for a new home here.