Retirement housing

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can't afford to keep both

Haven't you been keeping both all these years?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks, everyone. It's actually helpful to think these through with a bunch of strangers!

I agree with the poster who said that adult children need to have a "home" to come home to. Yes, that's important to me also. If it weren't for climate change, I'd just make our beach house (which is a block from the beach but looks like a traditional house) our home. But we know we need to sell it within the next decade to avoid the mess that our island is going to become.

I'll keep looking for options. Maybe we can find a small townhouse for what our current house would sell for. It's partly those crazy expensive HOA costs that seem to be pricing us out.

If that's the case, the obvious answer is to sell the beach house and find a long-term rental at the beach.

Kind of an important piece of information, OP, to leave out if the initial post.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC itself is a swamp prone to flooding so selling beach house and moving to DC if we really had global warming makes no sense.

Reality is it moved an inch or two a year. You and your kids long dead before anything happens

Oh dear.

This whole post is nuts, but it all stems form the bolded.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DC itself is a swamp prone to flooding so selling beach house and moving to DC if we really had global warming makes no sense.

Reality is it moved an inch or two a year. You and your kids long dead before anything happens

Oh dear.

This whole post is nuts, but it all stems form the bolded.

Exactly, global warming is already happening. Coastal areas by the virtue of being at sea level will be significantly more prone to flooding. You cannot avoid damaging floods by moving an inch or two. And you will not be able to get flood insurance so you will have to pay for the flood damage every time it happens.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would wait until all the college age kids finish college, and then make a decision.

Right now, your kids will be coming back home for holidays and maybe summers, and need a place to stay. After graduation and starting work, they probably won't have time to see you very much.

Stay in your current house until they all graduate, and then move to whatever retirement location you would like. Be sure if it's not big enough to fit your kids, that there are local affordable hotels and rentals available.

This. You might also need access to health care providers not available at that island.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1 bedroom condo. Pretty soon your kids will be established adults who can get a hotel when they visit

they won't visit much. especially once they get kids. If you want kids to visit you need to host them at a house or a bigger condo, They can come to the beach house to visit and city condo would have to be used on turn by turn basis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DC itself is a swamp prone to flooding so selling beach house and moving to DC if we really had global warming makes no sense.

Reality is it moved an inch or two a year. You and your kids long dead before anything happens

Oh dear.

This whole post is nuts, but it all stems form the bolded.

Exactly, global warming is already happening. Coastal areas by the virtue of being at sea level will be significantly more prone to flooding. You cannot avoid damaging floods by moving an inch or two. And you will not be able to get flood insurance so you will have to pay for the flood damage every time it happens.

Eventually all beach front property will have to be rebuilt, I am surprised how many old wooden homes with zero flood proofing still exist in low laying beach areas. As if we never built homes on stilts or concrete buildings that are immune to hurricane winds. ITA, that at some point over the years any beach house is at risk of major damage that would be a money pit to fix or build new. But plenty of rich people will probably buy the land off your hands, I don't see land going down in value at beach front.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC itself is a swamp prone to flooding so selling beach house and moving to DC if we really had global warming makes no sense.

Reality is it moved an inch or two a year. You and your kids long dead before anything happens

What exactly would destroy DC by flooding? It's far from the ocean to experience huge surge flooding it and local rain fall would have to go on monsoon style for days. You are counting on apocalypse here. There is no comparison with low lying beach areas where hurricane risk is real every few years and where it does wipe out most of the housing that's not built to stand up to winds and flooding. It's like telling everyone in CA that their house will eventually be destroyed by an earthquake, so they must sell it asap and move where? No area is immune from natural disasters.. or unnatural.

[Anonymous]

Sounds like you don't want to give up your beach house and want to also keep your connection to DC metro. Is it important for you to live right in the middle of the city, or would you be ok somewhere near metro in a good suburb or short driving distance away from DC? Suburban condo buildings are much cheaper than in premium DC neighborhoods and many are built around metro stops and have more modern nice amenities. You may even be able to afford a TH, which would be better option if your kids need to visit or live there.

[Anonymous]

Another option is renting out your spaces when you aren't using them. You may need management company to help you out with the beach house, but most are great seasonal rentals. If you buy a condo in DC you can legally airbnb as long as it is your primary residence. There are limits on nights you can host when you aren't there, but you should make enough to cover your fees. You would be able to afford to buy a bigger condo this way. It's not for everyone, but it's a way to stretch your dollar if you cannot otherwise afford to keep 2 big expensive places. You can always downsize later when it becomes unbearable or the luster of living in 2 places wears off.

[Anonymous]

I would not count on kids moving out right after graduation these days. I see kids coming back to live with their parents especially finding employment in DC metro. Not sure what your kids study, but unless they are getting a degree with high paying skills they are likely not going to be able to afford to live on their own without spending everything they earn. They may move out and live with roomies or in garden studio apartments for a year or two, or move around for fun, but at some point they may decide they need to start saving. Having access to their rooms for free and DC robust job market would become enticing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1 bedroom condo. Pretty soon your kids will be established adults who can get a hotel when they visit

they won't visit much. especially once they get kids. If you want kids to visit you need to host them at a house or a bigger condo, They can come to the beach house to visit and city condo would have to be used on turn by turn basis.

Depends how close the beach house is to the airport. It's harder with kids to fly in, rent a car, and drive 3-4 hours to a beach condo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1 bedroom condo. Pretty soon your kids will be established adults who can get a hotel when they visit

they won't visit much. especially once they get kids. If you want kids to visit you need to host them at a house or a bigger condo, They can come to the beach house to visit and city condo would have to be used on turn by turn basis.

Depends how close the beach house is to the airport. It's harder with kids to fly in, rent a car, and drive 3-4 hours to a beach condo.

ITA. I think OP should either keep her suburban house or downsize to a TH and then rent her beach house part time to cover costs. Alternatively she can keep her suburban house and downsize beach houses to a condo in the local area if she wants to continue being a part of the community (if this option exists).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can't afford to keep both

Haven't you been keeping both all these years?

Yes, but the key word was retirement. We will go from two incomes to drawing on savings and social security.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Another option is renting out your spaces when you aren't using them. You may need management company to help you out with the beach house, but most are great seasonal rentals. If you buy a condo in DC you can legally airbnb as long as it is your primary residence. There are limits on nights you can host when you aren't there, but you should make enough to cover your fees. You would be able to afford to buy a bigger condo this way. It's not for everyone, but it's a way to stretch your dollar if you cannot otherwise afford to keep 2 big expensive places. You can always downsize later when it becomes unbearable or the luster of living in 2 places wears off.

Yes, we're thinking of renting out the DC house for 2 years and living at the beach. And then deciding between them after having really experienced living there full time.