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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Don’t downsize to a townhouse.  Many have over 30 steps.  Not good for aging knees.[/quote]

Master suit on ground floor is a must after 60.[/quote]

You must be young! Most people in their 60s are fine with stairs. [/quote]

I'm 63 and just did a hike yesterday that is the equivalent of 60 flights of stairs.  Use it or lose it.  [/quote]

Our beloved neighbor died late last year from a fall in her home with lots of stairs. She tumbled down the stairs. She was of sound mind and very active, but in her early 80s and broke her hip. Health failed while in the hospital and died after a few weeks of convalescence.

Once you hit 80, you are one fall away from dying. Or living the rest of your life with much more restricted mobility (but might as well be dead TBH). The fall itself might not even kill you, but the injuries from the fall kick off a cascade of health issues that wreck your quality-of-life and eventually kills you. [/quote]

Okay, but that's when you're 80. You don't have to spend 30 years in a single story home just because you worry about falling down and breaking your hip in your 80s.

I think it is useful to think about retirement in stages. We intend to retire around 58, and DH and I are both in great health. We've also worked hard at our jobs and raising our kid for the last 30 years -- we want to travel, spend time together, enjoy some hobbies, and enjoy life. For us, that's a two story house in the city, in a walkable neighborhood, with some outdoor space for entertaining and travel but not a giant yard to maintain. I do think living in a home and neighborhood that encourages lots of physical activity is smart -- walking, gardening, hiking, biking, etc.

When we're mid-to-late 70s, we'll reassess and it may be time to move to a condo or even semi-assisted living at that point. Also at some point (hopefully as far away as possible, but at some point) one of us is going to pass and I think living in a two story home on your own in your 80s is a bad idea. So we probably won't do that.

But we are not going to prematurely move to the late-70s and 80s phase of retirement at 58! We want to enjoy that part, and in that part, we are not one fall away from death. We are a healthy, active couple in their 50s who want a fairly urban lifestyle and a lot of activity. So we'll make a housing choice based on those needs and not skip them just because we worry about falling down the stairs 25 years from now. That's like buying a 4 bedroom house in the burbs at 18 because you intend to get married and have kids in your 30s. It makes no sense.[/quote]

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