Empty Nesters Look Toward Buying a Smaller Home

A Home Buying Article Contributed by Marcie Holley

You Would Be Surprised If You Knew the Numbers of Empty Nesters Looking Toward Buying a Smaller Home.

Buying a home is a big decision at any age, at any stage of your life. Exactly what do you mean by "Empty Nester"? It simply refers to a couple whose children are all grown and have all moved out on their own.Leaving the nest so to speak. Most couples are in their 50's, maybe their 60's by the time they reach that particular plateau in their lives. The most common size home that a young family buys is a 3 bedroom house. The styles vary from Colonial to Ranch to Raised Ranch to Bi-Level. It all depends upon what the family needs.

What Size Home Do Most Older Couples Buy When They're Buying a Home?

When they're looking into buying a smaller home, most older couples are buying a 1 bedroom home. That's all they really need, after all. Here too the chosen styles vary greatly. From a Cape Cod to a Salt Box to a Bungalow to a small Ranch.

Something else to take into consideration is the couple's age and health concerns. For example, do they need to buy a house that is a single level, a ranch or a cottage, because they have trouble walking up and down stairs?

The layout of the rooms in also very important. Some older couples need to have everything within close proximity. What I mean by that is that the rooms are all close to each other. Do they need a laundry room? Most people do, it's less expensive that taking your clothes to the laundromat.

Older couples also need to consider their financial limits. Some are still in the workforce & others are living off their pension or off their Social Security.

When They Go about Buying a Home, What Else Do Older Couples Need to Consider?

They need to look for a house that's close to the places they go often, i.e their doctor's office, the local hospital, the supermarket.

Another thing to look at is the availability of public transportation. This is for those who are Disabled or cannot drive a car any longer.

They also need to look at the surrounding neighborhood. To know if they'll get along with their neighbors. Most neighborhoods have a neighborhood watch. Most people find this a great comfort. Most have young children and would not want to see any harm come to their children, families or their neighbors.The closer the couple is to their neighbors, the better. You never know when you'll need to call on a neighbor for help.

If the couple already lives in the area, then they know what services are available to them.

If not, then their Realtor can find out all that information for them.

Another concern is how close the local police, fire department, ambulance and/or rescue squad are to their new house. That is of great importance to anyone... not just older couples.