Terraced house - suitable for the elderly? How sensible are three floors?

Hello everyone, we have found a nice townhouse that is currently being built by a developer. However, we are wondering whether it even makes sense to live on three floors (living room, kitchen, guest WC on the ground floor, bathroom and bedrooms on the first floor). Is it too much to think about that in your mid-30s? :)

Yes! Adapt the house to your life circumstances, i.e. if the townhouse suits you now, then build/buy it. If in 30 years (or whenever) all the children have moved out and you are frail;), then just buy/build a new property.

You can also already buy/build an (expensive) bungalow with 200 sqm, which may still be filled with life at the moment. In old age, the rooms will then be empty but can be accessed by wheelchair.

At least that's how we have lived until now (third property at the end of our 30s ==> start with a condominium for two, semi-detached house with the first children, large/detached single-family house with three children and home office).

Yes, probably two people won't be living in 150 m² anymore anyway. Thanks for the confirmation. :)

Hello,

I wouldn’t worry about that if I were you.

We also considered having a "bench" built into our walk-in shower so that you can shower sitting down when you’re older.

In the end, though, we decided against it. We’re building it the way we want and can use it TODAY.

However, we have taken into account the later installation of a stairlift given the width of the stairs, and a possible wheelchair given the width of the doors.

These are adjustments that won’t force us to make any compromises in the next decades.

If it’s without restrictions, I think age-appropriate details are fine – but I didn’t want to have anything now that would limit my usability today just to be prepared for all eventualities in old age.

Regards,

Dirk