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<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a nice building. \u00a0Sure, it\u2019s not as big as your house, and you\u2019d have to give up your backyard for a balcony, and there\u2019s no basement for a lifetime of accumulation of stuff, and you have to pay a monthly association fee.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s in a nice suburban \u201cdowntown\u201d area, a block away from the library, and from city hall (which hosts a number of senior activities like card games; the actual senior center is a mile away). \u00a0There\u2019s not a grocery store in walking distance, but there\u2019s a bakery, and a number of restaurants, including a breakfast place and a sub shop. \u00a0And it\u2019s a a block from a bus stop (running M \u2013 F, hourly) which goes to the aforementioned senior center and to the Y and even, if you take it to the end of the line, to the hospital. \u00a0Heck, if you\u2019re ambitious, you can walk another block to the train station, though admittedly there\u2019s not much you could do in the city if you\u2019re not up to walking.<\/p>\n

Or maybe this:<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/div>\n

This is the townhouse option at a local retirement community; there are also midrise condos connected to a central community building, which provides a fitness center, a pool, arts and crafts rooms, a wood shop, rooms for cards and other social events, a chapel, and other activities; there\u2019s also a Wellness Center staffed by nurses, a barber shop, bank, drug store, small convenience store, and two restaurants. \u00a0In this particular variation, residents buy into the community similar to \u201cco-op\u201d-type ownership, and pay a monthly fee. \u00a0There is a nursing home on the same campus, but there is no financial connection between the two (this isn\u2019t a CCRC, where you\u2019d pay a hefty entrance fee and a bigger monthly fee which covers housekeeping and a number of meals as well, and in return are guaranteed access to the on-site nursing home and the promise of continued residence even if assets are exhausted, but that\u2019s fine \u2014 it\u2019s pretty much out of the question that you\u2019d consider paying an entrance fee rather than being able to own your unit \u2014 or your \u201cshare\u201d \u2014 outright). <\/p>\n

Now, obviously, I\u2019m writing this with respect to my own family situation*, but it\u2019s a bigger issue. \u00a0I\u2019ve griped before that I thinking the efforts we spend helping the elderly stay in their homes, rather than finding them more \u201csenior-friendly\u201d homes, is better put to use in other ways. \u00a0(\u201c I\u2019m sorry, but \u201caging in place\u201d is a piece of *@!%<\/a>.\u201d)<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not just as simple as eliminating the stay-in-your-house subsidies, such as the senior freeze for property taxes or the numerous programs assisting seniors with yard work or home maintenance, or the taxi-like senior transportation assistance for suburbs without mass transit, because we\u2019re missing the infrastructure, the senior-friendly buildings for seniors to move to, that provide easy access to services. \u00a0And you know what? \u00a0I think that retirement communities are a fine option, and I don\u2019t get all high-and-mighty about the disadvantage of not being around young people, but they\u2019re either subsidized or frickin\u2019 expensive. \u00a0And even the condo above \u2014 in order to get a new spacious condo, in a desirable area, with underground parking and an in-unit washer\/dryer, that\u2019s going to cost a few coins.<\/p>\n

And this all goes back to my Plan B idea \u2014 that is, if we can\u2019t boost retirement savings now and retirement income later, then we need a set of changes which will make it more possible for retirees to live on a lower income that they\u2019re used to without severly negative impacts on their quality of life. . .<\/p>\n

(*And this is a trick question: \u00a0my folks live in the Detroit area, but these are places in suburban Chicago. \u00a0Near them, housing values for single-family homes are lower, but the cost of a newer condo with the comforts of a single-family home \u2014 underground parking, in-unit w\/d \u2014 and with a location near a \u201cdowntown\u201d of some sort, is a lot higher, and consequently, a much tougher sell.)<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"