You consider all you just mentioned in conjunction with a DESIGNER /Architect/PRO KD . All on site in your home. For many people, aging in place may never entail a serious physical disability. It may entail the more common issues, of stability, arthritis, a walker. Most folks can not affored to address every possible issue. There are a zillion threads on just this topic, right here on Houzz,. But you are absolutely correct in one thing. Even a week on crutches will make a person well aware of the challenges : ) Basically, the best laid plans can fall to pieces, not all can be planned for, so I highly recommend good care of yourself on the way, and a ton of prayer. I say that as one very hands on caregiver to parents now gone for over a decade. Life can hand you a lot of lemons, not all are solved by design. Some can only be "solved" with resources of $$$$ and family. What i'd NOT recommend is burning up all the resources to stay in place, when so much can happen that can make it impossible.............just impossible. Trust me on that one, sprinkle on money and prayer. Lots of both..

[https://www.houzz.com/discussions/poll-main-requests-for-aging-in-place-dsvw-vd~5247410[(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/poll-main-requests-for-aging-in-place-dsvw-vd~5247410)

[https://www.houzz.com/magazine/what-to-look-for-in-a-house-if-you-plan-to-age-in-place-stsetivw-vs~82644128[(https://www.houzz.com/magazine/what-to-look-for-in-a-house-if-you-plan-to-age-in-place-stsetivw-vs~82644128)

my in-laws have aged in place in their manhattan apartment. they are now 89 11/12 and 93 1/2. neither have real mobility issues, they can walk across the street to go to concerts at Lincoln Center every night. an elevator whisks them down to the lobby... and the doormen and maintenance staff whistle them up taxis and change their lightbulbs.

i want to age in place just like them.

short of that, my list would be 1. the ability to get from floor to floor, not a single floor. i hate single floor living; check. my house has 3 floors and a great place to put an elevator (this i scoped out when we bought the house 9 years ago, in our mid 50s.) 2. living in a neighborhood where you can get to the library/post office/ restaurants/ hardware store & etc. in a mobility scooter; check. 3. a low curb shower. no check. this is something we have to work on. we have 2 bathrooms on the second floor of our house that could stand to be renovated, if we do it will have a low curb.

ETA i think all of this 'aging in place' in a house/ neighborhood which requires every trip anywhere to require a car is sorta shortsighted. if you cant drive you are stuck home with your roll in shower. i dont want to spend my waning years in the shower.

I happen to love one floor living we bought this house with the idea we would live here forever. We have walkout basement which if the need arises we can easilty convert to a suite and we have everything we need on the main floor. Adding grab bars is an issue we will have to deal with but hopefully by that time we will be ready to redo the bathrooms anyway. The cabinets in kitchens are always an issue but there are some pretty sleek ideas to make them accessible.Pulldown storage is just one and this is pretty sleek.

ninigret: I have always maintained that NYC is the easiest place to get old. The services available are the best as is the transportation. And everyone delivers. I loved living in NYC. Being able to call "the super" was really super! Now I live outside the city and getting small handyman jobs done is almost impossible. Change that lightbulb? I have to wait until I have lots of stuff to be done. Then maybe, I can get someone to help.

There is no "easy" place to get old :) There are just places and ways to make the inevitable, and "beats the alternative" process far more enjoyable and safer. The ass end of suburbia isn't great unless you have a ton of money or devoted family. That much is certain.

Physicality is but ONE issue of aging. Often left out is isolation, loneliness, depression. I just had a ninety year old client who went with much angst to a beautiful senior living facility we designed just to her taste. She has surprised herself. She LOVES it. Her imaginary need "for privacy" was just that. She has made a ton of friends, remains totally independent, is spry, sharp as a tack and a lot better company than many of my clients far her junior. Her calendar is busy with bridge, watching all sports, church, and yes even travel. Still enjoys a ton of family time, and she is if anything.......even more engaged in a full life than she was in the perfectly accessible and beautiful home she left behind. Her sense of safety and security has tripled as well. You have to consider the entire LIFE. Not just the body issues.

fuzzy wuzzy.... thats a great addition to my list: 4. have a relationship with a contractor and a handyman. once you have a go to person to call, things will get done without a big hassle. tree down on your house? no biggy!

our vacation home checks no boxes EXCEPT the low entry shower, and a great handyman. that house will get sold when we get 'old'.

Jan Moyer makes an excellent point about not sinking all your funds into the house and leaving yourself without other options. Some circumstances are going to make moving into a different setting the best solution. IMO, something you have to have to age in place is the willingness (and also the ability) to hire people to come help you. You also have to have access to trustworthy people you feel comfortable letting into your house. My mother-in-law was able to stay at home until she chose to go to hospice just a week before she died at age 92. She had a dear young helper, the granddaughter of one of her close friends, who started out working for her as a house cleaner and errand runner and eventually moved in with her to help her get around the house, bathe, etc. All along Mom-in-law was aware of the help she needed and willing/able to afford and supervise that help. My parents, on the other hand, gradually needed more help but were unable/unwilling to accept help or to entertain the thought of having strangers in their house. When they both very obviously needed to stop driving they were unwilling to use Uber or an elderly transport system or even to ask friends for rides. They just persisted in driving because they didn’t want to give up that control. After a few falls in the kitchen they needed to give up cooking or modify the extent of the cooking...again refusal. They eventually ended up taking the only option they considered reasonable: moving to a continuing care community run by their church. The adjustment wasn’t easy, but they are doing quite well there now. Fortunately they have the money to afford that option. So, my long winded point is...consider your personality and your access to outside help when you make aging decisions.

I’ll also add that this is something my husband and I are working in for our own future right now. I’m somewhat disabled already due to chronic illness, so I walk with a rollator walker most of the time. Our house is 22 years old and in need of some exterior work so we are planning to add a few features that will help with mobility and maintenance. Our asphalt driveway is broken and heaved because we stupidly planted trees too close to it. The trees are coming out and we’ll be getting a new concrete drive. As part of that project we’re changing the sidewalk up to the house into a gently sloping ramp disguised as a winding pathway. Our porch will be raised a bit to create a near zero-grade entry which will enable me to do things like walk out to the mailbox or get into a car in the driveway instead of through the garage. We’re also going to get a bunch of work done on the house itself...it’s time for a new roof and we’ll be getting lower maintenance windows and doors and new siding at the same time. Most of these things would need to be done if we wanted to sell and move; the accessibility features we are adding will not detract from the salability if we decide we want to retire elsewhere.

in reality there are 2 stages of 'getting old' intermingled here.... the 'i don't want to climb a step ladder any more' stage and the hunkering down 'where will my next meal come from' stage.

Wrong! There are six stages

I won't get old.

Okay I will get old, but not like OLD people are old

Okay, I am getting old........

Holy CRAP......! How in hell did I get HERE?

Holy crap, I am NOT doing all the things I swore I would always do and DOING all the things I swore I would NEVER do.....

Lets not talk about the sixth !? That's the add prayer part.

i think it is important to not affect salability, or at least be a bit willing to undo some items before sale. while there are a lot of folks looking to buy sensible houses, fewer want to buy what looks like a nursing home in training.

'older' neighbors are having a hard time selling their home that has a tub with a door in an otherwise not elder friendly house. the area is weighted to turnkey... and a 2 story house vacation house that has a master with doored tub lacks wide appeal.

A "don't": Don't build or use storage that is inaccessible without a ladder.

Ninigret, I agree. Our neighborhood is geared towards older retirees. Younger couples with kids rarely buy here, and end up moving sooner rather than later, because the age gap is so apparent. So a doomed tub would not be out of place here, but would perhaps not appeal to a younger demographic.

Honestly..... By the time you "need" a walk in tub? You'll be happy to walk into a shower with a generous seat and stylish grab bar.

Unless you literally plan to die in a house? These are not a great idea. Even senior living facilities eshew them. I wonder if they know they appear depressingly institutional. No matter what you "plan" there will be something you did not plan for. Thus we go back to $$$$$ :)

Thats life, no matter the age

Thank you for all the great comment! The wisdom of HOUZZ members is always a joy to read.

Some things I’ve discovered about our current house that would need changing, if mobility becomes a permanent concern. Door alignment. We have a kitchen door to a hallway and opposite that, a pantry with a door to the garage. The doors do not match up exactly, there’s a 6-9 inch offset. It makes maneuvering very difficult. The door to the master bedroom requires a 90 degree turn. It’s tight, but just wide enough. If I needed the wheelchair on a more permanent basis, that doorway as well would have to be moved and widened. All the other doors are wide enough. The flooring is the same throughout the house, except for the bathrooms, and those thresholds are low. If there was carpet, that would have to go. The laundry is in the master bath, but the supplies are in cabinets above. Another reconfiguration. I can’t get the wheelchair into the walk-in closet. We would have to widen the opening, and use different doors that aren’t sliders, or remove it entirely for a reach in design. The bath vanity would need to be totally reconfigured, as well as the kitchen. As someone said, $$$$$$. But the alternative of not doing anything would mean giving up so much independence, and having to pay $$$$$ for in home aides. Even if we moved to a smaller home, in a more convenient area, these changes would still have to be incorporated.

My point to all of this is that we should look at our homes structures, walls, doors, steps, and consider, if renovating, lining up openings, widening opening, having low storage, not just high cabinets, and making sure that plumbing and electrical can be adapted to lower positions if needed. Perhaps not putting in the dreaded walk in tub, but making design choices that still look good, but allow modification.

A doctor said to me when Mom went from getting an ice cream cone with me on Sunday, to hospice on the following Thursday:

"In the eighties decade, a human physiology balance on the head of a pin". I have never forgotten the statement.

Nobody has a crystal ball. The type of renovation described just above could make perfect sense for someone living with a physical disability at fifty, and in otherwise good health. There is no forever in life, and very rarely is there "forever" in a home. EVEN if that forever should come to pass and one goes out feet first from that dwelling? Some very nasty stuff and a ton of in home help, and huge loss of independence may very well precede exit. So too may the isolation I mentioned far above.

Be very wary of over investment in this type of reno. Be broad in your thinking about other places with more services, or accessible services. I wouldn't begin to describe the decade that preceded my parents relocating to senior living. They went too late is enough said. They could have enjoyed a more stress free half decade at least. All I will say is after an unbearable six months of In home help scheduling, calendars, portable potties, and rehabs and emergency room trips, and dialysis ( forever ) thrown into the mix with an eight pm start and midnight pick up ?? I cried UNCLE. The next 22 months were at least more peaceful and they came to love the senior living. Dad briefly THRIVED and looked fabulous They passed within seven weeks of another, her loss too much for him, as he planned all his adult life for Mom to be left behind. So much for planning.