A new trend is emerging in senior households. Rather than living alone in suburbs and rural areas, Americans aged 65 years and older are buddying up to save on housing costs, and to improve quality of life.
More than 80 percent of Americans in this age range are living in car-dependent rural and suburban areas, and as they lose the ability to drive, they may increasingly feel isolated without being able to take themselves to doctors visits, out to run errands, or to meet up with friends, The Washington Post reports. Rooming with other seniors in walkable communities that may be too expensive when living on one's own helps save on housing costs, and offers greater proximity to entertainment, dining, health access, and more.
“In the broader population, shared living in the last decade has exploded, especially in cities where housing costs are quite high,” said Gary Painter, professor in the University of Southern California’s Sol Price School of Public Policy.
Jane Callahan-Moore was living with her daughter and granddaughter in a Chicago suburb, but she felt something missing. “While I loved being with them and seeing them every day, I found myself getting increasingly depressed because I didn’t have any contact with people my own age,” Callahan-Moore, 69, said. So, in late 2017, she made a change. Callahan-Moore became housemates with Stefanie Clark, 75, and moved into Clark’s high-rise condo in Edgewater, a lakefront neighborhood in Chicago. Now, the pair share both space and time. They cook each other meals, go out together and provide support.