Final Home

Not having neighbours probably means living pretty far out in the country, which necessitates having and being able to drive a car.

My parents made precisely that mistake, and it was a nightmare when we had to persuade first my mother and later my father that they were no longer able to drive safely.

I would try to find somewhere more or less equidistant from all your children, but much more importantly a home that will be easy to move around in, clean and heat as time goes by. No upstairs bedrooms and the only toilet downstairs, please!

If you choose a house with more than one storey, check that the stairs are broad enough for a stair-lift if later on you need one.

And look hard and long at the size of the house AND the garden before buying.

Good luck! And a happy retirement.

It can get difficult for the AC later on if you are far away from all of them, over the years I have had many friends travelling long distances at weekends trying to sort out an elderly parent. Does one of them live somewhere you might like to be, you don't have to live round the corner but perhaps the same area. Do look at all the local facilities carefully.

I do think it's very important not to be too far away from services you might need, doctors, chemists, a supermarket and good transport links should you ever have to rely on public transport.

Just bear in mind that a village with one pub, shop, on bus route etc may change in the next few years, a lot of villages are losing all these benefits sadly. Then if you can't drive, you are very isolated. I'd try and get a place on the outskirts of an attractive market town. My DH would not agree, he also likes isolated!!

Perhaps a older house or bungalow up a quiet road not over looked too much would be a happy compromise for your husband. You don't want to have to move again, so make sure everything you need is near, if you both couldn't drive at some point.

Maybe you should talk to your children and see what they have to suggest. If you have good friends near by, it would be a shame to move far from them. Lots to think about. Have some days out, have a coffee at some possible places, and see what appeals. Good luck.

I agree with the previous posters and would add you also need to think about when you don’t drive again.

No reason why you could not live on outskirts of village or town. I would make sure GP surgery, chemist, post office and supermarket not too far away though. If you have more than one child and they are scattered around the country it makes sense to be roughly equidistant from each as it could be hurtful to one if you move closer to other child. Do not rush into anything and I agree with previous poster you could go and look around a few areas. You could do one each month.

A final decision will take by you. But as a little brother, I will suggest to you that never break relation with your brother and stay and stay united always. Be careful, while changing the home for basic requirements and facilities. My prayers with you. stay happy.

It is a dilemma when you want different things Granny1sland. However, at your age I do think it's very important not to be too far away from services you might need, doctors, chemists, a supermarket and good transport links should you ever have to rely on public transport.

We too appreciate privacy but really, the house with a wraparound garden away from neighbours will need a lot of looking after. That was what we thought would be top of our list when we moved recently, but in fact a suburban detached house with character, and a downstairs that could (if needed) become a bedroom and bathroom was the one we fell in love with. Another consideration, if you can afford it, is to have a living space each, maybe. We lived separately or ages and both value a bit of alone time so bought a house with lots of downstairs rooms.

What will your hobbies be? How easy will it be to travel to visit relatives of have them come and see you? There is so much to consider and location is also very important.

You may have to compromise with your husband and if he doesn't want neighbours avoid modern estates as most houses tend to be over-looked. Take your time and have a look at a few places together so you have an idea of what works for you and what is unacceptable. Location matters and as it will be your final home, don't rush the process.

Good luck with your search and let us know what you decide to do.

We've just moved into our final home (at least I hope it is, I wouldn't want to pack up and move again.)
We were living in France, most of our family is in England, so the main thing for them is that now we're in the same country.
Even though they're in the south and we're up north, apart from one in Hull.
I would say, look round places you fancy. with good local services in case you get to the stage when you can't drive.

We moved to be nearer our daughter and then she moved!!

Why not use this time to have a few weekends away and explore possible locations?
At some time we will probably move to be nearer our DS and I while away many happy hours on Rightmove looking at various locations. If you go onto Streetview you can 'explore' the town in amazing detail.

Thank you Rubytut, we are staying put until we have to move, but the decision where will be in our minds for a while. I hate the indecision, and I like to have a plan in place but guess I’ll just have to be patient.

I think you have covered the basics about needing to be near healthcare,transport links and equal distance from all the children so its just a case of looking in that area and hopefully something will jump out and choose you. I live in a pretty quiet village but am only 3 miles from a town with all the facilities I need and the same from my daughter.