If you’re like the majority of Americans, you want to continue living in a familiar environment throughout your maturing years.

In life, sooner or later, the house that was built for an “average” family does not work and one of the greatest concerns people have as they grow older is that they may have to leave their home. In fact an AARP survey found the number of Americans desiring to stay in their homes for the rest of their lives, to “Age in Place”, to be greater than 80%.

Aging in Place means living in your homes safely, independently and comfortably, regardless of age or ability level.

Whether for physical, geographic, or monetary reasons, much of the aging population will someday have to face this issue. This possibly means leaving behind a comfortable living space, family, a familiar community and many memories. In addition, a certain amount of control is lost when a person gives up their home. This “control” provides the bases to our feelings of dignity, quality of life and independence. One’s Home, their Haven, is a strong element in that sense of security.

As health care costs rise and stays at hospitals or even transitional care get shorter, the aging population must decide how they want to spend their hard earned dollars. According to the MetLife Market Survey of Nursing Homes & Assisted Living Costs (October 2008), the national average for a private room in a nursing home is $69,715 annually and for a private room in an assisted living center it is over $36,000. Additionally, given for example the recent budget agreement/deal reached in California this month we can expect less and less social services to be funded leaving many to have to do some serious out of the box thinking of how to stretch their assets further and if one can extend the usability and livability of their current home for a few more years then that might be the smart thing to do.

California has some of the highest nursing home and assisted living costs in the nation so careful consideration must be taken when deciding to give up your home, lose up to 20% of its value in the current real estate market, and pay for these institutions or to instead to choose to “age in place”.

Keep in mind that there is no one size fits all solutions here and seeking the advice of qualified professionals to help you navigate your choices is key. Specialists in A.D.A/ Barrier-free/ Universal design, elderly and in home care and specialty care givers focus on improving quality of life by enabling, enhancing, ensuring and maintaining independence. They will be able to help you develop affordable, effective solutions to create a safe, accessible living environment that would allow anyone, healthy, impaired or disabled to remain in their home or business.

Americans of all ages value their ability to live independently. But without a plan for aging in place, it can be hard to stay in control of your life. Most people find it hard to look that far ahead because they don’t like to think about the inevitability of aging. People often misjudge their chances of developing a debilitating health condition. The fact of the matter is that growing older is a part of life and not enough people adequately plan ahead for the eventual problems of the elderly and disabled. Too much optimism or denial can lead to poor planning.

Photo credit: Bill Barber

About the Author: Raad Ghantous is the principal of Raad Ghantous & Associates and is an expert in luxury hospitality, wellness centers, and medical & day spa developments.  He is also the owner of Your Home For A Lifetime, an A.D.A/ Barrier-free/ Universal design/Aging in place, full service design/build firm with over 15 years of experience  specializing in developing integrating elegant and seamless designs/modifications to new or existing structures.

Independence is America’s heritage and the 4^th of July is a holiday that celebrates the will, courage, spirit and the soul of our nation.  It is when we honor our “declaration” and our liberation from oppression, the establishing of independence, values and noble aspirations through the gathering of family and friends as we are bonded by our common and universal liberty!

According to the dictionary liberty is defined as:

“the quality or state of being free; the power to do as one pleases; freedom from limitation; the positive enjoyment of various rights and privileges; the power of choice! freedom!”

This last weekend was a great time for me to reflect on these words and feelings, as I was trying to compose my first contribution to this blog.  As is the case often when multiple generations come together to celebrate, I had yet another opportunity to witness the enriching benefit — not only to myself — but to the community as a whole, that the companionship, experience and wisdom of seniors brings.

Loss of Freedoms

Many seniors, however, feel like they’ve lost their liberty, freedom of choice and independence as they age, even in their own homes.  In fact many are having to consider staying in their own homes longer due to a number of factors, not the least of which is the current downturn in the economy. And yet in order to do so, modifications are needed for them to remain there in comfort and safety.

Unsurprisingly when asked, people as a whole just want to stay home and families want to stay together. In fact, according to a recent study by AARP, “83% of today’s Boomers  aged 55-64 plan to age in place.”  And yet an essential component of this trend, the use of universal design to accommodate aging in place, is still as infrequently applied in the residential arena today as it was in 1994 when I graduated from design school!

What is Universal Design?

Universal design is a philosophy to create through conscious awareness appropriate living environments, places and products that everyone can use safely and comfortably regardless of their changing needs overtime as they age.  It strives to be responsive to the needs of as many people as possible, regardless of age, mobility, gender, race, language or economic status – thus the word “universal!”

In fact, everyone can benefit from incorporating universal design into their projects. It doesn’t matter if you are young or old, able or disabled, building a new home or making changes to your existing one.

Universal Design Features

Some basic universal design features include step-free entrances, wide enough interior doorways, corridors and passage ways.  For example, a floor plan where a bedroom, kitchen, some entertainment space and at least one full bathroom with maneuvering space for a wheelchair or walker enables in-home care.  It also enables a caregiver to effectively perform their duties.

In upcoming blogs we will explore the many issues surrounding the concept of aging in place.  We’ll look at its many definitions as it applies to one’s own home, downsizing, continuing care retirement communities (CCRC), other venues for long term or transitional care.

We’ll also look at the growing trend of making our homes “visitable” or designed in such a way that it can be lived in or visited by people who have trouble with steps or who use wheelchairs or walkers.  We’ll look at the different ways universal design can create for everyone their own Independence Day!

photo credit: Raad Ghantous

About the Author: Raad Ghantous is the principal of Raad Ghantous & Associates and is an expert in luxury hospitality, wellness centers, and medical & day spa developments.  He is also the owner of Your Home For A Lifetime, an A.D.A/ Barrier-free/ Universal design/Aging in place, full service design/build firm with over 15 years of experience  specializing in developing integrating elegant and seamless designs/modifications to new or existing structures.