A growing trend among seniors is adapting their homes to their needs as they age so that they may age in place instead of downsizing to a retirement community or assisted living facility. Accessibility and fall risks are what people should focus on as they evaluate their homes – installing ramps to exterior entrances and grab bars in bathrooms, widening doors to accommodate a wheelchair and adapting flooring to decrease falls are only some of the things people should improve in their homes if they want to age in place.
Planning to Age in Place? Find a Contractor Now
By Paula Span | New York Times
“All the carpets are coming up, so they won’t be a trip hazard,” said Ernie MacNeill, walking through the split-level house in Fair Lawn, N.J., that he is remodeling for a client who struggles to walk.
Mr. MacNeill also plans to widen a bathroom door to provide better access for a wheelchair or walker.
“We’ll knock this closet back,” he added. The home’s owner, Elliot Goldberg, 71, currently has to transfer from one stair lift to another to reach his third-level bedroom and bath. Moving the second-floor closet will make space for a new lift that can turn the corner and proceed upstairs, a far safer configuration.
Mr. Goldberg, a Vietnam veteran with multiple health problems, has lived on this quiet suburban street for 30 years. His wife died four years ago, but he shares the house with their daughter and grandson. [ read entire article]
