Multigenerational Housing

[L]

Sept 27, 2017 14:17:18 GMT -5 gummybear said:

I've known several people who have converted basement space (walk out) to living areas for family members. It's like an entirely separate living quarters without compromising the main house.

My parents are moving in with us so we are house shopping. This is basically the best option we've found outside of a separate guest house (which is super rare and/or only with extremely expensive houses). We currently do have a full accessory unit in our house (my kids use) but it's only has 1 bedroom and is not super nice & very urban...so we'll rent out our current house & the accessory unit separately and then live in the new house (in burbs probably).

[Dezi]

5 years ago my parents were ready to downsize. My H and I were unable to get into the market as he owns his own buisiness and there was no way that we could come up with the 40% down payment that the bank required. We had talked for years with my parents about the option of buying a house with a suite for them. They put 20% down and we pay the mortgage every month. They will always own 20% of the house and we will own the remainder once the mortgage is paid off. It's worked so well for us (everyone said it would be a nightmare) the kids love having their grandparents around as do H and I. There are so many pros to our living situation and very few cons as far as I am concerned. Their suite is pretty unique as the piece of property that we have allowed us to build the suite with 12 foot ceilings in a lot of the space which makes it feel more like it's own house instead of a suite.
I would highly recommend it to anyone that gets along well with their family.

[oregonpachey]

We are seriously considering building a mini-apartment in our house for my IL's. Long story, we have an extra secret room (discovered during our inspection) that we could use as livable space. We would have to add dormers to the back of the house and knock down a wall so it is accessible.

I would love to have my ILs close by again.

Good luck with what you decide.

[cville]

Our pool house I presume may one day be occupied by one of our parents, although I imagine that so long as both half of each couple are alive and able to live independently they will do so. I just don't think my father or my MIL will want to hack it solo.

There's no kitchenette out there because it would've made the living/bedroom space too small and required umpteen extra permits, but there's a corner where we could easily do a minifridge, microwave, and hotplate and theres already a sink outside of the bathroom.

[bugandbibs]

Well, we built 3 houses in a row for us, my mom, my sister. They range in size from 1150-1600 sq ft, single story houses (although the same street has upto a 5 bedroom, 2 story house).

Another option would to build a single story, tiny home in the back of your house. It could be separate and private, with a kitchenette and bathroom. Here, they are easy to get approved if they are under 400 sq ft and at least 5 feet from the property lines.

[halfpint]

Sept 27, 2017 16:52:51 GMT -5 redshoejune said:

www.lennar.com/nextgen

I know someone who is in the middle of having one of these built. They seem really really big, or at least the plan he picked is, but it seems pretty cool.

I like their plans - sad they aren't in our state, but they are in some markets we've considered moving to. That's another point of consideration - this is a "forever" home for us, so also thinking about whether this is where we want to stay, or if it's time to head for other pastures.

[katfco]

When I was a kid, we moved in with my grandparents and they converted their garage into an in-law suite. It worked for them, because their bedroom was right next to it, and there was a breezeway to help maintain a sense of separate living arrangements.

Now, my aunt and uncle live in the house, and my cousin and her family use it as their living room (their bedrooms are in the second floor).

So for a while? Before last year, it was a 4-generational home.

[puglife]

My parents and I bought a duplex together. The plan is to rent the other side for a few years( it's currently rented) and when my mom retires they will move in! I can't wait till they move in, we get along extremely well. But it's two separate houses.

[missbella]

When we got married , DH and I built an apartment in his parents house. He is an only child and my in laws winter in FL. It was a partially finished, walk out basement that already had a 3/4 bathroom and a kitchen sink and a few cabinets. We took over some of the unfinished side and put in a bedroom and extended the kitchen to a full kitchen. We have a shared laundry room and workspace in the remaining unfinished part. The apt is completely private and has its own entrance. They had no mortgage so we paid a small rent which covered our part of the utilities.

A few years ago, they gifted us the house and we switched so that we live upstairs and took over the house expenses and they moved to the apartment. They pay us a small rent for the months that they are here. Having kids now, I love it when they are here which is only about 4-5 months because they will watch them when I need a babysitter or need a break. For us, it has been a great arrangement.

[starlily]

Sept 27, 2017 15:15:57 GMT -5 halfpint said:

Sept 27, 2017 15:07:36 GMT -5 namasteak said:

In Dallas we call them "mother in law suites" or if it's separate from the house it's a "back house".

"Mother-in-law" is what I see more here, or guest house if it's separate (though the "guest house" homes tend to be WAY out of our price range, often associated with basically mansions). But the mother-in-law suite definition is SO broad - like, here's an en suite guest bedroom, mother-in-law suite! - where we're looking for more of a space where they essentially have their own small apartment. 

When I was growing up in San Francisco "mother-in-law units" were mostly downstairs in the garage, with their own little side door through the garage for access. All had their own bathroom and usually had a little kitchenette area out in the garage. If they weren't being used by an actual family member, most got rented out.

[cleo29]

Friends of ours had a house with an in-law suite that was really nice. It was on the rear of the house and did not take away from areas of the house, which I think is key.

[loira]

There are tons of houses around here with "granny flats". People either have their older relatives living with them (my city is a very popular retirement destination) or use the place as an income property and rent it out.

I currently live with my parents and there are a lot of advantages to it, assuming your relationship is good.

[mrsukyankee]

My MIL lives in our loft (we made it so that she has her own bathroom and lots of space up there when we did a full house renovation). We share a kitchen on the ground floor (it's very large by UK standards so even if we're both cooking/eating, there is plenty of space for us all). She's okay with walking stairs at this point. When it starts being too much for her, we'll build a side extension, with a door to the kitchen, that will have a bedroom and bathroom (with walk-in shower like she has now). We made sure when we did this past renovation that we'd be able to get planning permission for the side extension.

[mrssandro]

We are already considering it for our dream retirement home. We want to have separate area for parents to live/cook/sleep such as a mother in law suite. I don't find this strange at all. We know that our parents are aging and we think it would be better than them living alone.

[LanaLang]

Sept 27, 2017 19:09:52 GMT -5 oregonpachey said:

We are seriously considering building a mini-apartment in our house for my IL's. Long story, we have an extra secret room (discovered during our inspection) that we could use as livable space. We would have to add dormers to the back of the house and knock down a wall so it is accessible.

I would love to have my ILs close by again.

Good luck with what you decide.

I'm sorry, you found a secret room in your house? You're going to need to make this short story a little longer please.

[bellalynn]

We build a full in-law apt onto our house. It's completely separate from our house and is about 1,200 sq feet. Full, private entry way, living room full kitchen, bath bedroom and sitting room. We have it set up that we could easier rent it out down the road if we wanted to.

My MIL lives there and I adore her, so it works out really well. Of course there are little annoyances on both sides, but nothing that would ever want us to change the arrangement. We do financially support her so that's a bit different. Just also bear in mind that when your parents have visitors, it basically means you most likely have to be social as well. That can be good and bad.

We added this wing onto our house, so there are many legalities that we had to work through with our town, as they are pretty strict on the rules (here they are called accessory apartments).

One word to the wise for you - just be sure your husband is completely on board. If there are any issues, as much as you love your parent, "siding" with them can come off to him as "ganging up."

As a whole, it's been such a wonderful experience. I love MIL like my own mom and it's really made us so close. It's also good not to have to worry about her like we would if she were living somewhere else.

Good luck. I hope it work out.

[iheartbanjos]

Sept 27, 2017 14:15:38 GMT -5 halfpint said:

Sept 27, 2017 14:14:09 GMT -5 ssmjlm said:

No experience here, but friends bought a house with an IL suite and I felt that it made the whole first floor very small and cramped feeling. So I would be cautious about that when you're looking at plans.

Thank you - I wish I could find some already built to visit. The plans I've seen look well laid out, but it's so hard to tell until you're in the space. 

They are pretty common in my neighborhood. We rented one while we were finishing our build. We used the bedroom as an office and guest room, and the living/kitchenette was our play room/bar, lol. We had the narrow floor plan (the smallest one) but the bigger ones were great. Here is a link to the builder to get an idea.

www.lennar.com/nextgen?gclid=CMKpqtO7ytYCFdq1wAodY3gKlQ&gclsrc=aw.ds

[oregonpachey]

Sept 29, 2017 0:47:34 GMT -5 LanaLang said:

Sept 27, 2017 19:09:52 GMT -5 oregonpachey said:

We are seriously considering building a mini-apartment in our house for my IL's. Long story, we have an extra secret room (discovered during our inspection) that we could use as livable space. We would have to add dormers to the back of the house and knock down a wall so it is accessible.

I would love to have my ILs close by again.

Good luck with what you decide.

I'm sorry, you found a secret room in your house? You're going to need to make this short story a little longer please.

It isn't really that interesting.  When we had our home inspection, the inspector said "Did you know about the room behind the bathroom?".  We were clueless so she showed us.  So our living room has a high vaulted ceiling and at some point it wasn't vaulted and there was a room above our kitchen.  You had to access it via a spiral staircase in the living room.  Sometime in the 80's, they closed off that room so you could no longer access it.

To get to it now you have to climb through a closet and over duct work.  It's all finished, complete with carpet.  

[minty]

A friend had a small guest house built in their back yard for her parents. Friend moved a few months ago, and seem to be having trouble selling the old property- it’s definitely a niche feature. They describe it as an “artist’s studio” in their listing.

[halfpint]

Sept 29, 2017 10:38:43 GMT -5 minty said:

A friend had a small guest house built in their back yard for her parents. Friend moved a few months ago, and seem to be having trouble selling the old property- it’s definitely a niche feature. They describe it as an “artist’s studio” in their listing.

I do worry about this with a totally separate structure. I'm not as worried about the resale, as I feel like we'll be in this home for at least 20+ years, but it's a distant thought for sure. 

Even if the unthinkable happens and both my parents pass sooner than expected, I feel like we'll want a nice space for guests, or even a college student/new graduate/visiting adult children and grandkids for a while before we're ready to downsize ourselves. 

[Aloe Vera]

I have a friend and a cousin who own large houses with an IL suite in the basement: very large space (2,000 sqf) with a separate entrance with 2 bedrooms at least, full kitchen, living space and bathroom(s).
It works for them because they live in huge, new houses that were built with this scenario in mind.

[devonpow]

My parents live in Florida and when they bought their house they renovated the detached garage to be a little guest house/home for my stepmom's dad. It has a living room, bedroom, small kitchen, and bathroom. It was really a perfect situation - he had his own home but was in their backyard. He has passed away and now it's just used as a guest house for them.

[sunflower17]

Lurker here. My in laws had an extension built onto the first level of their home for MILs parents. It is one level and pretty much a one bedroom, one bathroom apartment with a large kitchen, a living room and laundry room. It has its own entrance as well as an interior door Connecting it to the main house between their living rooms. It works for them.

[NewGirlNic]

My parents just built an inlaw apartment on to their house for my grandmother. It's working out well. They converted the old garage and built it out a bit in the backyard. Then added a new garage on the front. They share the entrance off the (new) garage, into a mudroom (share laundry). My grandma's apartment is small- kitchen with a tiny 2 person table, living room, 1 bedroom and bath. This summer they added a nice patio off the living room for her.
My mom jokes that one day my H and I can live in the main house and her an my dad can live in the inlaw apartment... but they'd probably need to add on a bit of space. It's tiny for 2 people.

[firedancer10288]

I'm late to this and didn't read all the replies.  

My ILs built a house 10 years ago for my MIL's parents to move in with them.  They had 2 master suites built (one on each end of the house) with shared living space in the middle.  It didn't work out well.  Her parents have since moved out and they ended up buying them a condo.

They will be the first to tell you it can work, but you need separate kitchens!

[halfpint]

Sept 29, 2017 15:37:29 GMT -5 firedancer10288 said:

I'm late to this and didn't read all the replies.  

My ILs built a house 10 years ago for my MIL's parents to move in with them.  They had 2 master suites built (one on each end of the house) with shared living space in the middle.  It didn't work out well.  Her parents have since moved out and they ended up buying them a condo.

They will be the first to tell you it can work, but you need separate kitchens!

Yes, we want separate kitchens! Even if it's a kitchenette for them. I am pretty sure they need their own laundry, too - we already have ours going every day, I can't imagine adding two more adults to the mix. 

[mrs.jacinthe]

My ILs have one (even though the mother in question has passed.). Theirs is laid out as kind of a duplex. It's a 3/2 on his parents' side and a 1/1 on the Grandma's side. Both sides have kitchens and living areas. In between is the front door, entry hall, and laundry room.

It was a pre-fab or modular home, I think. It worked well for them, and it would be rentable if they were interested in doing so.

I'd look for floor plans that are described to include an in-law suite, guest quarters, or duplex living.

[MrsDarcy]

We would like to do this in a couple years for my mom to live with us. This kind of setup, however, is not that common in our area for the average house. Basements are not common either. I haven’t gotten as far as checking city codes, but I’d be open to a granny pod type guest house in the back yard. We’ll just have to see what’s available in a couple years and hope for the best. When browsing, I usually search mother-in-law suite, guest house, walkout basement. We would definitely like for her to have her own completely separate space - including a kitchenette. I’m fine with shared laundry.