It was a REALLY BIG DEAL, back when it finally happened. For too many it never does. I knew when it did for me that it was the single thing which most contributed to my being seen as an adult in my parent's eyes: I owned a house! Not a mobile home, not rented an apartment, but an actual, basement and garage and everything, house. All by myself, not because I had a husband with the right kind of income, but because I did. Just me.
Of course it wasn't just me. Nothing ever is, no matter how much we revere the myth of the rugged individualist. I had help. Some from my parents, some from my ex's mother, some from a government program that paid interest on a mortgage until I got to the point where I could buy the house out of that program. But I worked for it, and I finally did it, got it built in the summer of 1991.
I've owned one ever since. I still do, though I suppose I should now describe it as "we" own a house because Arizona, like Minnesota, is a community property state, and Steve and I have made it legal. Period. It's a pretty big deal for him as well. We have a recession to thank for the second house, because we bought the current one at the very bottom of the recession from some not very impressive savings after paying off the first mortgage, and there was just enough to do it then, just as the market started turning. There even was some left over for other repairs and expenses along the way. Since I sold the MN house to my youngest son, I'm also the recipient of a modest monthly bonus to the income for some years yet.
The AZ house has now appreciated greatly. But now is also what I fear to be the top of the market for Arizona property, especially with global warming kicking the hell into Phoenix and those who stay there. It is time to leave before we lose the advantage of the nest egg, while new snowbirds still find it perfect for half the year. And with the difference in the two areas' markets, the only way to continue to live independently while moving back north is by moving back into another mobile home. No basement - in fact as few stairs as possible, with plans for a ramp in process. No garage, which means winter will be more restricting than we've either of us experienced, due to aging, especially for the last ten winters where no snow falls, no ice forms on roads, nobody needs boots, mittens, knit hats and heavy puffy jackets. Don't forget shovels! Somebody else will have to shovel the real snow!
Shopping for the perfect unit will be a challenge. At our ages, accessibility will be the key. Already we're not just looking at ramps but door widths, toilet heights, showers instead of tubs, lots of strategic grab bars, and smooth but not slippery flooring EVERYWHERE! All the ones we've looked at have carpeting in at least the living rooms. We want the modern, seamless version of linoleum. Not strips like fake wood and fake tiles, with edges to catch and curl and split, but the seamless kind. We want a third bedroom, not for any guests but for storage. We'll need a huge pantry for food so we don't have to head out shopping every few days despite weather conditions, plus a second freezer for the same reason. We'll need to stock up on things like toiletries and cleaning supplies and light bulbs and batteries, again for the same reason, and they'll have to share the limited space. We'll also need the best, the re-readable choicest selections of our books library, carefully culled but still taking up shelf space. Of course we'll have our own laundry, more sensibly arranged than before. Count on it, and with its own chair as well.
Furniture will be different in many cases. Steve will still have his lift chair and I my recliner, but our beds will be smaller, with more space around them for their smaller rooms. Kitchen chairs will be on wheels but not too slick - and we've learned to back them up to the cupboards before sitting/standing so there are no falls, if possible. Lower cabinets will have inserts on the shelves on rollers so they can pull forward to reach what's in back. Right now we can't access half our kitchen without getting down on our knees, and that just doesn't happen.
I think I've convinced Steve that our appliances will be electric, not gas, with the possible exception of the furnace. In case of winter power outages, I still want heat, and even solar won't work if the grid is totally down. Most systems feed into the grid rather than your onsite battery storage. We'll have to see about that.
I'll want raised garden beds. I miss flowers, but even more, I need something I can continue to reach without a lot of daily effort which will still have beauty year after year, where weeds can be excised completely and I can walk between them instead of trying to balance on them while bending way over without trampling anything. I want birds back in the yard at small feeders on a deck rail where I can watch them through the windows or while sitting outside on a deck screened to keep the mosquitoes away, and places to hang wind chimes. I want something I can afford to pay somebody else to mow, and while trees are great they also need to leave spaces for sun for solar panels, and a place to aim a satellite dish for TV. So if we're to have all that, and still afford to live and enjoy it, we'll have to downgrade to what too many people don't dignify with the term "house." Because there will still be monthly bills for lot rental and utilities and insurance and medical and........
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