My family is considering the option of home sharing for my 80 year old mom. She would like to put off moving from her 2 bedroom 2 bathroom condo to assisted living. She currently needs several hours weekly of home aide help, mostly related to difficulties with mobility and physical household tasks. Also, she's feeling more socially isolated in recent years, in terms of visits from friends and such. On paper it seems that sharing her home with another senior female would offer many benefits such as sharing expenses, companionship, and could help her stay in her home longer before moving to AL. We know there are pros and cons. We haven't broached the subject with her yet, but will shortly. In the meantime I'd like to hear of anyone's experiences with home sharing.
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She isn't the flexible college kid...she may not like a stranger changing the TV channel, making sandwiches in the kitchen, leaving lights on, etc. all those little annoyances we dealt with back in our 20s may very well be too much aggravation as a senior.
Plus, the new roomie may feel that your Mom is "hogging" all the space, and doesn't give enough privacy. There is always the risk your Mom will try to treat the roomie as an unpaid caregiver.
It could work,, but I guess the odds are not good.
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Plus she will get along best with someone her age. You'll have two women who are too old to care for themselves.