When you’re younger, taking care of your home is something that you can usually do on your own. You might not choose to do all of it, but you can probably take care of regular tasks around your home to keep it maintained. But as you get older, it can become more difficult to complete maintenance tasks around your home. As your mobility starts to be affected by aging, it can be harder to take care of your home, from cleaning to necessary maintenance throughout the year. However, many people want to “age in place” and stay in their homes as they get older. If you’re someone who wants to continue being independent and keep your home in order, there are some ways you can stay on top of everything.
Get Help from Friends and Family
One of the things that many people do as they get older is to ask for help from friends and family. Looking after each other is important, and it’s likely that you will spend time helping out other people too. If there are things around your home that you find tough to do, someone you know might be able to help you out. Maybe the neighbor’s teenager can mow your lawn for you (for a price, of course) or your adult children might help you to do things like repaint or make repairs. These kinds of things can be helpful and don’t necessarily need to be done too often.
Find Trusted Professionals
It’s useful to have the help of family and friends as you get older. But sometimes you need someone who really knows what they’re doing to help you out at home. Hiring professionals to do jobs around your home ensures it all gets done efficiently and when you need it to happen. You can hire handyman services to help you with maintenance and remove some of your workload. A regular gardener can come to take care of your lawn or other outdoor spaces and a cleaner could help you inside your home too. You can hire people to do all kinds of things, from roof repairs to window washing.
Minimalize Your Home
Managing a lot of stuff around your home can become more difficult as you get older. Having too much clutter makes it hard to keep everything tidy. It can be harder to move around when there’s more stuff in your way. As you get older, you might want to consider making your home more minimal. Clearing out your stuff and focusing on a more minimalist way of living can make your home easier to maintain. Another good idea is to consider how to make your home easier to keep clean. For example, surfaces and furniture that are easier to wipe down and don’t stain easily can help.
Be Savvy with Utilities and Home Services
As well as getting work done around the house, you also need to manage things like your utilities and essential services. Navigating these things can start to feel a little tricky as you get older. Especially when many companies may not make it easier. Some people might also seek to take advantage of older people, making it even more difficult. One of the best ways you can make these things easier to manage is by educating yourself. Take the time to find the best deals.
Safety is important if you want to keep your home in good condition. By making your home safer, you can make it easier to maintain at the same time. For example, keeping your home well-lit with energy-saving LED light bulbs is a good idea. It will help to prevent trips and falls, and the light bulbs won’t need to be replaced often. Installing some mobility aids around your home makes it easier to get around so that you can take care of things.
Consider a Smaller Home
It might not be your first choice. But it’s a good idea to consider downsizing your home as you get older. There are several good reasons for doing this, one of them being that you have less to take care of. A smaller home can make it easier for you to get around. And you won’t have to do as much maintenance or cleaning. You can also save money because you’ll be able to lower your bills and the cost of maintaining your home.
As you get older, it can become harder to keep your home in order. But there are steps you can take to stay on top of things.