Low maintenance house - what is it to you?

[SteveinMN]

Yup, Spartana. That's the kind of design that must be considered to allow people to stay where they are (assuming they want to). The nice thing about all that adaptation is that it does not make the living quarters harder to use for more able-bodied people. Sounds like a great place. I'm not quite up to the point of thinking "adult housing" (even though I qualified as of last year), but that's the kind of place I'd like to have.

[Lainey]

I have talked to older people (age 70+) and many times it's home maintenance chores that push them into these types of senior apartments vs. any physical ailments.
After 50 some years of home maintenance it's a welcome break to know someone else is taking care of things.

[Spartana]

I have talked to older people (age 70+) and many times it's home maintenance chores that push them into these types of senior apartments vs. any physical ailments.
After 50 some years of home maintenance it's a welcome break to know someone else is taking care of things.

That was my Mom's experience - that combined with wanting to downsize for financial reasons as well. Her house was paid off but she still had to work at 70 because she didn't really have much in savings and SS wasn't enough (she had been a homemaker and then a very low income divorced single Mom for years so wasn't able to save much). So, besides all the hassle, work and major expense of dealing with a larger, older house, she chose to sell it and downsize. That freed up not only her time and workload to do things on the house, but a large amount of equity so she could retire, do some world travel, and have fun.

[RCWRTR]

And save me from "open-plan" houses, where you might as well have a fire pit in your living room. I want my kitchen out of sight. Hard floors of some kind--maybe even sealed concrete or linoleum--a bath and a half. And a view of something soothing, not the neighbor's wall--or worse, their windows.

I have had both traditional Colonial-style homes with boxy rooms and "open-plan" homes. I much prefer the latter, as I find them much easier to live in, much easier to clean and more suited to the way my partner, my daughter (who visits occasionally), my dog and I live on a daily basis. I understand that a more traditional kitchen is something some homebuyers desire, but I'm definitely not one of them. I don't like to feel sequestered from guests when entertaining due to having to preparing food in another area.

I currently have oak hardwood floors throughout my entire home and tile in laundry room and both bathrooms. I find both to be cold in winter and difficult to stand on for long periods of time. These things are likely accentuated by my preference to wear socks, but not shoes, indoors. In the home my partner and I are currently building, we will have warmer, low maintenance, resilient flooring throughout.

Having a home in a planned community, where I own my own smallish yard, with access to open space and all common areas, but have all general lawn maintenance (mowing, trimming, etc.) and snow removal on streets, sidewalks, driveways, porches, patios & decks to front, side and rear doors is a HUGE part of a low maintenance home for me.

A low maintenance house, for me, must have all solid surface countertops & backslashes, made of either quartz or granite. In the home we are currently building, I opted for the same granite (Santa Cecilia Gold) on all kitchen cabinet counters, including the kitchen island, and in all bathrooms. All sinks will be undermount sinks, as surface-mounted sinks are more difficult to clean, not to mention visually unappealing.

We opted for fiberglas AKER by MAAX jetted garden tub and shower stall in the master bathroom, a fiberglas AKER by MAAX shower stall in the guest bathroom and a fiberglas AKER by MAAX tub/shower combination in the hall bathroom, for my partner, as scrubbing tile grout is not my idea of fun or a low maintenance lifestyle.

Composite decking, such as AZEK or TimberTech are definitely the way to go, if you wish to have a deck. Pressure-treated lumber (or "PTL") decks are NOT low maintenance.

Exterior construction materials such as stone, brick, stucco, vinyl siding, vinyl or aluminum windows, vinyl or aluminum trim (soffit, badger boards, fascia, drip edge, etc.) make for lower maintenance homes. Avoid anything that needs to be painted (wooden siding, wooden trim, etc.), as much as possible.

Having big, walk-in closets, plenty of storage and a large pantry make life much easier, in my experience. Should you have quirky nooks, alcoves, etc. in a home, find ways to add additional storage space there and elsewhere throughout your home. Window seats with storage below, customized shelving in closets, pantry, mudroom/airlock spaces, basements, garages and attics go a long way to help one keep a tidy home.

Good luck in your home search, Gardnerian! If yours goes anything like ours did, you may just end up building a home instead of trying to find and renovate an existing one.