All old people should sell up family homes for families.

Ah - the blessed singleton. Doesn’t contribute enough to merit their own home eh?

Came home after years in the forces. Priced out of my home town. Asked about affordable housing/chance of social housing. Was told ‘isn’t it a shame you weren’t actually from the country you’ve returned from as it would be easier to justify a house for you’ or ‘you could get yourself pregnant’. Yup - tell that to a woman who lost their two babies and however many early pregnancies and was told in no uncertain terms to try again. Also - a helpful suggestion to ask my ex for help. The one who battered me to the point of death. Yup. That one. Like I really wanted to ask him.

I never asked for help again. That was years and years ago.

As said lucky old me - one of my parents needed help (both do now) and I got my room back home with them. Only now I’m not homeless so am very low priority/a problem solved. Am a carer. Work shifts full time. Still at home all these years later. Still no longer ‘a problem’.

And when I no longer have my parents to care for and can move to a cheaper area, some spark is suggesting I go and live in shared occupancy housing because my life has been so peachy as a singleton and I don’t deserve my own house?

I have the words. I daren’t bastard use them.

I live in a flat in central London - when I retire I'm going to upsize and have a house and garden.

Haha, yes, I should house share. I am in my 40s FFS. I know many people that live alone that are in their 50s and 60s. Should they also be forced to house share?

Don't be ridiculous. Why should people be penalised for being single? Forced to houseshare when they can afford to buy their own place?

I'm not even going to comment on your other absurd suggestion.

One of the problems has been the increase in the number of households as the average size of household reduces. Single people of whatever age should be banned from single occupancy living and live in shared occupancy housing and unless the resident of a bungalow has mobility problems, these should be repossessed and resold/reissued to those who do.

If Mum and Dad downsize we will be homeless. Not great just now, but we at least have a roof over our heads. And no, they're not stinking rich, just don't want to leave us out on the street. We both have jobs and cannot afford to move out

I bought this house with the intention of living here until I'm carried out in a body bag tbh. It's a bungalow for that reason - I hate moving house.

I know many amazing retired people. Most stay in their own (owned) homes proving childcare for their grandkids as their own children just can’t afford to do so, they have grandkids overnight which just wouldn’t happen in a small flat. The grandchildren play out in the garden, make the most use of the property. It isn’t like some people think, empty nest, empty home, it is often a hub for multi-generational living.

I have a lovely four bed home I worked hard for. I will probably downsize in my early seventies depending on family needs but I do love my library, garden etc a flat would not be the right fit for a long while.

The only bungalow in our village was bought by a builder, knocked down and a five bed detached built in its place, currently selling at £1.1m 😯

Downsizing is not as easy as people seem to think.

It's accurate though. For politicians, we don't matter - why pretend otherwise?

Bungalows are scarce and often cost a lot more than 4 beds

Our village is well known as a retirement hub because of the number of bungalows. The recent issue however, is that they are being bought up by young families and extended into the roofs, and out the back, as they are on big plots, which is fine for the families, but then lost to the retired, who don't want four bedroomed properties.

The families honestly, I don't mind, the issue I have is that a number of developers have recently been buying them up too, living in them for maybe a year, then splitting 2/3 bedroom bungs into 2 x 2/3 bedrooms bungs, by building out and over, and again losing the space, plot, and increasing density.

The planners always wave them through even when local residents complain of overdevelopment and loss of amenity for elderly.

So, who is more important? The young, the old, who do you prioritise, it's a circular argument.

The block was for over 55s and the only stipulation was that you couldn’t own a property. You had a year after moving in to sell your property or you had to leave

I wonder if they've extended that period given how long conveyancing is taking at the moment. SIL is trying to sell MILs house and it is taking AGES. They have a buyer - but it's been months and months. MIL died in May 2022! It is ridiculous. And there's a three bed house that a family could be living in but the lawyers are holding everything up (it's a bog standard terrace - nothing complicated about it).

There are loads of things that could be done to ease the housing shortage.

Landlords stopping refusing to let 3 bed houses to families might help.

If you own a 3 bed house, who do you actually think is going to want to live there? Yes a professional couple might want it. But by the law of averages, unless they are say 45+ they are quite likely to have kids in the future. Will you evict them?

If not, why would you refuse to let to a family at all? Saw this on a local FB group today - landlord selling up so family being made homeless and all the landlords are saying no because they have two girls aged 9 and 3.

DH grandmother moved into a retirement flat near Windsor in 2016 when she was 85 years old. Still young and sprightly, her only health issue was pernicious anaemia and until she moved to the retirement flat she kept her driving licence. DG decided that at 85 years old she didn’t want to be bothered with the up keep of her own property anymore. The block was for over 55s and the only stipulation was that you couldn’t own a property. You had a year after moving in to sell your property or you had to leave. The flat was never yours as you always rented it but you could come and go as please as long as you told them when you were going away overnight so nobody panicked. For those that want and can afford it I think it’s a good solution but ultimately the choice of moving is entirely up to individual. People should be allowed to choose if they move and not because others expect them to.

But aren't they leasehold retirement properties?

And look what happens when elderly people DO move into flats

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/calls-people-evicted-bristol-tower-8613991

the only housing that is built for older people is leasehold retirement flats

Whoever stated that is patently incorrect. There are some properties where purchase is restricted to the over 55s. However the over 55's have no obligation to buy them. The restricted market for resale is what keeps down the price together with the inflated service charge. Having said that many flats round here have a service charge of at least £3500, if not more. That buys secure parking and a gym mostly.

The only housing that is built for older people are leasehold retirement flats and they are generally a very poor financial choice. I certainly wouldn't buy one

No I wouldn't either. Definitely not a new one, anyway. They are like cars and depreciate. I think it would be a good choice for SIL as she has no kids so who cares if the estate is diminished, but they are unwise for many people and as I mentioned, I was incredibly lucky to sell my dad's as easily as I did (though got fleeced for various charges by the developer and it was about 15% less than he paid for it).

In the late 80s I had a penfriend in the GDR. Her father died, and the authorities there decided that she and her mother and sister no longer needed the flat they were in. She and her mother were moved into one flat, and her older sister had to make do with a studio flat.

I remember thinking how awful that was.

But I think there's a happy medium where we encourage people to live in properties appropriate to their needs.

It's not just about someone rattling around a house, a "family" could buy - it's also often the fact that the burden falls on the family of the rattling person - they can't cope with their four bedroom house, so they start eg demanding that family members mow the lawn, whereas if they moved to somewhere more suitable they'd cope better for longer and wouldn't eg need the lawn mowing if they didn't have one.

This really is the best way to get it across.
Well done Sidewonder 👏

Very judgemental to say it's all down to low aspirations I guess people get sick, disabled or made redundant etc. because they didn't aim high enough. I'm sure you know all the residents personally though so must be right.

What's a "family home" anyway? I get a bit fed up of "family" being used to denote some sort of specialness.

Especially the overused "hard working families". That irritates me. As if hard working individuals don't matter. Couldn't they just say "hard working people"?

No one should be forced to leave a home they own, and this isn't really an issue in my opinion.

There are plenty of people who would be happy to downsize but there simply aren't suitable properties for them to move to. Bungalows are scarce and often cost a lot more than 4 beds.

The only housing that is built for older people are leasehold retirement flats and they are generally a very poor financial choice. I certainly wouldn't buy one.

The issue faced by young and old (who want to move) is that there is a lack of suitable housing being built.

The only people I think should be penalised to the point of selling up are second home owners and people who leave investment properties sitting empty for extended periods.

DH and I bought our three bed home with a view to starting a family but it never happened for us. Should we be forced to leave it because of that?

Well I 'spout this shitty mantra' and believe social housing should be appropriate for the stage of life you are currently in, so young families should be in three bed properties with gardens and older single people should be in one bed properties as they need less space. If this means moving them out then so be it.
Any rental situation is at the discretion of the landlord, if you rent privately no one expects a lifetime tenancy.
And as for being jealous, think again! I work hard and have done for a lifetime deliberately so I didn't end up in the shitty social housing my local area has to offer. Trust me, the social housing local to me is not something most people aspire to live in, even with low rent. Most people that live there are trapped in a cycle of low aspirations, low wages (if they work) and a low standard of living. It's generational, most people that live there are related in some way and have been on the estate their whole lives, as were their parents and grandparents.
Not something I would be jealous of thanks.