Due to a variety of factors, some of which include economic uncertainty, colleges doing remote learning, and pandemic complications, many people are looking into what it means to live in a multi-generational house. A multi-generational home, sometimes known as a next-gen home, is a home designed for multiple generations to be able to live under one roof with space and accommodations to afford everyone their own privacy. This increasingly more popular living arrangement may be just the option for you! Either way, we will look into the pros and cons of this creative living solution.
What are some advantages of living in a multi-generational household?
First off, the most appealing aspect of multi-generational living for most families is the financial benefits. With more adults in the house, there will be more streams of income, lessening the financial burdens of the mortgage, utilities, and food costs. Also during times like these with pandemics and uncertain times for a lot of businesses, the fear of a person losing their income for a time becomes a little less scary when there are other streams of income coming in.
Secondly, there are more hands-on-deck to chip in with household chores. Many people are hustling a lot more to make ends meet these days, with more people in the home the chores can be divided out more efficiently and give people more time for those side hustles, or much-needed self-care time as well.
Another fantastic benefit is elder and child care solutions. Unfortunately, time does take a toll on us all. The older we get the more help we tend to need. Living in a multi-generational home we can help our elders with loving care, we wouldn’t need to outsource this critical need, and in turn, save the household a substantial cost.
Childcare costs can be financially painful as well for many of us, having other adults at home that can watch and nurture your kids can save another huge monthly cost.
Finally, another benefit of younger and older generations living together is the family time shared. Living together, your family will get to know each other a whole lot more, which will come with its own pros and cons, but one thing is for sure, the family bonding that will take place money cannot buy.
What is the key disadvantage of multi-generational homes?
The disadvantages of multi-generational houses are real as well and should be carefully considered before making such a big decision.
For parents with kids, having the grandparents with health care needs of their own can put added stress on the parents instead of lessening stress. It is a good idea to have a clear idea as to all the health care needs of the grandparents taken into account while considering either independent living or multi-generational living.
For the grandparents that may have gotten used to a quiet peaceful atmosphere, the adjustment to having constant hustle and bustle of kids running around, doing homework, and sibling bickering can take some getting used to.
Family disagreements can cause uncomfortable living. It’s important to make sure there are proper channels to have open and honest communication. If miscommunications occur without the ability to voice concerns, things can fester and make living together extremely uncomfortable.
With more people, there will be more chores. If there are not clear and well-distributed workloads, the chores can either pile up resulting in an unmanageable mess, or the chores will be unfairly piled on a few family members resulting in resentment and bad morale.
How do I find multi-generational homes?
The U.S. Census Bureau defines multi-generational families as those consisting of more than two generations living under the same roof. What that actually looks like will vary greatly depending on the needs of each family. Multi-generational Houses will definitely come in all shapes and sizes and we would love to help you find the one that fits YOUR needs!
Multi-generational or not, there is no better feeling for us at Team Lund than helping get you into the home of your dreams. We have so many free resources for you to get that process started. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us today for any questions or to start looking at homes!