If we have already talked a lot about intergenerational shared accommodation, in which seniors welcome in their housing that has become too big, younger people, most often students, in order to break the loneliness while showing solidarity, there are also more and more another form of shared accommodation:that between the elders themselves. While it may seem odd to return to a form of community life reminiscent of youth and the student world of old age — after all, isn't it the purpose of life to make a home? focused on his person and his family bubble, and this all the more in our system valuing independence and individual success? — yet it has a number of advantages for those who choose it.
As we know, seniors tend to lose autonomy with the reduction of their motor and cognitive faculties. It can become complicated or even dangerous to live alone, especially after the loss of a spouse. And of course, the retirement home does not appear to everyone as an Eldorado, between life in the community and regulated by it on the one hand, and the infantilizing side on the other. Shared accommodation between seniors therefore offers a middle ground between these two extremes. We retain a certain amount of autonomy and independence, while being able to rely on the advantages of living together - and this with people who are in the same position as us, on the contrary, intergenerational colocations which can generate some friction, or at least misunderstanding, within a mismatched pair. In addition, it creates a certain sense of security for the residents, who know that they are surrounded in the event of a health problem - unity is strength.
The pangs of loneliness are avoided at the same time. This strongly affects our elders, to the point of sometimes having a severe impact on their mental well-being. As we know, the oldest are not spared from depression – quite the contrary. Although we retain a certain form of independence within the shared apartment thanks to its private areas, it is possible to organize a certain group routine, with regular dinners, outings all together - and even to gossip about roommate gossip! To break loneliness is to rebuild oneself mentally, so that the last chapters of one's life do not resemble a sordid novel. And then, it's also a bit of a throwback to a generation that, after all, sometimes experienced community life in the 60s and 70s.
The other big benefit is the reduced cost of housing—precisely what pushes broke students to move in together. A large house divided into many smaller spaces is necessarily cheaper than a small detached house. Added to this is the sharing of tasks and burdens. Even if some flatshares are high-end and expensive, they are still less expensive than individual accommodation of the same standard – or than many retirement homes! And those with a garden in rural or semi-rural areas can even collectivize its maintenance and harvests.
This innovative form of accommodation for seniors would even have societal merits. Indeed, people who are autonomous for longer are people that Social Security will have to take care of for less time! Some go further and make it a tool for revitalizing small towns and villages. After all, the elderly have a lot to give us and it is true that it is impoverishing the social fabric to park them in retirement homes and nursing homes.
The practice, which began in Germany – unsurprisingly for a country which is experiencing the demographic crisis linked to aging even more violently than France – is therefore now becoming more democratic in our regions, albeit slowly! Some candidates complain of not finding potential partners in their region, where they would probably have no difficulty with our Nordic neighbours. A cultural shift that has not quite taken hold yet. However, Thérèse Clerc, the famous activist committed to women's rights, opened in 2012, the Maison des Babayagas in Montreuil (93), a participative, self-managed habitat, reserved for women over 60 who want to age without being isolated, but independent, autonomous and united; thus 20 women occupy as many apartments of 30 to 45 m² with private bathroom and kitchen. Initiatives - all too rare - of the same kind have emerged elsewhere.
It is also difficult to organize yourself. This requires finding accommodation - because few people already have a villa ready to welcome all these happy sixties! —, to organize for the possible loan and the legal framework that surrounds it, to make the necessary adjustments, and to have the right group of people. It is therefore rather people who already know each other who opt for this option – couples of friends for example. Connection networks exist, but the practice is not yet sufficiently developed in France to always make people happy. This need for prior organization makes the creation of their own cocoon more appropriate for older people who are still in good shape, who anticipate the loss of autonomy more than they react to it. You will also have to take care of yourself with the employment of helping staff, for cleaning and possibly care. The big advantage, on the other hand, is to find yourself with loved ones, with whom you agree on the rules of common life:you remain master in your home.
For others, who would not be able to find partners or would not be able to manage this organization, there are also structures dedicated to its facilitation.
Some are relatively small networks, of just a few households, which will, for example, look for large residences in rural areas where the cost of real estate is not too high, in order to guarantee relatively low rents - sometimes just 1000€, knowing that home employees are included. At the opposite end of the spectrum are networks of hundreds of senior residences with services, which are real companies providing their residents with quasi-retirement homes in XS format, with the costs that this entails.
Within these large residences, everyone has their own room, to which are added common living spaces. Caregivers are generally present at all hours to help residents, and the collectivization of these expenses represents a definite financial advantage. Finally, the buildings are of course suitable for people with a loss of autonomy.
As you will have understood, old age is a booming business, and there is therefore a whole range of products available, according to the needs and desires of each person, as well as their budget.
Fine then, but beware, you don't jump into roommate life at 70 with as much ease and carelessness as at 20. There are still two or three details to take into account before returning to live your crazy youth. As some proponents of the practice say, some people, by dint of living alone, have simply become "unlivable". Some personalities just aren't compatible. These are constraints specific to any form of shared accommodation, but it must be said that they tend not to improve with age. In the same vein, living in a community implies certain responsibilities vis-à-vis its partners, whether it is noise, hygiene, etc. A regulation has been put in place to regulate living in a community. , but you still have to stick to it. Otherwise the atmosphere can quickly turn sour!
