If you are over the age of 60 (as I am), you are no doubt familiar with the greatest example of Senior Co-Living as demonstrated in the award-winning NBC comedy series, “The Golden Girls”.  Co-living, also referred to as cohousing, addresses five of the top ten issues facing seniors in America: 

Loneliness and Social Isolation

Mental Health/Depression

Wellness

Malnutrition

Financial Security

We’ll get to that later. First, I want to share my experience as a recent widow, living in my dream home that was obviously too large for me to inhabit on my own. I had been in this house less than one year when Riff died. It was the ideal situation for us – a one-level home! He was already a hospice patient when we realized our search for the perfect house must be accelerated, and each time we considered a potential home, he would ask me if this was the place I wanted to live for the rest of my life. When we found this one, my answer was unequivocally “yes” … knowing that it certainly would be for the rest of his life.  

Of course, it was lonely coming home to that big house, usually eating something I had gotten at a drive-thru or carry out, going to bed, and watching TV until I fell asleep. That was January. In February, my oldest sister also succumbed to lung issues (Riff died of lung cancer and COPD) and died in February in Buffalo, NY.  In April, my two younger sisters from Virginia and I had plans for a trip to Colorado.  In light of events, the decision was made to cancel the cabin on a stream and meet instead in Quincy so they could visit me and our mother.

During their visit, my sister Laura (two years my junior) made a major life-changing decision to retire. Included in that decision was relocating to Quincy, where she would move in with me. For all the right reasons, and some incredible timing, we had decided that co-living was a solution for both of us!

Laura’s Story

“I remember high school prom tickets that were always sold at a discount for couples. Singles felt ostensibly shunned from this prestigious social event. This may have been our first lesson in social economy. There was seemingly no financial reason for the organizers to sell the tickets in pairs, rather than singles. However, it sent a clear message to all high school students (and their parents) that they should be couples up.

Fast forward 50 years, and many of those high school seniors are now senior citizens living alone. A few never conformed to the rules to be married or coupled forever. Many more have lost their spouse, their love, or their companions through divorce or death. Many are left with a larger than needed home full of physical and financial responsibilities, and no help in sight. Their single social security check won’t comfortably pay the monthly bills, let alone any needed repairs. They are struggling to repair the hole in the roof, while struggling with the hole in their heart.

One solution for seniors to consider is co-living. The senior prom organizers may not have had a good reason to raise the price on singles, but the senior citizen reality is another story. For me, that solution presented itself when Susan and I decided that co-living was for us!”

As for those senior issues solved by co-living:

Loneliness and Social Isolation

In 2024 more than 60% of the senior population reported feeling lonely or isolated. Findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences indicate a significantly higher risk of mortality for those who reported feeling lonely, and researchers found that loneliness can increase emotional stress, blood pressure, and the risk of heart disease while accelerating cognitive decline. Co-living gives seniors a solution to these issues.

Mental Health/Depression

A publication of Evidence-Based Health Care states that: Co-housing is a potential solution that staves off the need for more involved care for aging populations. Such a solution improves their quality of life by reducing social isolation and depressive symptoms while at the same time promoting mobility and daily life activities.

Wellness & Malnutrition

Seniors living in their own homes experience less depression and perform more of the activities of daily living on their own. Co-living has benefits beyond communal living because the co-inhabitants (whether friend or family) have more and deeper interaction than those in senior living facilities. They are involved more deeply with supporting each other with meals, medications, and daily exercise. This leads to greater opportunities for better nutrition and wellness.

Financial Insecurity

A leading factor in senior anxiety and stress, financial insecurity is affecting nearly half (49.6%) of those 60 and older. Co-living allows the partners in the living arrangement to share the expenses, the upkeep, and the updates that inevitably happen as we age in the home we love.

Laura and I are in the company of a growing number of seniors choosing this style of co-housing over moving to a senior living facility. While it now only represents 2% of the senior population, the numbers doubled between 2006 and 2016, according to a Harvard study and the website SpareRoom.com. Other platforms have emerged, such as Roomates4Boomers, Silvernest, and Senior Homeshares. Some seniors also cite their desire to improve the housing market for the younger generations. A senior living alone in a 3-bedroom house, which could fit a family of 4 or 5, seems like excessive waste.

If you are considering your options for senior living, don’t rule out asking your sister – or your best friend – to consider co-living.

Submitted by Susan Scholz

Senior Move Manager

Golden Bridges