Living in portable houses doesn’t mean living it down. On the contrary, it’s about living it up in a much smaller space. Whether you’re browsing through some granny flat designs or seriously thinking of building one for your aging parents, you need to remember that living in one means surrounding them with things that matter the most to them. You won’t be missing out on the essentials as your parents will acquire plenty of granny flat benefits that offer functions and comfort of a full-size house. But there is a little extra care and more thought that needs to be poured into the decision-making process and the cost to build a granny flat.

Small decisions become bigger but more meaningful

Decisions that didn’t matter much before while building your main house will now have to be considered further for every granny flat design you come across. Also, the day-to-day stuff, like what your parents will be putting in the storage, drawer, and cupboard, would have to be well planned out and categorized as there won’t be much legroom for excess. Everything that they own, big furniture including the sofa or bed or even the bathtub, would have to be thought of and considered carefully before creating the space needed in the design to put them in the flat later on.

Careful planning and consulting can bring you closer together

The amount of time needed for the planning phase and going back and forth with your parents will create the opportunity for you to reconnect with them and discover traits about each other that you’ll never expect. The collaborative effort will bring you closer emotionally and re-establish that sense of belongingness. You’ll play a huge part in selecting items that they see and live with and understanding the things that are necessary for them—having less stuff to manage and maintain means less stress for your aging parents.

Deciding on items to keep and to leave behind might be the most challenging thing you’d have to go through together. Purging stuff that you’ve grown old with is not an easy process to undertake. But the entire transition period can also be the most fun and unforgettable experience you’ll have with them.

Save up on living costs through prioritisation

You’d find comfort in knowing that your parents will be living to a minimum based more on their actual needs and less on whims. The best possible outcome you can hope for when downsizing is long-term savings. Cost is a significant factor that you will feel immediately when living smaller. Expenses will decrease as you become more aware and considerate of the space availability. But most importantly, as the builder-owner, you won’t be tied down to the usual 30-year mortgage most families go through when financing their full-sized homes. This gives everyone more freedom to enjoy what life has to offer, plus the rare chance to be with the people who raised and nurtured you while you were young.

Accessibility and privacy for you and your parents

Whether you decide to build the granny flat attached to the main house or separate from it, both options have equal advantages in accessibility and privacy. Aging parents will love the granny flat benefits and it’s no secret that granny flats have grown more popular in recent years mainly because of these two features. When we reach a certain age, our physical and emotional needs also evolve along with the level of care and assistance required. 

By living with your parents just a few steps away, you’ll be able to respond to their changing needs more quickly. You won’t be able to put a price on accessibility. Once they start living closer to you, you’ll know that they won’t be with strangers the entire time as the years pass. They will be with family, living their own life according to their terms. With that kind of togetherness, their quality of life, and everybody else around them, including your current or future family, will improve significantly.

Preparing for the future

Taking care of our aging parents is something not all of us have given much thought. But some things happen in life that we can’t always control.  Financial situations can change, and sometimes the circumstances surrounding them are not always under our control. If you’ve reached a certain level of financial stability and independence, making the right choices for the future today can give you some measure of preparation for what’s to come.

Investing in granny flats to house your aging parents at an early age is probably the most practical decision you’ll make, not just for your future but also for your loved ones. Should your parents decide to reside elsewhere, you can always rent out the granny flat you’ve built at a reasonable price in the long run. Either way, you can’t lose on building granny flats. Visit Stunning Tiny Homes to check out the latest designs and granny flat benefits to explore luxurious living at an affordable price.