09/03/2026
**Are Mom and Dad Safe at Home?**
I’m fortunate to still have my Mom.She’s 97, born in 1929, and still living in the home she has loved for 30 years.
She remembers British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain announcing the outbreak of the Second World War while neighbours gathered around a radio beside a coal fireplace.
Her first job, as a pre-teen, was delivering milk to homes in glass bottles—with the cream on top—accompanied by a driver, horse and buggy. It’s true!
After a fall last year that broke her wrist and cracked a couple of vertebrae, things have changed. She now uses a walker. The dining room has become her bedroom, and there’s a very comfortable recliner in the living room.
We’ve tried retirement living a couple of times, but Mom wants to stay home. So, for now, we’re doing our best to make that possible—with family, friends and some wonderful PSWs helping along the way.
This experience has also changed the way I think about real estate.
Helping families with aging parents is increasingly part of the conversations I have with clients. And often, the answer isn’t to sell the house. It’s to make the house **work better and more safely for the person living in it.**
A few relatively simple changes can make a big difference:
• Secure or remove area rugs
• Clear pathways and reduce furniture clutter
• Consider a main-floor bedroom
• Look at whether a shower could be added to a main-floor powder room
• Install grab bars where needed
• Make everyday kitchen items easier to reach
• Secure electrical cords
• Improve lighting, railings and exterior access
• Remove furniture or other items that could become safety hazards
And perhaps most importantly, **listen to Mom and Dad.**
Aging in place is about more than staying in a house. It’s about helping someone maintain their independence, dignity and connection to the place they call home.
For our family, we’re taking it one adjustment at a time.
If we can help you, please reach out. ❤️
