The 50-Year Home

My parents were born and raised in the south hills of Pittsburgh. They attended the same high school but didn’t start dating until five years after graduation when they were in a wedding party together. 

Dad was a high school teacher on the other side of town. He wanted a shorter commute, a big yard, and a garden. In the Fall of 1972, they bought a house north of the city where he would be just 10 minutes from work. 

The 1940s-built three-bedroom, two-bathroom house (2 1/2 if you count the Pittsburgh potty) with a natural stone exterior had a three-tiered three-quarter acre yard, with a sunlit hillside for gardening and a flat and spacious “lower-40” grassy area that would become a baseball diamond, seasonal badminton court, and sizable weekly mow. 

They raised a fashion merchandiser, a money blogger, a cat named Curtis, and a bunny named Betsy.

I lived in the house through high school and briefly in my late 20s — only about 20 of 50 years.

Last month, I had the privilege of helping them move to a more suitable home.

Their 50-year stay is a lesson in post-retirement housing planning.

A Redfin Gem

I now live in the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., where homes and land are expensive. 

Seeing my parent’s home of 50 years listed on Redfin reinforced my appreciation for what a wonderful place it was to grow up.

The listing agent had professional photographs taken, including drone images from the perspective of the 70-year-old white oak trees overlooking the backyard up to the house. I’d never seen it like that before. 

Having analyzed hundreds of Redfin listings over the years, I thought the house was so much more impressive looking at it from a buyer’s perspective instead of as a person who grew up there.

A property like that does not exist where I live. It would easily fetch $2 million or more if it did. In Pittsburgh, it sold in the low $300,000s.

Finally empty, it had enormous potential for the younger owners. 

The neighborhood was always first-rate. I grew up with lots of kids around, and we walked to elementary school. We had epic sled riding hills and a quiet street for sweet bike ramps.

On summer nights, we played Release, a game similar to Capture the Flag or Kick the Can. A few dozen neighborhood yards made up the game’s boundaries. Nobody ever scolded us as we hid under decks and ran through flower beds (until the infamous Roman Candle Incident).

One of the most challenging aspects of the move was leaving the people who made the neighborhood what it was. My parents were comforted by getting to know the friendly new buyers who seemed to fit right in.

Overdue

My parent’s 50-year residency was an extraordinary accomplishment. According to Redfin‘s analysis of Census data, the median homeowner tenure is about 12 years. 

Thirty-five percent of 65+-year-old homeowners have been in their homes for 33 years or more. There is no data for “homeowner kings” at the 50-year mark.
An AARP survey found that 77% of 50+ adults prefer to stay in their current homes for the long term. My parents achieved this for twenty years of retirement. 

But the house had significant issues that were not fixable, including:

• Steep driveway, treacherous in rain and snow
• No bedroom on the main level
• No bathroom on the main level
• 12 steps up, 12 steps down
• Laundry in basement
• Massive yard maintenance

My parents are relatively healthy and could handle the stairs, but they were always one fall away from needing to move. The driveway and stairs were daily hazards.

Yardwork became too exhausting about five years ago, and my Dad wasn’t comfortable paying a service to help after doing it his way for 45 years. 

Older homes have issues. In his youth, my Dad handled nearly every maintenance issue joyfully. He still had spare time to build a screened-in deck, convert an old piano to a bookshelf, and construct an exact replica doll house of the home.

But over the past few years, the post-war house became a burden. Just being there was a constant reminder of all the deferred maintenance. 

When he would have second thoughts about moving, he’d go outside and look at the yard. 

By the time they finally moved, packing was physically taxing, which amplified the emotional toll of parsing through half a century of possessions. 

I did not feel nostalgic or emotional about the move because it was long overdue. My parents are safer and much better off in the new place. 

Mom Would Have Made a Savvy Real Estate Investor

Mom left a payroll job downtown to become an exemplary full-time suburban mother.

But also she worked various hustles and side gigs over the years. 

She was a secret shopper before people knew those existed. She set up store displays for big movie releases. And when I was in 9th grade, she became a tour guide for school groups visiting east coast cities and amusement attractions. That gig lasted until about the same time my Dad retired. 

My Mom realized the unsustainability of the house a few years ago and started looking for patio-style homes in the area. 

When she found a suitable community with modern and accessible homes for senior living, she walked door-to-door and posted notes that said, “I want to buy your house. Please call me“.

Real estate investors call this driving for dollars — a technique to find good flip candidates and rentals.

Someone responded. Within days, they were negotiating a sales price and terms.

Ultimately, the first deal fell through. It was disappointing at the time. But this was in late-2019, just before the COVID-19 lockdowns, which would have complicated things. 

After the pandemic situation stabilized, my Mom was at it again. This time, she asked a friend who lived in a community to email the residents asking if anyone was considering moving soon. 

She got another hit. The sellers were eager to save money by not listing the property with an agent, and they closed amicably within six weeks. 

The Cool Stuff, and…

What good is a post about a 50-year house without sharing some cool findings buried in the basement?

Leading up to the move, kindly declining hand-me-downs became my second job. But I was eventually persuaded to bring home some unique items. 

The top item on my list was a wall decoration salvaged from a United’s Hi-Score bumper pool game I played in the basement as a kid. My Dad disassembled the clunky machine long after it was unused and unwanted by local billiard shops.

The black box is a 1930s-era Mills Vest Pocket Nickel Slot Machine — it still works but could use a restoration.

This decorative cypress tree knee was the most visually interesting item in the house, and I never saw it until a few weeks ago as it was hidden in the basement clutter. I’m told my Grandparents acquired it 70-some years ago in Florida.

My Aunt Tina styled this vintage milk can. 

…The Clutter

COVID-19 lockdowns seemed like an excellent opportunity to pre-declutter before downsizing. But despite my encouragement, my parents were unmotivated to declutter until it was time to pack and move.

Fifty years is a long time to accumulate stuff. The Baby Boomer generation placed a lot of value on collectibles, family memorabilia, and decorations. 

Jump on eBay to discover that the fancy porcelain, heart-tagged stuffies, and vintage tools are not worth what the buyers paid. 

All that clutter used to be money.

I wasn’t there for most of the packing, but they said they donated and threw out a lot of stuff, and other family members took a few significant family heirlooms. 

But many lifelong burdens survived the relocation. Dad moved all the tools he won’t need anymore, and my Mom still has at least five sets of formal dining dishes and probably 20 tablecloths.

Most of the furniture fit. The wall hangings all migrated. But now there are too many pictures and not enough walls.

Boxes with unknown contents have transformed the two-car garage into a one-car. 

That said, I was worried it would be worse. The buyers provided ample flexibility to move out, so my parents had more than a month to pack things up. They packed a few boxes every day.

Three days before the movers came, I arrived to provide some muscle and the final push and motivation to get them over the finish line.

Just About Perfect

The old house was a wonderful place to live for decades. It was sad to pack up and go. 

But the new place is nearly perfect, considering nobody gets everything they want.

The patio home is a two-bedroom, two-and-a-half bathroom built in 2004. It has a spacious main level with everything needed to live comfortably for many years. 

The second floor welcomes grandkids and accommodates a substantial Christmas decoration collection.

The previous owners lived lightly and made updates over the last few years  — a new kitchen, new carpet, and fresh paint. 

Outside, there’s a pleasant shaded patio and a small flowerbed. The HOA handles landscaping. The complex has a small community building and pool.

Most residents are in their sixties and upwards and are in a similar life situation, having moved from an older home after the kids moved on. The neighborhood ladies organize a monthly luncheon. 

The house is closer to my parent’s friends and their regular golf courses, and it’s just 12 minutes from the old neighborhood, so they can always return for graduation and block parties. 

The view isn’t as perfect and private as their previous backyard oasis. But it’s quieter. Switching the phone and cable was a major headache, as it always is. The neighborhood isn’t as vibrant as there aren’t many kids trampling petunias like the old one. 

But the house may accommodate my parents for fifteen to twenty years. It’s safe, spacious, convenient, updated, and in an excellent community. 

Conclusion

Most of us will never live in a house for 50 years.

We’ve been in ours for 12 years, and we’re comfortable. But we’re already thinking about the features we want in our next home, even though we’ll probably stay here for another 10-15 years.

My parents thought their former home would be their forever home. But they also didn’t think they’d live this long. 

Observing them go through the process highlighted the importance of long-term planning. 

Financially, they did everything right. They saved enough cash to pay for the newer house without a mortgage. The all-cash transaction gave them flexibility if the old home didn’t sell immediately.

The old home listing attracted three legitimate offers over the first weekend. The rapid offers were partly a result of low local inventory.

But also a recognition that some opportunities only come around once in a lifetime.

The lucky buyers cited gardening, carpentry, and doll house construction as hobbies. 

My Dad reviewed this article before publishing. He said, “We moved, but [address] will always be considered home”.

I take back what I said about getting emotional.