Louise, Susan, Carol and Sue inside their co-owned Port Perry home, where they have been living together for just over one year as of Feb. 28.Shay Conroy/The Globe and Mail
For the past eight years, Louise Bardswich has been living with three other women in Port Perry, Ont., sharing meals, expenses and some good conversation, often over a lightly competitive game of cards.
The women, all single in their 60s, 70s and 80s – affectionately known in their community as the Golden Girls of Port Perry (after the 1980s U.S. sitcom) – came together to age in place in their retirement years.
“For me, the original motivation was financial,” said Ms. Bardswich, one of the original co-owners and designers of the home that was custom-built for the co-living arrangement. She came up with the idea about a decade ago, after putting her mother in a retirement home and hearing about how much those costs increase annually.
“I thought, ‘holy crap,’ when I’m 80 years old I won’t be able to afford that,” Ms. Bardswich, 73, said with a laugh.
Her other motivation was having people around for safety and some company.
“The companionship has been great, especially during the pandemic years,” she said.
Ms. Bardswich and the Golden Girls of Port Perry are a part of a group of seniors redefining retirement living. Many are widowed, divorced or never married and looking for togetherness to save money, avoid isolation and have more control over how they live the last chapters of their lives. For some, it’s more appealing than a seniors’ residence.
Upon the initial purchase of the home, the household was gifted a sign titled 'The Golden Girls of Port Perry.'Shay Conroy/The Globe and Mail
Carol, Susan, Louise and Sue laugh over a game of cards, which has become a regular part of their time living together.Shay Conroy/The Globe and Mail
“It’s a way for people to maintain their independence,” said Susan Latremoille, co-founder and partner at Toronto-based Next Chapter Lifestyle Advisors, which helps people prepare for the non-financial side of retirement.
She expects senior co-living arrangements to increase in Canada in the coming years, especially as people – particularly women – live longer, healthier lives. Co-habitation can also help people stay healthy, Ms. Latremoille said, citing research showing that social isolation puts seniors at greater risk of death than obesity and physical inactivity.
“Being with other people creates a sense of camaraderie and oftentimes a shared purpose,” said Ms. Latremoille, who has also talked with some of her friends about this type of living arrangement later in life.
Co-habitation can also give seniors – and their adult children – peace of mind knowing that other people are around if they fall or get suddenly ill, Ms. Latremoille said.
To make it work financially, Ms. Latremoille recommends having a formal document outlining how to split costs such as utilities, landscaping and snow shovelling, while discretionary items such as food and entertaining would either be pooled or individually tracked. She also recommends each occupant chip in to a contingency fund to help pay for unforeseen expenses such as a roof leak or a broken furnace, especially if the occupants are co-owners of the property.
“There should also be a written understanding that if one person is no longer able to live independently, there is a process for them to be moved to a retirement or nursing home,” she said. “Similarly, when someone dies, there is provision for the estate to be settled with their part of the ownership/rent adjusted.”
Ms. Bardswich said her home was designed so each co-owner has a large bedroom and an ensuite bathroom for additional privacy. There’s a shared living space, dining room and kitchen with two dishwashers. The owners also share the cost of a cleaner and the home also has an elevator built wide enough to carry someone in a wheelchair and a caregiver, if needed.
Carol, Sue and Susan enjoy homemade cookie from Louise. Sharing a kitchen in their Port Perry home, they take turns cooking for each other throughout the week.Shay Conroy/The Globe and Mail
Sue, Susan and Louise bond over a puzzle, one of the many activities they share in their Port Perry home.Shay Conroy/The Globe and Mail
The owners also abide by a legal agreement that enables someone to sell their quarter-stake as long as the other owners approve of the new buyer. If they can’t find someone in 12 months, the other residents will buy them out.
Jackie Porter, a certified financial planner at Carte Wealth Management in Mississauga, says the co-living aging-in-place arrangement occasionally comes up with her clients.
“A lot of women, especially single ones, are looking further down the road asking themselves ‘what will my life look like when I’m older,’” said Ms. Porter, who’s also discussing the lifestyle with her friends given that she has no kids and a spouse who’s 20 years older.
“I don’t want to be alone,” she said. “Having a community of women to share my later years with is essential to my wellbeing.”
There are also financial benefits when sharing housing costs such as taxes, utilities, subscriptions and groceries.
“That’s money you can put towards an emergency fund, travel, or your hobbies,” Ms. Porter said .
Co-habitating with others hasn’t been a problem for Catherine Rutherford, who lived in an ashram in India on and off for 10 years in the 90s.
“You learn how to be a roommate, to close doors quietly and be as considerate as possible,” said Ms. Rutherford, 65, who rents a large third-floor bedroom in an older seven-bedroom home in Gatineau, Que.
Ms. Rutherford shares a bathroom with another renter, and everyone in the home shares the kitchen and living room.
“If you can do it, it really does help financially,” she says, but adds that the social engagement is also a big benefit.
“As a single person, it helps me expand as a human being,” she says. “When you live alone, you can get stuck in your ways.”
