5 Tips To Survive And Thrive When Your Parents Move In

Helping your parents downsize for a move into a nursing home or an assisted living facility requires hours of research and can be fraught with some tough choices.

But what happens if mom and dad are moving in with you? More than likely, you will be faced with the dilemma of what to do with a myriad of sentimental possessions accumulated over your mom’s and dad’s lifetime together.

Moving an aging parent into your home requires more than simply packing up mom’s clothes or dad’s golf clubs. Follow these five essential moving home tips to ensure you and your folks make the transition in harmony.

1. Prepare Your Parents in Advance

The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) recommends considering your parents’ abilities and limitations. Before moving one or both of your parents home, determine if your home accommodates someone who might need a walker or a walk-in shower?

The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) offers some examples of how other folks have incorporated accessibility features into their homes.

2. Relive Happy Childhood Memories

When time allows, take this opportunity to remember the happy moments and milestones in your lives together is a way to help them understand that some items might need to be sold or given away to charity.

3. Offer Your Parents Peace of Mind

If letting go of their belongings is too painful, or there are gifts and inheritances your parents want to leave to you and their grandchildren that there isn’t space or need for at the moment, a storage facility may prove to be a good interim solution.

Knowing that their lifetime’s worth of memories and possessions are safely stored will go a long way in lessening the stress of such a major transition.

4. Give Yourself Permission to Hire a Caregiver

Just because your parents are living in your home doesn’t mean you have to be the sole caregiver. For example, your parents may prefer to age in place. They may have the financial flexibility to hire home health aides now that they are no longer covering a mortgage or property taxes.

5. Continue to Help Your Parents Downsize

Once the initial transition is complete, it may be tempting to forget your parents had any other life than the new life they are living with you. Occasionally rotating things like home décor items and holiday decorations in and out of storage will help them to let go of things they no longer need.

Metro Self Storage is Here For You

From our family to yours,  we understand the importance of being there for one another. When it comes time to assist your parents’ move out of their home Metro Self Storage is here to help.

Use our convenient store locator to find the nearest self storage facility or call to speak with a member of our friendly, knowledgeable storage team.