Financial advisors should turn to the children of elderly clients to help those clients stay in their homes.

“We’re seeing younger people in their 30s, 40s and early 50s investing in technology for their parents, skipping the digital divide and insisting on smart homes out of concern because younger generations are more tech savvy,” said Brad Hunter, chief economist with HomeAdvisor, a nationwide digital home services marketplace that maintains a network of prescreened and approved home service professionals.

A HomeAdvisor 2016 Aging in Place study, unveiled at a press conference at the Crosby Hotel in Manhattan on October 20, found that while 67 percent of homeowners 55 years old and up believe smart-home technology can help them age in place, only 19 percent have considered installing it for such purposes.

“Millennials can be helpful in helping their parents adapt,” said Hunter, who spoke on a panel along with HomeAdvisor’s housing expert Marianne Cusato, architect Matthias Hollwich, The Accessible Home author Deborah Pierce and Consumer Reports Senior Home Editor Daniel DiClerico, at the 2nd Annual Aging in Place Forum.

Some 73 percent of homeowners contacted a home service professional on their own behalf, but when a homeowner did not personally reach out to a professional, the homeowner’s daughter made the call 16 percent of the time.

“We’re finding that increasingly adult children are buying technology with their parents in mind, but interestingly enough, it’s more daughters than sons.”

As a result, financial advisors may want to consult with the adult daughters of their elderly clients when they have concerns about safety in the home.

“Inside the home, it’s not always about getting around in a wheelchair because only 1 percent of the U.S. population are in a wheelchair,” said Marianne Cusato, designer, University of Notre Dame School of Architecture professor and author of The Just Right Home. “You still need to think about whether there are trip hazards, can you get up and down the stairs with bad knees or can you operate in the kitchen if you’re experiencing arthritis in your hands. That’s where you can renovate and modify.”

Smart-home capabilities include but are not limited to wi-fi enabled door locks, sensors that track a person’s movements in the home and identify stumbles or long periods of stillness, hands-free or voice activated lighting and thermostat devices as well as kitchen appliances that can be operated remotely with a smart phone.

Resources for home modifications and renovations for aging in place include Consumer Reports, HomeAdvisor, AARP and the American Society of Interior Designers.

“Financial advisors can lead their clients to resources and help families make purchasing decisions about home renovations and modifications,” said Cusato.

Another obstacle to creating safer homes for seniors are stereotypes about “being old.”
Although 61 percent are planning to stay in their home indefinitely as they age, according to the study, 20 percent of homeowners don’t consider themselves old enough to need home renovations or modifications and 40 percent say they don’t have physical disabilities that require such renovations, according to the study.

“When asked, millennials are not all interested in housing features that are labeled 'aging in place' on the face of it, but what they are interested in, such as modern updated kitchens, low maintenance countertops and open flexible floors are all “aging in place” features that are offered to the senior demographic,” said Daniel DiClerico, senior home editor with Consumer Reports.

Waiting for an emergency to occur before making renovations and modifications can result in financial ruin. “The worst-case scenario is when a senior is hospitalized for an illness or hip fracture from a fall and they can’t come home from the hospital until renovations are completed,” Cusato said.

That’s where financial advisors can help by including home renovations in their client’s retirement income plan.

“It’s one of those budget items where when you wait until the last minute to plan, it’s often too late or expensive to accommodate,” said Cusato. “There are basic and easy features, which if implemented early on, can help in the long term.”

DiClerico recommends that advisors reconsider reverse mortgages as a source of funding to pay for upgrades.

“At Consumer Reports, we have softened our position towards reverse mortgages as a result of new regulation and better information,” DiClerico told Financial Advisor magazine. “The industry has done a good job about putting in place protections for spouses, so we believe that reverse mortgages can be an option for some people to pay for these modifications, which can be expensive.”