[mjmahone17]

On the other hand, we’ve made it so new condos are so hard to get built that a 2 bedroom condo in a walkable neighborhood (which you likely need when you retire) is the same or more expensive than a 4 bedroom suburban home. In order to be able to downsize, you need the smaller unit to be less expensive than your current home, and in many markets right now that’s barely, if at all, the case.

[mjr00]

> a walkable neighborhood (which you likely need when you retire)

Really don't agree with this -- retiree doesn't mean "decrepit". You're still very capable of driving. My own parents recently retired to a rural area in the US, in a neighborhood with other retirees, where they're a 5 minute drive from the nearest grocery store and a 30 minute drive from the nearest "city" of ~20k people.

It's very walkable in the sense that there are sidewalks and parks, but not in the sense of living in a downtown core with public transit access to essential services.

[vanilla_nut]

I don't think it's safe to bank entirely on driving-as-transportation in old age. My grandparents and my partner's grandparents all live(d) in unwalkable places in the US, and it was hell on their families when they slowly lost the ability to drive. You somehow have to either drive them around yourself (expensive and a massive time commitment), move them in with you, or move them into a retirement community when they eventually lose the ability to drive safely around others. It's inevitable!