You live in a beautiful apartment or an elegant townhouse but, all alone, this accommodation often seems far too empty.
In order to help a young person and break your isolation, what if you tried the experience of intergenerational roommates?
Based on sharing and mutual aid between generations, this type of shared habitat has been on the rise for several years.
This form of cohabitation indeed has advantages, since it makes it possible to simplify access to housing, reduce loneliness and financial insecurity and strengthen the bond between generations.
How it works ?
The principle is simple: a senior makes a room or part of their accommodation available to a young person under 30 (student or young worker) at a moderate cost, or even free of charge.
In exchange, the young person undertakes to render services or simply to offer a regular presence to his landlord.
According to the law, the room must measure at least 9 m2 and the young person staying must be able to access common areas such as kitchen and bathroom.
In addition, if he can take care of tasks such as cleaning, shopping, small DIY jobs or preparing meals, he is in no way considered a home help or a caregiver and is not can therefore not take care of the medical care or the toilet of its host, these must be entrusted to a professional.
In order for this cohabitation between generations to work, it is of course necessary to show respect, tolerance and understanding, but also to communicate well from the start.
If this is not mandatory, many senior-young duos also choose to sign a solidarity intergenerational cohabitation contract, or CIS, in order to benefit from a legal framework.
A double pecuniary advantage
If it is primarily based on an exchange of good practices, this type of co-location allows each party to save money.
For seniors, it is an interesting way to supplement their income.
Likewise, intergenerational shared accommodation allows students and young workers to find low-cost housing, especially in large cities suffering from a housing crisis and where prices are prohibitive.
The rent for such a shared apartment is therefore extremely competitive, amounting to 214 euros on average in the Cohabilis network.
In addition, young and old can claim personalized housing assistance administered by the Family Allowance Fund.
Also note that if the elderly person was already receiving APL, the amount that they will receive from their young tenant will not be taken into account in the calculation of their resources and will therefore not be able to reduce their aid.
A friendly habitat
Almost 5 million seniors suffer from loneliness (i.e. one in three elderly people), according to the annual report on loneliness from the Fondation de France.
And 18-19 year-olds, 13% of whom are now also victims of this scourge.
Bringing generations closer together and strengthening their bond therefore seems an interesting solution.
Where the young person brings their energy and dynamism to the home, the elderly provide them with a pleasant living environment, calm and conducive to studies.
In addition to a reassuring presence, the two roommates can also share many activities such as cooking lessons, sports, cultural visits, outings, help with revisions, gardening, games, or simply eating meals together.
Each is thus enriched by contact with the other.
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At what address ?
If you're interested in the concept and want to find a young roommate, you can post a classified ad or go through word of mouth. However, in order to benefit from a more reassuring framework, most applicants for this type of accommodation prefer to opt for the many private or public organizations that bring together retirees and students.
The Cohabilis.org site, a national network dedicated to interdependent intergenerational cohabitation and shared housing, brings together around forty associations present in metropolitan France and overseas, such as Maison en ville or Tiss'Ages.
Most of these associations ask for an annual subscription, the amount of which amounts to between 100 and 300 euros on average, but in return they take charge of selecting serious profiles, helping to draft the contract and can also act as mediator in case of difficulties.
Economy
Rental
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Senior
Youth