For many families, providing adequate housing for a child with special needs can be fairly straightforward, particularly if the child remains in the primary residence with one or both parents. As the child gets older, there are considerations that need to be dealt with to ensure stability as they enter into adulthood and their aging parents might be facing issues related to their own health.
Housing is the single most important issue facing adults with special needs and requires advanced planning and action. Depending on the variety of the needs and specifics of the individual, finding and keeping adequate housing can be the most stressful situation, before money, services and even health issues. Without adequate housing, adults with special needs can suffer exponentially, especially during a booming housing market where prices and demand are high, and inventory is low.
Above all, the most important thing is that parents of an individual with special needs are planning and having these really hard conversations while everything is relatively calm. Too frequently we have this conversation when mom or dad is having a medical crisis. Then everyone is panicked but a lot of times they wait too long and choices are more limited. The longer the delay the more limited the options are, so it’s critical that families start having these necessary conversations well in advance.