“I Should Have Done It So Much Earlier.” Older Adults Moving and Recreating a Sense of Home—Case Studies from Belgium

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In Flanders, Belgium, most older people express the wish to continue aging in the dwelling they have lived in for decades. This is especially true when they had been actively involved in the building or renovation of their home—something which is quite common in the region. Flemish society strongly emphasizes homeownership, and the region’s history of building one’s own home has resulted in a culturally embedded attachment to that home and a resistance to move. This has led to the widely held belief that people who recently moved feel less at home in their new dwelling than in their former, long-term family dwelling. To investigate whether this belief can be empirically verified or not, we conducted qualitative research with recently relocated older adults across Flanders, to explore their sense of home and belonging after moving. Surprisingly, our findings indicate that most movers are quite happy with their decision. These results suggest that moving to a better-suited living environment can be a valuable sub-strategy of aging-in-place.