A multigenerational move gave him his last months

multigenerational living – Justin Murphy and his wife moved to Orlando so his aging parents could live with them. Years before a brokerage dedicated to multigenerational homeownership, Murphy built a home setup designed for proximity and care—an arrangement that helped his father stay c

In 2022. Justin Murphy and his wife. Nicki. were living in Babcock Ranch. just outside of Fort Myers. Florida. with their daughters. His parents lived right down the road. Back then. his dad had entered his 80s but was still “pretty capable. ” until time started changing what he could do—heavy lifting. tasks like changing AC filters.

Murphy couldn’t watch him struggle with those jobs from a distance. He’d go over at least every couple of days. because his dad couldn’t get up on the ladder anymore. At the same time, Murphy and Nicki were planning a move to Orlando. They wanted “a little more excitement. culture. and diversity. ” but the idea of living three hours away from his parents brought him anxiety.

So he asked his wife about another option: getting their parents to move in.

“Every family situation is unique, and not every spouse would be comfortable living with their in-laws,” Murphy said. But in their case, the relationship with his parents was strong enough that Nicki was on board. They sat down with his parents and asked a simple question: “Why don’t we all live under one roof?”.

The decision didn’t start as a reaction to an emergency. In 2023, when the family moved to Orlando, Murphy described it as preemptive. There weren’t major health issues that forced the move—at least not yet. It was about comfort and proximity. But around the time they relocated, his father’s health began to decline for real.

The house was built for closeness, not chaos. Murphy’s Orlando home functioned like an asymmetrical duplex. The first floor had an in-law suite with its own bedroom. bathroom. kitchenette. living space. private entrance. and washer and dryer. The rest of the first floor held the main living room and kitchen.

Upstairs, there were four bedrooms and two bathrooms for Murphy, Nicki, and their two daughters, plus a loft and Murphy’s own little living room.

They weren’t “on top of each other,” but they were close enough to help. Murphy says his dad could see the granddaughters every day and be part of home life—home-cooked meals, mostly from Murphy and Nicki. His father was also supported by a “really good at-home hospice team” during the final months.

The decline itself happened slowly, which mattered. Murphy says the gradual nature of it gave the family time to be honest with their kids—who were around 8 and 9—about what was happening. They told them: “Everybody passes away. Papa is almost 84, and he lived a good, long life.”

Murphy believes the combination of family presence and in-home care gave his father more time than he might have had if he’d been alone or in a nursing home. His father still had reasons to get up, try to be happy every day, and stay connected to the life unfolding around him.

After about a year and a half of living together, his father passed away. Murphy looks back and says it likely was “probably the best last year and a half he could have had.” When his father took his last breath, the family was all there.

After the funeral, the arrangement didn’t fully end—it changed.

Murphy says his mother still lives with them. After his dad passed, the family moved back from Orlando to Babcock Ranch with his mom and their two dogs. They now live in a five-bedroom house about 3,000 square feet. Murphy calls this setup less “ideal” than the Orlando plan, but says it “works.”

The choice is emotional and logistical, but it’s also financial—one of the main reasons multigenerational living spreads beyond individual stories.

By sharing a home, Murphy says they split costs including groceries, internet, utilities, property taxes, and homeowners’ insurance. When everything is combined. he says they save “thousands of dollars a year.” Still. he emphasizes that the biggest benefit is what his kids get—more time with their grandma.

In the United States. Murphy describes it as common for kids to see grandparents only once or twice a year—maybe at Christmas and once over the summer. His daughters see their grandma far more often. They spend time together watching TV, playing Uno or other card games, and having dinner. Murphy says his mom still takes them out for lunch on weekends, just for “Nana-and-granddaughter time.”.

He doesn’t present it as a one-size-fits-all solution. When he talks about why families choose this arrangement, it often comes back to affordability.

Murphy has been in the real-estate industry since 2019. This year. Murphy and Nicki started a brokerage focused on multigenerational homeownership. and he says he’s noticed something he keeps hearing about—daily—that families are increasingly choosing to live this way. Working in real estate, he’s also seen more builders offering multigenerational floor plans.

For many clients, Murphy says the drivers are financial pressures in both directions. Sometimes parents or grandparents help adult children deal with high rent or save for a down payment. Other times. adult children help parents who may be retiring on a fixed income or didn’t save as much as they’d hoped.

And in some cases. Murphy says it’s simply mutual problem-solving: pooling money to get a “decent house. ” live together. and save. Assisted living can be expensive, he says—sometimes costing several thousand dollars a month. He also points out that building a tiny home or an accessory dwelling unit can cost a lot more than people realize upfront. or may not be allowed in some neighborhoods.

For his family, the multi-generational setup became, in his words, “the perfect situation, financially, emotionally, and logistically.”

The story began as a way to ease anxiety about distance and keep aging support close. It ended with a different kind of calculation—one that doesn’t show up in brochures: comfort for his father’s final months. family around him when he passed. and a living arrangement that continues because it’s working for everyone who shares the house now.

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