Our ideal home – a couple with disability share their thoughts

Brad and my story started back in 2012, meeting at a mutual friend’s birthday, where we instantly connected and started talking. Brad added me on Facebook after the party and we kept on talking, eventually exchanging numbers so we could text and speak over the phone. Growing closer every day, we chatted over the phone for over a year, until we could see each other at our Life Skills day program. This is where we truly felt like we became best friends. Before long Brad and I started dating and not long after that, Brad proposed – of course, I said YES!

When Brad and I think about the benefits of Nest, we can’t help but feel excited about the prospect of us finally being able to live together in our ideal home. Nest will give us the opportunity to search for a home that could mean the chance to live together, while also meeting our criteria.

There have been many conversations between Brad and I about what would be our ideal home and what we would use Nest to search for. In the past, living in the suburb of your choosing was not always possible for people with disabilities and we are looking forward to seeing how Nest helps change this.

We hope to be able to live in the suburb of Parramatta, as this is in close proximity of our current homes and support needs. As the Nest platform continues to grow, with more providers adding their properties on the site, more and more options will be available in this area, not just for myself and Brad, but other people like us using Nest to find a home. Staying in an area we are comfortable with would mean we can continue with some of the activities we enjoy doing together, such as going to dinner. Many of our carers are also based around the Parramatta area so the ability to stay within the area would mean our daily lives are not drastically changed or affected. To be able to live with one another would be the beginning of a new chapter for us. The home would need to meet our support requirements with features such as hoists and lower bench tops. We would also hopefully have two bedrooms and storage space for our equipment.

With Nest and the opportunity to find our ideal home, Brad and I are starting to think about the next exciting chapter in our lives together. We cannot wait to start the search on Nest!