A Pennsylvania couple in their early 60s -- a nurse married to a pharmacist -- have long aspired to leave their modest bungalow in favor of a larger house close to the beach and their grandkids in South Carolina.

But the idea of fulfilling this “if not now, when?” retirement dream has this couple stressed out. That’s because buying in the gated South Carolina subdivision they’ve selected would mean committing to a new mortgage with just a few years left before they leave their jobs.

It’s not so much the larger house payment that’s worrying them about their future finances. Their bigger worry is whether their health care costs will increase significantly as they move into their Medicare years.

Granted, U.S. health care costs continue to escalate year after year. For the nation as a whole, annual health care spending continues to outstrip GDP growth. Such spending is expected to reach $6.2 trillion by 2028.

But Justin Brock, who heads a firm that helps educate soon-to-retire baby boomers about their Medicare options, says many seniors overestimate their future health care expenditures.

“I tell a lot of boomers, ‘Don’t freak out.' Medicare is not as costly on the pocketbook as people think. Our clients usually leave the office with a big smile on their face,” says Brock, the author of “Medicare Breakdown: The Alphabet Soup of Medicare.”

Of course, the cost of long-term care in a nursing home can be substantial for seniors, and it’s mostly uncovered by Medicare. That’s why Brock is a proponent of long-term care insurance, an expensive product but one many older people can afford to buy, assuming they’ve built a retirement savings fund during their working years.

In terms of basic health care, Medicare coverage is extensive for those who qualify and are 65 and older. As Brock explains, there are multiple reasonably priced options under Medicare, along with Part A, which is free and covers hospital room and board and other related hospital charges.

For most retirees, premiums for Part B (which includes coverage for such expenses as outpatient doctor visits and durable medical equipment) are very affordable. Gaps in such coverage can be filled with a Medigap policy.

An even more affordable alternative to this combo approach is to take Part C, a so-called Medicare Advantage plan that’s still more comprehensive, but also more limiting as to the providers you can access.

Because health care is so important to retirees, Brock urges seniors like the nurse and pharmacist to educate themselves on their coverage options before committing to the purchase of real estate. He also recommends they see a financial adviser to develop a holistic budget plan prior to moving forward.

“Make sure you have a financial plan that protects you in the event of worst-case scenarios,” Brock says.

Here are a few other pointers for soon-to-retire seniors pondering a home purchase:

-- Avoid the assumption that lenders know what you can afford.

Mortgage rates are hovering near historic lows. But many financial specialists worry that the availability of low-cost home loans can cause buyers to overspend.

“I always tell clients that before they choose a property, they should run the numbers to make sure they stay skinny on their overhead,” says Dale Robyn Siegel, a home loan broker and author of “The New Rules for Mortgages.”

Your core living costs are expenses you must meet on a regular basis. Among other things, they include outlays for food, utilities and car payments. They may also include any financial commitments you’ve made to a religious institution or charity. Together, these expenses constitute what those in the financial field call your “nut.”

“Before making any major financial decision, your first task is to ensure you’ll have the funds to meet your nut every month. Otherwise, your quality of life could be greatly impaired,” Siegel says.

Yet ironically, she says many are still able to borrow more than they reasonably should. That’s because the full extent of their living costs isn’t apparent to the lender who reviews their file.

For example, a lender won’t take into account private debts -- like the regular payments you make to help educate your grandchildren or to assist with the support of a disabled family member.

“If an expense doesn’t show up on your credit report, the bank doesn’t know about it,” Siegel says.

Siegel says it’s critically important you do your own pre-purchase computation to determine the realistic scope of your monthly nut.

-- Factor inflation into your cost-of-living calculations.

It’s no secret that as the country continues to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic, inflationary pressures are mounting, as reflected in the government’s Consumer Price Index. Among the categories subject to recent price increases: energy, food and travel expenses.

Arlene Olberding, a certified financial planner, encourages his clients to include cost increases in their budgetary projections.

“No one is immune from inflationary increases. So it’s always better to err on the high side when you’re preparing a spending plan,” Olberding says.

-- Include savings in your financial calculations.

Many baby boomers are short on retirement savings, having reached their late 50s to 60s with relatively little stashed away for the future and a pressing need to keep saving. That’s why it’s advisable for many seniors to keep up regular contributions to their savings plans, including their employer-sponsored plans for as long as they’re working.

If possible, Olberding recommends that seniors who are still working strive to contribute to their retirement savings each year a sum equal to 15% of their gross income. And he urges that this outlay be classified as a core expense when deciding how much they can afford to cover their housing payments.

“Savings should be one of those core costs you don’t forget when figuring out how big a mortgage you can handle safely. Buying your dream house is great, but you want to do so without breaking your budget,” he says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)

Now underway is what America’s real estate analysts call the “great normalization” of home-selling markets. Ever so gradually, the profound imbalance between home buyers and home sellers is diminishing. With slightly more properties available, buyers are gaining a tad more bargaining power.

“The super frantic ‘I’ll pay whatever you ask plus a fat premium’ concept is slowly going away. Buyers are more prudent, and multiple bidding is a little less harried,” says Sid Davis, a longtime real estate broker.

A more normal market is what exhausted would-be homeowners have long been seeking. These motivated buyers include families with young children who’ve spent many pandemic-restricted months in cramped rental units.

“Among many buyers, the idea of a three-bedroom house with a yard for the kids and dogs seems like heaven on Earth. But if they possibly can, they really want to avoid ridiculous offers they might regret later,” says Davis, author of “A Survival Guide for Buying a Home.”

Richard Rosa, who heads an 18-broker realty company, says that during the worst of the pandemic in past months, cases of “buyer's remorse” became commonplace.

In the recent past, “some people who are normally very conservative in making financial decisions felt beaten down after being outbid multiple times.” But as the markets begin to normalize, more buyers are now cautious about overbidding.

How can you avoid the sort of buyer's remorse that has afflicted many purchasers in the recent past? Rosa urges buyers to do their neighborhood research before considering any given property.

“Narrow down your search to identify where you truly want to live. Also, itemize all your specific wants and needs. For instance, if you’re teleworking, you might need one home office or maybe even two,” says Rosa, president-elect of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents (naeba.org).

Here are a few other pointers for buyers:

-- Attempt to keep your emotions in check when crafting a bid.

Eric Tyson, a personal finance expert and co-author of “Home Buying for Dummies,” suggests buyers set a ceiling on how much they’re willing to pay for a property before making an opening bid. This is especially important if one partner in a couple is likely to get carried away by a “must have” house they come across.

“The same people who bid too much in Las Vegas could be inclined to bid too much for a house because of their competitive nature. Remember that sometimes the winner of an auction winds up the loser,” Tyson says.

-- Seek information from neighbors in an area you’ve targeted.

Your agent should be helpful in sorting through property listings, making sure you identify the most promising homes available.

But once you have your eye on a particular place, it could be the time to talk to those who know the community best: neighbors.

“Believe me, most neighbors will bend your ear about their neighborhood. For example, they’ll tell you if they like or hate the local schools and the ages of kids who live in nearby homes,” Tyson says.

-- Visit enough properties to make an informed comparison.

Even if the first place you see looks perfect, you’ll want to ponder alternatives to make sure you have a basis of comparison, says Tyson, who recommends home shoppers look at a minimum of six properties before they buy.

“Buyer’s remorse is much less likely if you’ve examined several options -- even if you must do so in a single day,” he says.

-- Educate yourself on local property values.

If you’re uneasy about the price tag attached to a property you like, have your real estate agent show you several comparable homes that are also on the market, including those under contract, Tyson says.

Resourceful buyers might even go a step further by asking people who’ve recently bought into the neighborhood whether they would mind giving them a peek inside.

“Drop a little note in their mailbox telling them you’re interested in the neighborhood and leave your names and phone number in case they’ll let you come by,” Tyson says.

What’s the advantage of evaluating the price and quality of freshly sold homes? In areas where home prices are rising, the latest sales are the most telling, more so than transactions that occurred months ago.

-- Avoid waiving your home inspection if at all possible.

Almost without exception, buyers are legally entitled to an inspection of a property once their offer is accepted by its sellers. But in popular neighborhoods, some buyers continue to waive this right, believing their bid will be more appealing to the sellers if they do so.

Tyson says he understands why some buyers voluntarily give up the right to an inspection, particularly if they’re trying to purchase a home in a strong sellers’ market. Still, he argues that an inspection could expose unseen defects -- such as an air conditioning problem that may not be apparent until after the move.

“No matter how hot the market, I would never advise buyers to forgo an inspection. If, for competitive reasons, you don’t want to have this right in your contract offer, at least you should ask the owners for the chance to do an inspection before you make a bid,” Tyson says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)

As they approach marriage, many young couples face the daunting challenge of how to acquire their first home. But couples marrying over the age of 50 sometimes confront the opposite issue: how to deal with ownership of two primary properties.

In the past, most late-marrying couples with dual homes considered only a couple of conventional options. They could sell one property and move together into the other, or they could sell both and buy a third, where they’d both live.

But a new trend is emerging among an increasing number of older couples who already own homes: They’re designing lifestyles that allow them to keep both places they’ve owned for years.

“For more settled couples, one option is to continue living separately rather than unite their households in the conventional way,” says Francine Russo, the author of “Love After 50: How to Find It, Enjoy it, and Keep it.”

Russo, who’s spent her career investigating and tracking social trends, refers to committed couples who choose to live separately as “LATs,” because they’re “living apart together.”

There are multiple factors increasing the popularity of LAT relationships among older couples.

“People are living longer and still want to have intimate and emotionally committed relationships in later life. Yet both men and women appreciate the autonomy and independence of retaining their own homes. In addition, their housekeeping and lifestyle standards may differ greatly,” Russo says.

Understandably, the trend toward two-house coupling involves mostly affluent adults who can afford to maintain two households. But as home values continue to ascend, increasing home equity, more seniors can make the numbers work.

Even when LAT living proves financially viable, some couples who could keep their two primary properties prefer an arrangement that allows them to reside together.

“If you own two houses, be sure to discuss your alternatives and preferences before making a firm decision,” Russo says.

Kevin O’Reilly, a certified financial planner, says it can be especially hard for couples to resolve the two-house puzzle if one of the partners was married previously and still lives in a home once shared with an ex-spouse.

“Moving into a place where the ex lived isn’t the fairy-tale ending most people imagine. It can cast a massive shadow around a new marriage,” he says.

“There’s no single right answer. For all my clients, I believe in happiness. Decisions like these are not all financial,” O’Reilly says.

Here are a few pointers for marrying couples with two properties:

-- Commit your housing preferences to paper.

These days, an increasing number of people who marry have had years of independent living behind them. Because of that, it’s all the more important that they listen to each other when making joint decisions.

“There are issues of turf and control that come up early in marriage and need to be discussed,” O’Reilly says.

Before making any major housing decisions, he recommends that a marrying couple with two homes write out a list of their personal priorities.

“It’s always better to write down your thoughts rather than just tossing ideas in the air. Writing things out forces you to think things through,” O’Reilly says.

If a deadlock develops, the couple might consider consulting a financial planner or an accountant, if only for an hour or two. An outside adviser may be able to help spur the conversation to a breakthrough choice that works for both husband and wife.

-- Realize that unconventional solutions could work well for you.

Those remarrying after their children are grown typically have more latitude to consider housing alternatives than do those still raising young children.

“Once your children are grown, your needs change. One person might want to move to the country and raise horses. The other might want to live in a condo in the city,” says Dorcas Helfant, a former president of the National Association of Realtors (nar.realtor).

One way to address the subject of where to live, Helfant says, is to visualize what you’d be doing during ideal days. For example, on a free Saturday would you rather tend roses or attend a jazz festival?

By listing your preferred activities, you’ll bring into focus the kind of location and property that would best suit you and your spouse in coming years.

“Whatever your age, there’s no single right location. It’s all a matter of individual preference,” Helfant says.

-- Ponder the prospect of selling both your homes and buying a third one.

Are you and your partner entering into a second marriage? If so, one or both of you might be uneasy with the thought of living in a place where a previous partner once lived. Would he feel at ease hanging his suits in a closet used by her first husband? Would she feel uncomfortable making brunch in the same kitchen where his former wife cooked?

For many people launching into a new relationship, the idea of selling both their homes and starting fresh with a different place has tremendous appeal, according to O’Reilly.

“Financial factors aren’t everything for couples. There’s also a strong emotional dimension to any housing decision. So buying a place where neither of you have lived before might be your best possible choice,” he says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)