However, a few days after moving in, whilst driving home she noticed the sign out the front of her apartment building.
That was the moment Madi Kohout realised she was living in a retirement village.
A new home
“It all started when I met this lady over TikTok and she became my TikTok mum,” explained Kohout in one of her videos.
After getting to know her “TikTok mum” over the course of a year, Kohout decided to move from Oklahoma to Arkansas to be closer to her.
“They adopted me into their family since I didn’t really have one,” she explained in her video.
“Then it began: my search online for a brand new apartment. I wondered what I could possibly find,” she said.
When her new ‘mum’ texted her about an apartment, Kohout decided it was perfect and affordable, and a few days later Kohout drove with her U-HAUL trailer to a small town in Arkansas to begin a new chapter of her life. She hadn’t had the opportunity to see the new apartment in person.
“Oh my gosh, what a great apartment! I love it!” Kohout exclaims in the video, reenacting her first sighting of her new home.
But after a few days, the reality of her situation suddenly became clear.
“And then I drove by and was, like, wait… what?!
“And that’s how I moved into a senior living facility,” she says in the video.
“I absolutely love my neighbours”
Kohout, who has been making TikTok videos for a couple of years, says in one video she is “now living the plot of a hallmark movie”.
In another video she describes her new life.
“When I get home it’s usually always super quiet. Because most of my neighbours are asleep by the time I get home.
“But one major perk is that I can play music whenever I want to, because some of them can’t hear.”
“Another fun thing about living in the old folks’ home is I can always hear about the tea in town. Another fun thing is whenever I get to come home after a long day, everyone asks me how I’m doing.
“Anyway that’s how my life is going here at the old folks’ home. And just remember, if you’re struggling with rent, start your early retirement.”
Dreams of a career helping older people
The building where Kohout lives is not just for retirees. Kohout told Newsweek it is ‘equal opportunity housing’ – meaning its owners do not discriminate based on age – but it is designed for senior citizens and most of the tenants are older.
In February, Kohout posted a TikTok video of herself screaming in her car on a Monday morning, as she prepared to go to work, and received 6.5 million views.
Kohout currently works as a nursing assistant, and eventually wants to work with seniors.
I love this story.
Good on you!