My sims can travel to other lots but can never return

OK,  that siounds pretty dramatic.  Actually what happens is if I send a sim to a communiy lot they can go and enjoy themselves but the moment they start to head back home the game locks up and the plumbob image just sits there eternally.  I always have to toggle to Task Manager and kill the EA app.  Then relaunch the game and I am right back to the last save point in my game.  It is getting to be rather irritating.   Sims can still go off to work and school,  but those things are rabbit holes.  I haven't noticed any problem with high school students returning from high school.