Don't let downsizing cause you stress with these top tips.
After years of living in your home, you likely have many happy memories. Enjoying the space as the family has grown up and entertaining large numbers of guests. But now it could be the right time to look for a smaller home. Somewhere a little more manageable. Don't let downsizing cause you stress with these top tips.
After years of living in your home, you likely have many happy memories. Enjoying the space as the family has grown up and entertaining large numbers of guests.
But as the years have gone by, you may be starting to think that it might be time to downsize. With an empty nest, you likely have rooms in your home that you simply don't use anymore. These rooms may only be opened for airing or when guests come to stay.
You might feel the garden is neglected a little more each year as it is simply too much to look after. And as the cost of living keeps rising, you are paying to heat a big property that you are just not using entirely.
So, it could be the right time to look for a smaller home. Somewhere a little more manageable and efficient to run.
It can also make excellent financial sense. Releasing the equity tied up in your home and cutting your monthly costs simultaneously as a smaller property will undoubtedly be cheaper to run monthly.
But this move is never easy. Whilst it makes excellent financial sense, we often don't make these major life decisions based on logic. Whilst it most likely makes economic sense, it is a hard pill to swallow from an emotional point of view.
There is a need for much consideration about making a downsize move.
This has been your home for many years and could have been where your children or grandchildren grew up. The hallways echo with memories of happy times; It can be heart-wrenching to leave that.
When you move into the next property, you won't have children in tow. There won't be the same memory-making opportunities as you have in your current home. There won't be a fight over who gets which bedroom. No Christmas morning present unwrapping or birthday tea parties.
A downsize in property means a downsize in your belongings too. It is not physically possible to take everything with you when you move into a smaller property. This could mean that you have to carefully consider which pieces of furniture you will get rid of. Will you pass antiques and family heirlooms down through the generations?
There is a lot more to it than simply buying a smaller house.
You will likely purchase this home based on the proximity to work and the good schools. Now, with the children grown up and either already retired or very soon to be, you have much more freedom to live where you want rather than where it is convenient.
So, in summary
1) Are you ready? It is a big emotional decision to make and one that shouldn't be taken lightly. Perhaps calculate the savings in monthly expenditure and the amount of equity you could release to help you make the decision.
2) Look at the benefits. A smaller property to keep clean and a smaller garden to maintain will give you more free time to enjoy.
3) Freedom. You can choose where you want to live rather than being dictated by schools and the commute to work.
4) What will you take with you? Furniture, artwork, antiques, heirlooms. You won't be able to take everything, so start to think about what you are happy to get rid of or leave behind. Maybe you could pass on the heirlooms and sentimental items to family members to keep them in the family?
It doesn't have to be a sad time. You can use this move as an opportunity to make new memories in your retirement. Many people consider the downsize move as their last ever move, so you can consider your later years of life and how you can make the most of them and your retirement.
If you think it may be the right time to move to a smaller property, get in touch with our team of experts today. They will happily help you make the right decision for you, and, using up-to-the-minute technology and artificial intelligence, they will be able to help you find your new home too.
When a seller uses a By Design agent to sell their home, they know they're selling to the right person for the right amount of money. By Design agents work together, with coverage across the UK. The connected database enables their clients to find their perfect property wherever it may be. It also helps to pinpoint the exact buyer for a property, so there is no more crossing fingers and hoping for the best.
Get in touch to find out more.
