What Does Downsizing Entail and How Can It Affect Your Life?

Whether by choice or unfortunate circumstances, you might be forced to downsize your home at some point in your life. Some people will be familiar with the term, but it’s not the most common word to use and some people don’t even know what downsizing is. Whether you’ve recently heard of downsizing or if you’re going to be in a situation that requires you to downsize, here’s some basic information that you need to understand before you trade your home for a smaller one.

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Why do people downsize?

Downsizing is basically another word for swapping your home with a smaller one. It typically involves selling your home and then purchasing another one (an actual swap isn’t performed) and there are many advantages and disadvantages to this. But first, let’s take a look at why you’d want to downsize in the first place.

• Kids have moved out and you’re left with an empty nest – One of the most common reasons for downsizing is because your kids have left and bought their own homes. While it’s great to have spare bedrooms around, having a big empty house can feel depressing at times and you might find it better to own a smaller home. You won’t need to walk around as much to go from the kitchen to your bedroom, it’s easier to manage everything in your home.
• Running low on money and your current home is too expensive to run – Downsizing might also occur due to your financial situation. If the loss of your job has caused a financial crisis, then you might be forced to downsize your home because it’s no longer feasible to maintain. You might also want to downsize because your home is just too expensive to run and you’d prefer to pay less on bills and other expenses.
• Preparing for retirement and no longer need a large home – If you’re planning to retire soon then you may want to downsize your home into something more accessible. As you get older, your joints will start to wear out and you’ll find it difficult to walk up and down the stairs. Many seniors downsize their large homes and turn to bungalows or apartments which are much easier to manage, and they even have the option of building in some age-assisting technology like stair lifts and ramps for wheelchair access.
• Higher-quality home instead of a large and empty house – You may also want to downsize because your current home is big and empty. It costs a lot to furnish, renovate and decorate a home to your liking especially if you have extravagant tastes, which is why a smaller house is better to fulfil your design requirements. You’ll spend less money prettying-up your home and it will look fantastic with less empty space.
• Large houses are too much work for you – And of course, maybe you just don’t like your large home There’s too much to clear, the garden takes forever to maintain and you probably hate having to clear out the roof of snow after every long and cold winter. In fact, many people downsize apartments for this exact reason; because they just don’t want to manage too much of their home so they can spend more time working, indulging in hobbies or with their family.

If downsizing already sounds wonderful for you then contact a realtor that offers a fast sale option to quickly sell your home and downsize immediately. Now that you’ve seen the reasons for downsizing, let’s take a look at some of the advantages and disadvantages of downsizing.

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Advantages of downsizing

The section above contains many reasons why people would downsize and it naturally comes with many of the advantages already. However, we can still narrow down a few of the best changes that you’ll experience when you decide to downsize.

• You get to experience a simplified lifestyle – A smaller home invites a simple and relaxed lifestyle. You’ll feel less responsibility because you don’t have hundreds of things to take care of and you’ll learn to live with less.
• It’s cheaper to live in a smaller home – Cheaper utilities, cheaper rent or mortgage and
• You’ll have more time to yourself – Since you’ll spend less time on chores you’ll have more time to yourself.
• Far more comfort than a big home – A small home is, without a doubt, more comfortable. Everything is close by, you can speak to your family from the other side of the home and it’s a lot more cozy.

Disadvantages of downsizing

Now let’s take a look at some of the disadvantages of downsizing, just in case you jump the gun too quickly and make an irrational decision that you end up regretting.

• Difficult if you have guests over – If you ever have guests over then downsizing will mean that it’s more cramped. You probably won’t have space for a guest room or even space on the floor for an air mattress.
• You need to cope with lifestyle changes – Living with a smaller home means adjusting your lifestyle for it. For example, you might not have space for gym equipment, you might need to change where you plant your flowers and if you live in an apartment, you’ll need to get used to being close to neighbours.
• Less storage space – A smaller home means you have less storage space for personal belongings. If you love to hoard old relics and memorabilia then you’re going to need a lot of storage space if you downsize.
• Interferes with work and family commitments – Moving comes with a number of different issues. Whether it’s budgeting for your move or finding a new school for the kids at your new location, it can easily disrupt not just your life, but the life of your kids and your career.

Some final words

Downsizing your home can sound like a scary change, but with so many advantages it’s actually not as uncommon as you think. Make sure you read through all of these advantages and disadvantages and then decide if downsizing is the right choice for your current financial and family situation.

Finding a moving company in Brighton, MA, can help get clutter out of your house if you feel like you need to downsize.

This is a contributed post.

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