A Lot of People Make These Mistakes When Downsizing—And You Shouldn’t
Whether you’re coming up on retirement, have just become an empty nester, are tired of extensive upkeep responsibilities, and/or simply have too much wasted space, downsizing could be a great way to begin a new chapter in your life. Not only can it reduce your expenses and bring in cash flow, but it can also provide the flexibility necessary to do some of the things you’ve always dreamed about—be it traveling the globe, starting a business or anything else.
While downsizing comes with many benefits, it can be a challenging process. And when you make mistakes that are preventable—as many people do—it can make the process even more difficult. We’ve listed some of those mistakes here so that you can be on the lookout and hopefully have a smooth downsizing experience.
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Not Looking at the Housing Market
Many people assume they will save money by selling their home and purchasing a smaller one. However, that’s not always the case. Depending on where you are buying a home, smaller homes don’t always mean less expensive. In order to maximize your savings (and avoid losing a lot of money), make sure you know your budget and have up-to-date pricing information in the area you’re considering.
Pushing the Idea Off for Years
Many people wait until they have an illness or lose a spouse to downsize. This raises obvious concerns. You don’t want to go through a downsize while you’re fighting for your health or while you’re in the middle of the grieving process. You want to do it when you have the energy, and the longer you wait, the harder it will be. Furthermore, waiting too long to downsize will make it more difficult to plan ahead, which is an essential part of the downsizing process.
Going in Without a Plan
Another mistake people often make when downsizing is just winging it. In order for the process to go as smoothly as possible, however, you want to allow at least six months of planning before you start the move. Otherwise, you will be forced to do all your tasks at once, which can lead to rash decisions—not to mention a great deal of stress. You want to plan it all out, from the location and size of the new home to the belongings you will keep to the moving day details.
Keeping Too Many Things
This is one of the most common mistakes: trying to hold on to too much stuff. Decluttering is a critical component of downsizing, and you will more than likely have to get rid of some things that you don’t want to get rid of. While there will probably be some things you need to trash—especially items that are broken or irreparable—you can sell some of your gently used items to bring in some extra cash. Or, you can donate them to a charitable organization that will help people in need.
If there are belongings you can’t fit in the new home but that you’re just not ready to part with, you can put them in storage. Even so, storage units are an additional cost (around $40-$200 on average). The most cost-effective way to handle it is to consider the layout and size of your new home and to strategize the items you can bring with you, and to only bring what you will actually use.
Downsizing is challenging enough when you don’t make avoidable mistakes. Help make the process easier by researching the housing market, downsizing at the right time, coming up with a well-devised plan and only bringing the things you need with you to the new home. Most importantly, enjoy the financial and lifestyle benefits that come with your decision to downsize!
Photo Credit: Christopher Wormald Photography