When, Why and How to Downsize
Whether you’re 26 or 60, there are lots of reasons to downsize your home. People cite everything from too much maintenance to a desire for a simpler life. Here are the top signs it may be time to consider downsizing your digs, plus some tips on how to do it, and some unexpected benefits.
We’ve talked to enough people who buy into our master-planned community to know that it’s often hard to leave a home you’ve loved and lived in for years. But sometimes you just need a fresh start and it can be exciting to turn the page to a new chapter of life. HGTV broaches the subject with a list of considerations and questions to ask yourself if downsizing has been tickling your brain!
Too Much of…Everything
Too Much Maintenance. The main reasons, experts say, for considering a move from a larger home, yard and higher-maintenance house is convenience. If the cost and/or physical effort required to maintain a home is becoming more of an annoyance or hardship than a joy, it’s time to look for something less demanding. Every home requires home maintenance, but some require way more than others! Owning a home should be packed with pleasure and not fraught with frustration!
Too Much Space. Do you have an extra guest room that never sees guests? How about a three-car garage with two cars and a bicycle? Why spend the time and money keeping extra space clean and heated/cooled or maintained, especially if what’s in that space is an expanding collection of junk? That space isn’t just extra, it’s essentially weighing you down mentally and financially!
Too Much Expense. Generally speaking, a smaller home means less expense. Everything gets downsized, from the monthly energy bill to the cost of lawncare. And there are also “holding costs,” when you hang onto a large property. These are generated simply by owning the property and then there’s the dramatic rise in a tax burden some homeowners see as valuations increase. If that proposition makes you uneasy, it might be time to consider downsizing.
Unexpected Benefits of Downsizing
While it may be unlikely you’ll following in the footsteps of Melody and downsize your life to the size of a sailboat, on her site Sailing to Save she walks readers through how she and her husband downsized their lives by 80 percent to fit everything they REALLY needed onto a sailboat. They turned it into a game, competing for who could make the most money for their discarded stuff on eBay and Craigslist which made a huge dent in the “toss” pile while lining their pockets.
We turned her process of minimizing clutter into a graphic to help you visualize and execute! And even if you’re not downsizing – we know very few people who don’t need a helping hand when it comes to decluttering!
Multiple Choices in Crystal Valley
The master-planned community of Crystal Valley features some of Colorado’s top home builders and is one of the fastest-growing communities in the state. Explore the new homes from Richmond American Homes, Kauffman Homes, Century Communities and D.R. Horton — designed with today’s busy lifestyles in mind, nestled in natural surroundings with easy access to nearby amenities. Homes in Crystal Valley are priced from the $300s.
