Is it time to downsize

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Roy Thomas, SRES® Seniors Real Estate Specialist Sutton Group Professional Realty
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Is it Time to Downsize? Questions to Ask

For older adults, deciding where and when to move can be complex. But there are some basic questions you can ask yourself to decide if you should relocate.

Do you have unused rooms?
 3 rooms / 15-50% of the house
 Paying for entire house
Can you afford to stay in your current home for five, 10, or 20 more years?
 Utilities, heat and taxes will continue to rise
 The longer you stay the more likely you will need major maintenance (Roof,
windows, back deck)
Is your yard easy to maintain?
 There is more to it than just mowing the lawn
 Landscaping needs to be maintained, trees need pruning
 Not maintaining house and yard will lower the value and affect your selling price
when you do decide to sell.
Do you feel isolated?
 If you rarely go out, you are missing social interaction
Do you have too much stuff to manage?
 We collect a lot of things throughout our lifetimes. It can be overwhelming. I have saw folks with rooms full of shelving unit crammed full of boxes of stuff. Things they are keeping in case they need them someday.

 Follow the 2 year rule. If you haven’t used it in 2 years, you don’t need it.
Do you have a lot of equity in your home?

 I have had clients who were struggling to get by on their pension income buy yet were sitting on hundreds of thousands in home equity.

 Downsizing to a smaller home, condo or apartment allows you to free up the equity and invest it to produce retirement income.

If you realize you have a lot of wasted space or too much clutter, your social interactions are lacking, or the price isn’t right, it might be time to downsize.