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Moving on and Downsizing Your Home

Time has been passing by at lightning speed.

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Don’t you think?

One moment you are thinking about having children and the next you know, they are graduating from high school.

Why is time passing by so quickly?

I often think that my kids will never grow up and little do I know how quickly it is happening.  Our eldest child started university last year and we had to start considering how we were going to pay for all of this.  More importantly, we had to consider that her sister would follow three years later and then her brother two years after that.  As she enters her second year we are starting to seriously consider what we need for our family in the near future.  I am thinking that what I want to do is downsize.  Our home currently has four bedrooms, four bathrooms, a living room, dining room, family room, full basement with a guest bedroom and an additional two large rooms (one for TV  and crafting area and one extra room), a dedicate home office and a huge kitchen.  It is big, no doubt about it.  I love this house.  I really do. Its my dream home.  The thing is as the kids get older and start moving out, I’ve come to realize that  I really don’t want to manage this 4,000 square foot home with only two or three of us in the house. 

I have to tell you the truth,  I have been dreaming of downsizing for a while now.  When the kids were younger, it seemed we needed a lot more space for bedrooms, playrooms and quiet areas for mommy an office and an area to have a ‘time out’.  There was plenty of space for everyone to find a place of their own.  A place for all of us to congregate and a place to host large family functions.  All in all this has been a wonderful, wonderful house and home but I think its time.  Its time to start to downsize.  As I think of all the reasons to transition in the next few years, I realize that I need to help my hubby understand why this is the right time to get a smaller home.  There are many reasons to downsize but here are a few to consider:

1. Less work: when we were considering buying our house, I invited my mother to go for a tour before we put in an offer.  The first thing she said to me was: Do you have any idea how much cleaning is involved with a house this big?  Frankly, I was taken by the size and space that we would have in this bigger house but she was absolutely right.  Housework is not one of my fortes not because I hate it but because there is a lot to do in a house this big.  There are four bathrooms in this house!  With six sinks, four toilets, four floors and and four mirrors to keep sparkling clean.  All of this leads to no line ups in the morning but it also means that there is an awful lot of toilets to scrub.  If that isn’t incentive to downsize, I’m not sure what is.
2. Lower utility costs: to say the least heating and cooling a house our size costs a considerable amount.  Although we have fans in the kitchen and some of the bedrooms, keeping this house at a comfortable temperature can add up quickly.  The idea of being able to live in a few rooms and keep them cool in the summer and warm in the winter for a fraction of the costs means saving money. Money we will be spending on university tuition.
3. Having less stuff: when you have small children, your life is consumed  with stuff.  Cribs, high chairs, playpens, monitors, and of course, toys, toys, toys.  As your kids grow, you seem to have less toys.  That seems to be the reason that you need a bigger house, right?  As they grow those pesky toys are still there but you can see the light at the end of the tunnel when you will have just a few keepsakes.  Downsizing means getting rid of most of that stuff.
4. Location, location, location: I would love to move closer to downtown.  Why?  Walking to summer festivals in the city, being closer to public transport (so having one less car) and the idea of walking to the Covent Garden Market appeals to me.  Living a more urban lifestyle seems like a good idea as London continues to grow and the downtown core is becoming more vibrant.  Living closer to town would mean a smaller yard to maintain because those properties tend to have smaller lots.  It also means a shorter commute and greater convenience for my husband to get to work. 
5. Paying lower taxes: When you sell your bigger home and downsizing you may be reducing your expenses as a result of less square footage which ultimately means you should be paying  less taxes.  You may decided to purchase in an area that also has lower taxes (something certainly to consider).  If we are paying less in utilities, less in gas and less in maintenance fees, you can see what the appeal of downsizing has for me.
6. Re-directing funds elsewhere: Like I said, we may at some point in time, have three children in university at the same time. That will be three tuitions, at least one apartment and possibly one residence expense.  Those are big bills to pay.  We want to be able to help our children and that may mean that selling our large house to move into a smaller home can help us finance those costs.  The equity that we have gained from paying off our mortgage over the years will hopefully pay off when we sell this house and move into a smaller residence (with a smaller mortgage).

Overall, I see the money that we could save by relocating to a smaller home and property means that moving may be our best option for the long term.  As it is, I don’t see my children needing the room that we have now in the future.  They will be home less and less.  Whether they are away at school, working a summer job in a different city or just spending time with their friends, teens and young adults have lives that become independent of you.  Less time at home just means we don’t need a big home any longer.  Having them become independent is what we counted on when we were parenting all those years, right? 

I am looking forward to finding our new dream home that will be a fraction of the size of this home.  I know I have to do my homework to make this a successful transition.  Fortunately, those folks at RBC are willing to help.  They have assembled a team of experts that will be answering all sorts of questions about home ownership.  They have invited a lawyer, realtor, designer, home builders and home mortgage experts to participate and answer your questions. I know I have a bunch of questions that I would love the answer to as I enter the next phase of our lives.

Want to find out more about what it takes to get your first home or maybe your next home?  Why not participate in the #RBCFirstHome Twitter party.  It will be held on Tuesday, August 18 at 8:30 pm ET.  RBC experts will be on hand to answer home buying questions.   If you participate you have a chance to win one of five $100 gift cards.

RBC First Home Chat August

When you RSVP for the twitter party, make sure to follow me too (@DownshiftingPRO and @LinkedMoms) so you can see what questions I have for the experts… because, like I said, I have quite a few!

Its your turn to:  What stage of life are you in?  Thinking about buying your first home, upsizing to a bigger house or downsizing like me?

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