Empty Nester trends in recent years have some older homeowners selling their home in the suburbs and moving to walkable urban areas. Other empty nesters are choosing a smaller home in the same area, selling their large home and paying for the new home in cash from the sale.
Often, the hardest part about downsizing a large family home is downsizing the family’s belongings to fit an empty nester lifestyle. Consider these topics when downsizing your family home in anticipation of moving to a smaller home – whether urban or suburban:
- Smaller homes are easier to clean and utilities may be less expensive.
- Consider your family and friend network when thinking about moving to a new city – these relationships are more important over time.
- Look for aging-in-place amenities like a home with no stairs.
- How will you declutter? Will you give away or sell your excess possessions?
- The equity you’ve accumulated in your larger home might allow you to pay off credit cards or medical debt.
- A smaller monthly mortgage payment from the purchase of a smaller home often allows for larger investment into your retirement account.
All in all, when considering a downsizing of your home as an empty nester, it’s a good idea to write down a list of comparisons between staying in your large family home and moving into a new place, to weigh the real financial and emotional benefits of such a move.
