Your children have flown from the nest, or maybe retirement is not so far away.  Do you still need all of the space your current home has? Or maybe the idea of selling and buying a smaller home and save the profit for a boost to your retirement income.  Whatever the reason, many empty nesters and retirees are downsizing. Let’s look at these things to consider: 

• Downsizing can be a huge change for most, and planning for it is the key.  Talk with your partner, your family and friends, tell them of your thoughts, and have some of them help you start a Downsize Plan.  
• Think practically when you’re thinking about what sort of house you’d like to buy.  You don’t want to go so much smaller that you don’t feel at home.    
• Do you want to stay in the general area you are currently in, or do you want to move across the country? Maybe you’d like to have an adventure and travel.   

• Look at your budget and go through it very carefully.  Even with a home sale, your new place could be in a more expensive area, with property taxes and higher utility costs.  Choose carefully so you save more of the profit from the old house’s sale. 
• We don’t like to think about aging, but one consideration you should be taking is that if this will be your last home, make sure it will work for you as you get older.  In case of mobility issues later on, a single-story house that will be easier to maneuver around in, or one with a smaller yard for less maintenance is best when house-hunting. 
• The thought of maintaining our landscaping can make us groan as we get older in more ways than one, so consider a condominium or townhouse to relocate to. Be sure to ask if there are extra maintenance fees in these communities. 
• Once you make your decision, contact a realtor in the area with questions about the housing market, as they can assist you with figuring out how much your house would sell for, as well as finding a smaller and affordable home for you to buy or even consider a rental for a while. 
• Once you decide to sell and relocate, start the first step of the moving process of going through your belongings, and deciding what you’ll have room for in a smaller home.  This downsizing article from Sixty&Me.com has some extreme but practical advice to help you start this emotional task. Get the family involved if your children still have belongings stored in your attic or spare room. 
• If the thought of cutting out so many of your belongings is too daunting, find a professional organizer who can help.  Look for one that specializes in downsizing. 
• You have probably acquired a houseful of furniture, and a smaller home means less space to place what you have now.  Talk to family members who may want pieces that you have, sell some furniture, or donate practical items to a shelter or thrift store. 

Preparing for the later years in life can be daunting.  If you’re getting ready for retirement, or dreading the thought of the last child leaving home, downsizing and a new beginning can actually be something to look forward to.  Be sure to share your housing concerns and desires with your real estate agent, who will do all they can to find the perfect home for you to make every moment enjoyable for you for years to come. 

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently.  You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

Get Orlando Daily News delivered to your inbox! Subscribe here!

Photo credit: thenubiannews.com

Although the economy has improved some over the last few years, it doesn’t seem to be getting a whole lot better for most Americans. A good way to save money is to downsize your home. This is especially a good idea if you have already raised your family and you and your husband are left paying a mortgage on a home that is too large for you. Let’s take a look at how downsizing your home will help you to save a bit of money, to live more comfortably as well as some easy ways that you can downsize.

• One easy way to downsize is to look for a home that has a small garage or even no garage at all. If you and your spouse are living in the home alone and your children are grown it is likely that you don’t have a bunch of stuff to store in a garage. Buying a home without a garage is a great way to get more house for your money and to downsize your payment.
• Finding a home without a lot of land is another way to downsize and to save big. You can find a lot of cute houses on the market these days that don’t have a ton of land with them. It is also good to find a home without a lot of land if you are older and don’t have the stamina you once had to do all the yard work that is involved with a house with a lot of land attached.
• Buying a home that is one story is also a good way to downsize and to save when it comes to buying a new home. Buying a home without stairs is good for when you get older as well because you won’t want to or may not be able to climb them once you get up in years.
• Realize that you don’t have to give up on the home of your dreams when you downsize. There are plenty of adorable houses on the market that won’t break your bank account that are 1500 square feet or less. Don’t let society dictate to you that you need a large house in order to fit in. There are plenty of upsides to downsizing to a smaller home!

Once you set your mind in the right direction and you realize that you don’t need to have a huge house and that it’s no longer important to “keep up with the jones’’ you will be well on your way to saving a lot of money.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

Get Orlando Daily News delivered to your inbox! Subscribe here!

If you are like an increasing number of home owners, you may well have recently thought about leaving your spacious house for a smaller residence.  Reasons for wanting to do so are numerous and varied and range from an empty nest, to burdensome maintenance chores, to financial considerations, to a desire for a change in lifestyle.

Whatever your motivation, be forewarned that downsizing is a serious move and may not be as simple as it sounds—and it may not be the right move for you at this time.  So, before you sell your existing Orlando FL home or purge your possessions, give serious thought to the following information:

BASIC PROS:

• Less time and effort expended on maintenance tasks
• Lower mortgage payments, utility bills, and property taxes.
• Opportunity to shed years of accumulated “treasures.”
• Layout better meet physical abilities
• Possibility of a better location—closer to family, friends, and amenities
• Extra time and money to allow a change in lifestyle.

BASIC CONS:

• Less space for guests—and storage.
• Reluctance to part with cherished belongings
• Strong emotional ties to your current home and neighborhood
• Unexpected costs of HOA fees and assessments, higher utility and tax rates in new location, moving expenses.
• Need to successfully sell your present home
• Less space for personal privacy
• Possible need for new furniture or car to fit the dimensions of your new residence
• Less room to entertain

Questions to ask—and answer honestly:

• Why do I want to downsize?  What are my wants and needs at this stage of my life?
• Where do I most want to live?  In what kind of residence?
• How important is size to me?  Can I deal with less storage space, closer living quarters—and the resultant lack of private space?  Will I miss living in a large, prestigious house?
• What can I part with—home itself, furnishings, possessions, friends, convenience of location?
• What will the move cost?
• How will my monthly/yearly bills be affected?
• How will such a move affect my desired lifestyle?
• How will downsizing affect my ability to entertain and be socially active?
• How much can I reasonably expect to net from the sale of my current home?
• Have I sought out advice from a Realtor, an accountant, friends who have downsized?
• Have I thoroughly researched HOA fees and restrictions, transportation costs, distances, medical facilities, the community, and desired amenities?

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home shopping website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently.  You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

Get Orlando Daily News delivered to your inbox! Subscribe here!