Anyone Planning to Move/Downsize Soon?

[Fermion]

You win the most percentage downsizing award!

My earliest potential moving would be about 1.5 years, and I should take the advice of many to do some decluttering and getting rid of stuff in preparation for that.

I have made zero progress decluttering (actually have added a few things during our RV build process).

I think I will just rent a backhoe and shovel all of our house possessions out to the street and put a free sign on it.

 

[imoldernu]

Every February, I plan to move.

But then Spring happens, and there are no floods or hurricanes or tornadoes or wildfires or droughts or drive-by shootings or street gangs or traffic jams or fire ants or rattlesnakes or alligators or...did I miss anything ?

...and I decide to stay put in upstate NY, just east of the middle of Nowhere. It truly is beautiful up here. Fresh air, open spaces, nice slow pace of life.

I may change my mind someday. But not this year.

You are living my dream from 1982... when we came this >< close to buying the "Northern Borne" grocery store on Rte 30 where it crosses Long Lake... (Across from the Adirondack Hotel)...
Used to do the Old Forge to Tupper canoe route. Happy days...

At our age, now, our CCRC home is a bit more practical, but those dreams don't die easily.
......................................

Re: moving/downsizing... not a big deal any more. Moving to the apartments, no big deal. Will sell as-is... let the next owner or the kids worry about the clean up... If it costs $5 or 6,000 ... cheap at twice the price.

 

[GravitySucks]

Every February, I plan to move.

But then Spring happens, and there are no floods or hurricanes or tornadoes or wildfires or droughts or drive-by shootings or street gangs or traffic jams or fire ants or rattlesnakes or alligators or...did I miss anything ?

...and I decide to stay put in upstate NY, just east of the middle of Nowhere. It truly is beautiful up here. Fresh air, open spaces, nice slow pace of life.

I may change my mind someday. But not this year.

Taxes.

I thought I would have moved by now as my property taxes are the largest item in my budget, but the de-cluttering is going very slow and then there is all the other decisions I can't seem to make.

 

[razztazz]

..and I decide to stay put in upstate NY, just east of the middle of Nowhere. It truly is beautiful up here. Fresh air, open spaces, nice slow pace of life.

I used to live in the Syracuse/Utica Central NY area for several years. I still tell people "When you die and go to Heaven, it'll be just like a Summer's day in upstate New York"

 

[powerplay]

I have made zero progress decluttering (actually have added a few things during our RV build process).

I think I will just rent a backhoe and shovel all of our house possessions out to the street and put a free sign on it.

This is going to require a video posted to this site. I think it would be an educational experience for those who procrastinate on clearing out the no longer used things in their homes (that includes me).

 

[freebird5825]

ah yes, taxes and earthquakes...

I live just north of the Mohawk Valley, about 1 hour drive from Old Forge (Adirondack State Park). Yes it gets cold here, but being born in a four season climate, I guess I'm used to it.

My gardening buddy and I already have a short list of places we want to visit this summer, day trip type things. Most are nature related, some are horticulture related. Mr B is up to his eyeballs with Legion treasurer duties and continued tax accountant studies, so he told me to go and have fun. He likes the idea that I will not be alone on my day adventures, in the company of a trusted gentleman.

I've done my traveling to distant places in younger years. I'm doing more local adventuring right here, east of the middle of Nowhere. Less advance planning, less expensive, no airports to deal with, just the wide open road and enough gas in the tank to get there and back.

There so many lakes and state parks in upstate NY, it would take a lifetime to visit them all. Boat rides or fishing charters are easily found at very low cost on most of the lakes. My buddy fishes, but I'll just go along for the scenery. Plus I have my own boat on a small lake.

Come on, Spring !

 

[LinCella]

I've been trying to move ever since retirement day. I'm on a waiting list for a co-op townhouse in a college town. But the wait is now almost two years. Still, I will be upsizing. I've lived in a very small one bedroom with just one closet for the whole place and no laundry for over 20 years. The co-op will be less a month than this little place and it will be 3 bedrooms, two bath. Its not large, actually, by today's standards, less than 1200 sq. feet, but I will finally have some room for me, my dog and two cats and all my projects that end up making my place look like a hovel.

 

[HFWR]

I am contemplating a move at some point, not to downsize, but to eliminate yard work and such.

Problem is, my PITI is $703/mo. I can't find an apartment for that, at least not one I want to live in, and most of the condos and townhomes in this area are way more expensive that my 3/2/2 "ranch".

So, I would be trading relatively low fixed costs but unknown variable costs - new roof, new a/c, broken pipes, foundation problems - for non-inflation protected rent payments or a larger mortgage, but not many variable costs.

Decisions decisions...

 

[fancy free]

We're starting the slow process (could be we need to do this in the spring, possibly another few years) of downsizing. I found the following book an interesting approach:
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing - Kindle edition by Marie Kondo. Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

I was logging in just to recommend this book!

It makes the decluttering process so much easier — the things I thought I would struggle most with (books and family photos/mementos) especially. I really would call it both magical and life-changing! I then bought the book for a friend who’s a bit of a hoarder and she said it changed her life.

We aren’t downsizing to a smaller home any time soon but I very much wanted to downsize what was inside it — and this book really helped us do that. Quickly, too!

 

[ChaseIt]

We've been working on a plan to downsize and relo since I RE'd end of 2013. The de-cluttering effort has turned into a much larger project than expected, but at least it's a process with an end in sight. Only thing slowing me down there is my new found laziness developed after RE.

The real dilemma is we can't come close to selecting our next location. First it was move east a bit to the Smokey Mtns, then it was SW Florida, maybe back to Texas, then it was the front range in Colorado, and then back to a smaller spread in middle Tennessee.


Since we're about to get the place on the market in mid-March, we'll need to make a decision soon. The fallback plan is to make a temporary move to a home my DW inherited recently in Southern Indiana. Not on any of our many and ever changing short lists, but may have to do until we can decide.

Anybody struggle with this before? Seems like a couple grown adults would be able to make an intelligent decision without all the heartache!

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Anybody struggle with this before? Seems like a couple grown adults would be able to make an intelligent decision without all the heartache!

This is like a daily discussion at our house. But I think we decided to just stay put and maybe do some slow travel or buy an RV. It is good to look around though and we are going to continue to go to open houses. We appreciate our current house the more we look around and do not find any place that suits us better. Condos and townhouses cost more per square foot where we live and do not include a yard, so there is not as much financial gain in downsizing, at least locally, as we initially thought there would be.

 

[Andre1969]

Downsizing and de-cluttering can be hard. Back in October, my Mom had a dumpster brought in at my grandmother's house. Grandmom has been bouncing around between the emergency room, rehabilitation, and assisted living facilities since August, and at this point I don't think she's ever coming home. However, at the time we didn't realize that. Mom had the dumpster brought in so we could remodel the bathroom to make it handicap accessible, and just throw the old junk out in it. And use it as an excuse to do a thorough cleaning and see what else we could throw out.

That dumpster was something like 24 feet long, maybe 7-8 feet high. What came out of the bathroom remodel didn't fill up much at all. But once we were done, it was pretty much packed to the gills. I even rounded up a pickup truck's worth of junk from my garage and threw it in there.

But, once it was all said and done, I swear it barely made a dent in Grandmom's house. Or my garage. It ain't easy, being a pack rat. I'll go through stuff and think oh, I might have a use for that at some point. And then have trouble parting with it.

 

[Del Q]

DW and I bought our retirement home in 2010, a two bed one bath year around home in the woods of northern MN. Its like upstate NY less 20 degrees. I've got a good wood stove and don't care. We use it as a vacation home and spend a long weekend every few weeks, we love it there.


We're going to sell our primary home in 2015. We're slowly bringing what we want to the new house when we visit. Once we have what we need there we're going to stop and get rid of what's left at the old home. What can't be donated to charity will fit in a small dumpster. Fortunately, we've lived a modest lifestyle and don't have expensive items to deal with. Our last trip will be what's left in the freezer and the dog.

 

[Zuma]

We are making some progress in this direction. For the last year we have been decluttering in waves. I think we're almost to the point where we have only possessions left that we are willing to move or store for some period of time. The sequence we have worked out is to rent an apartment of 1000 sf in a small city near our aging parents while we sell our current 2000 sf home. We just locked in the apartment and can begin moving things in after April 1st. We're aiming to get the house onto the market by May 1st. DH is 10 months into RE and able to dedicate quite a lot of time to the effort. I'm planning to remain in my job until the house sells. Then we'll both move into the apartment, which is 4 hours away from where we currently live. We opted for this route because I am more comfortable with the limited financial commitment of an apartment up until the house sells.

 

[LitGal]

Thanks for All of Your Perspectives

Have been following this thread this week because I need to learn from others' experience. DH passed away last month after a long illness. We had bought into a CCRC and had been working at downsizing so we could make the move (primarily so we could get the healthcare support he needed).

Sadly, he was never able to make the move. But now I am in a new (somewhat surreal) situation. I don't need to activate our contract with the CCRC until I am age 75 (14 years from now). I'm in good health so don't need the support systems (yet) that we had planned for DH.

So, instead of downsizing to move to a 2BR apt. at the CCRC, I've been wandering around on-line looking at condos for sale (about 1500-1700 sq. ft.) Moving to one would cut my housing square footage (and expenses) by at least half. Plus I wouldn't be bouncing around in in this cavernous lodge of a house filled with memories everywhere I turn.

I've been advised by many to make no major decisions for at least a year. And I would like to fix up this place and sell it at a fairly leisurely place. (It has been our dream home and we thoroughly loved it the 18.5 years we have lived here.) Financially, there's no need for me to hurry out the door.

But those condos are VERY appealing, especially the convenience of being able to come and go with fewer maintenance worries. DH was a Mr. Fixit everywhere we lived. I was more oblivious to maintenance, though am good at cleaning and wielding a paintbrush.

Has anyone here downsized sooner than planned? Were you glad you did it? Or did it create so many hassles that you regretted it?

Thanks in advance for your insights.

 

[Meadbh]

Dear LitGal,

Sincere condolences on the death of your DH. One of life's major shocks. As you noted, probably not the best time to make a big impulse decision. While a condo may be an ideal solution or you, take your time. Try not to feel pressured by sales pitches. There will be other condos on the market in 6 months or 12 months' time. Besides, you will need to do your due diligence on the HOA, reserve fund, etc.. It's probably best to spend the next few months focusing on looking after yourself and gradually getting your house ready for sale. Things will seem much clearer by then.

 

[MichaelB]

LitGal, deepest condolences for your loss.

I would echo Meadbh's words to take your time and not rush a real estate decision right now.

 

[6miths]

I think I am a couple of years behind you but on same trajectory. Still shopping for a retirement spot. Working that into family travel when I can. Mind me asking which spot(s) you have found appealing for retirement ?

Hi. Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. We have been looking in two areas. One is not commonly seen as a retirement spot by many even around these parts but we have roots there. It is the Sarnia area of Ontario on the southern shore of Lake Huron. We would be looking for something waterfront. Already have something further up the lake which we would sell along with our primary residence. The lake is crystal clear, the beaches in front of the house would be very nice and the sailing is great. Good healthcare in town and a university Level 3 centre not far. Large enough to have all of the things we are looking for. Also a short drive to the International Airport in Detroit as well as the Tigers, Red Wings and Lions. Two of which I am actually a fan of...

The second place is the Tampa-St. Pete's area. We have friends in south Florida who plan to move a bit north and we hope to convince them that we wouldn't be a PIA to be dropping down in the winter time if they happened to find some extra money to get a house with a granny suite.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Have been following this thread this week because I need to learn from others' experience. DH passed away last month after a long illness.

So sorry to hear the sad news, Litgal.

 

[Moemg]

Little Gal , So sorry on the loss of your husband . I am a widow so I can speak with experience that it is good advice to do nothing but take care of yourself for at least a year .After the first year your thinking will be clearer and you may be ready for the move .Memories will always resurface I was widowed sixteen years ago and they still pop up.

 

[freebird5825]

Dear LitGal,

Sincere condolences on the death of your DH. One of life's major shocks. As you noted, probably not the best time to make a big impulse decision. While a condo may be an ideal solution or you, take your time. Try not to feel pressured by sales pitches. There will be other condos on the market in 6 months or 12 months' time. Besides, you will need to do your due diligence on the HOA, reserve fund, etc.. It's probably best to spend the next few months focusing on looking after yourself and gradually getting your house ready for sale. Things will seem much clearer by then.

I totally agree. Go slow....

I went through the loss of my DH just a little over 10 years ago. I understand the feeling of being in the same house, but not having your DH there. There was a particular downstairs room where we spent most of our time together, watching TV or reading.
One of the first things I did was to have friends come over and remove his recliner, since just looking at it made me feel even worse. Sounds silly, but removing a now empty chair made all the difference to my healing process.
I changed my hangout room to the upstairs living room. I did a little bit of furniture re-arranging in the downstairs room to give it a new look. It took me a long time to be able to go in that room without a severe heart wrench, but the different appearance helped with that.

I am so sorry for your loss. Speak of him well, speak of him often.

 

[6miths]

Yes very sorry to hear of your loss LitGirl. I was responding to a post from earlier in the thread and hadn't seen your post. I understand totally about the memories. My father passed away 12 years ago and my mother is still living in the family home although she occasionally talks of moving to a condo. She likes the familiarity and sense of independence that the house and yard give her and it helps that she has two of her children close by to help with things.

 

[LitGal]

I totally agree. Go slow....

I went through the loss of my DH just a little over 10 years ago. I understand the feeling of being in the same house, but not having your DH there. There was a particular downstairs room where we spent most of our time together, watching TV or reading.
One of the first things I did was to have friends come over and remove his recliner, since just looking at it made me feel even worse. Sounds silly, but removing a now empty chair made all the difference to my healing process.
I changed my hangout room to the upstairs living room. I did a little bit of furniture re-arranging in the downstairs room to give it a new look. It took me a long time to be able to go in that room without a severe heart wrench, but the different appearance helped with that.

I am so sorry for your loss. Speak of him well, speak of him often.

Thanks to everyone for the great advice. Yes, you are all echoing the words of dear friends and family. But freebird's advice never occurred to me; yes, I think I'll try it. If I can make this place look different, and hang out in spots where the two of us didn't really hang out together.........that just might make the year pass more quickly.

And then there is his chair.........if only it weren't so comfortable, I'd give it up. One thing I started doing was sitting in his former spots, so I wouldn't have to look over and see them empty.

Thank you, everybody!

 

[GravitySucks]

LitGal
Deepest condolences on your loss. I agree with the advice offered to not make a major decision this soon. God knows I made some dumb ones!


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[OAG]

LitGal: My sincerest of condolences to you on your very recent loss of your DH. I wish you the best in your grief.