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View Poll Results: Sell our current home and downsize into something smaller and invest the difference?
Downsize 11 33.33%
Stay 22 66.67%
Voters: 33. You may not vote on this poll

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Old 07-01-2019, 12:38 PM   #21
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cleaning out the any excess material goods is always a positive. However, make sure everyone involved has the same view of what is 'excess'.
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Old 07-01-2019, 01:04 PM   #22
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Thanks for filling in the holes on your situation. I understand how reluctant you would be to greatly downsize given your earnings potential. My wife worked in the medical field, and she has many friends that are physicians. But we only know of one anesthesiologist (pain management) that actually retired at age 50--to open a camera store. Most doctors seem to be working to age 70 or so.

My internist and I talk often, and he's mid 60's, still working and rather typical. He had a medium to large home and kids that went to private schools and colleges. One daughter just finished her residency at Cleveland Clinic and is now working at a fine big city hospital--as is her M.D. husband. My doctor was the last to computerize, and he's tired of fighting insurance companies and Medicare daily on how to treat patients. He would like to retire, but I get the idea he doesn't have the $6 to $7 million in his retirement account that it would take to maintain his current lifestyle.

I have two friends that are brothers and one was an orthopedic surgeon and the other an anesthesiologist. One is now a 2000 acre farmer and his brother is a state senator, farmer and runs a medical trials business in his spare time. Both had health issues.

Congratulations on the hard work and dedication that it's taken to get where you are. I certainly hope you can bail out in another 10 years into ER.
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Old 07-01-2019, 01:47 PM   #23
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Thanks for all the posts and advice. I will say that we are currently cleaning out the junk, while we did not think we were spoiling our kids it became very clear that they did not appreciate the plethora of toys they had. So today we cleaned out the basement and let them choose 4 toys each, rest will be donated. We told them no more toys from mom and dad, something you want,something you need,something to wear and something to read is what santa will bring every christmas.

The downsizing will continue with my wife and I as well to show the kids that we practice what we preach. I have a 2017 M4 that I don't get to drive as much as I would like and in the spirit of decluttering its getting sold shortly

I believe my recent feelings are based around the up coming election and the possible massive changes to healthcare and while I cannot control the ultimate outcome I want to put my family in the best situation.

I believe we will stay live even lower beyond our means, prevent unwanted consumption and junk that seems to accumulate out of nowhere.

My wife will be so surprised and thrilled when I tell her we will just stay! Thanks again.

To the paying down the mortgage I am still riding the fence. Part of me dreams of not having a mortgage but at the end of the day it really comes down to our NW to become FI and possibly RE.
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Old 07-01-2019, 02:02 PM   #24
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Another person advising stay.

My thinking the economic benefit is there, but not huge, if you sell.

On the other hand, selling and moving is a pretty big disrupter of the family status quo. It'll add additional stress to your life - and your kids. I lived in the same place my entire childhood and it was very nice. Same schools, same friends, same bedroom, etc. It's OK to move if there's a good reason, but continuing to provide a stable home for your kids is definitely in the plus column as a reason to stay.
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Old 07-01-2019, 02:15 PM   #25
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We bought our 1900 sf main floor house with 2 BR's there 33 years ago with the intent of staying put. That hasn't changed yet.
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Old 07-01-2019, 02:22 PM   #26
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Fireby2030 View Post
Thanks for all the posts and advice. I will say that we are currently cleaning out the junk, while we did not think we were spoiling our kids it became very clear that they did not appreciate the plethora of toys they had. So today we cleaned out the basement and let them choose 4 toys each, rest will be donated. We told them no more toys from mom and dad, something you want,something you need,something to wear and something to read is what santa will bring every christmas.

The downsizing will continue with my wife and I as well to show the kids that we practice what we preach. I have a 2017 M4 that I don't get to drive as much as I would like and in the spirit of decluttering its getting sold shortly
While downsizing the house might make sense for a few reasons down the road, I don't think there is a huge benefit to be had for doing it now (the financial windfall will be smaller than you expect because of costs of selling the home, moving expenses, getting the house ready to sell, et cetera). And your wife is happy there, and not uprooting your kids, keeping them in the same school with the same friends, is worth something as well. But getting rid of stuff now and keeping it less cluttered is good practice for when and if you do move to something smaller. You will still have that option when the nest is empty, and then it might make a lot more sense.

Not to mention that when you buy a new home, it's not going to be "exactly" what you want and you can very easily sink well into five figures making changes to make it "your own". Your current house is more or less already built as you want it.

So all that said, what is a $250K "windfall" on paper (in terms of difference in home value) might be half that after cost of sales, moving expenses, getting the house ready for show, and fixing up the new home to be what you want. And it could easily result in a $100K hit to net worth.
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Old 07-01-2019, 02:34 PM   #27
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If our income stays close to what we are currently making we will invest nearly 250-300k a year for retirement vs 150k + pay down the any mortgage in 5-6 years.
I was going to vote "sell" before I read this. The difference between your current house and the one you would replace it with is less than a year's savings for you. To me, being in a custom-built house, that fits all of your needs/wants is worth one year of your work life. But that's the question you need to answer. Is it? Of course, moving would take a couple of months of your life, so now, you're down to 10 months or less.
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Old 07-01-2019, 02:43 PM   #28
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We downsized from our custom built dream home (on a lake) about 5 years before retiring, but we had lived there 11 years, and the primary motivator for the move was not the financial benefit (though it was substantial). DW was getting tired of driving the winding narrow roads, and we were a long way from family and friends (and hospitals).

In your case, I would stay put in a house you both are happy with, refi for 15 years, not worry about paying the loan off faster than that, and enjoy life.
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Old 07-02-2019, 09:42 PM   #29
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I am a bit confused by the situation as you mention downsizing but then don't talk about the size of your house, just its cost. Downsizing -- moving to a smaller house -- does not necessarily mean moving to a less expensive house. We "downsized" last year, moving to a smaller house. It was, however, both older and more expensive. Location trumps size and age of house.

Your concerns seem to be more about cost rather than size of the house. If the issue is size then you need to look at how you use your house now and how you think it will be used in the future. Since you have kids you need to consider them as well. Also as they get older they may want to have friends over and you may like having more space then. Many people downsize after the kids are gone, not while they are still there.
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Old 07-02-2019, 10:13 PM   #30
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We built a two bd rm, 1 bath, 1005 sq ft home one level (happy knees). Yet we have the biggest yard to play in called the NF!
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