Where do older homeowners go when they decide it’s time to downsize? That’s one of the million dollar questions. It’s a personal choice but believe it or not just as important a question is ‘When do you sell?’ Also and on the forefront of all downsizers’ minds is ‘how’? It can be mind boggling when you put all those questions together: where, when and how, especially when you have a house full of stuff! It can also be too much which is all the more reason to put it off another year.
The traditional seasonal answer to the question of ‘when’ has changed with the virus. We lost a lot of our ‘hot’ spring season to the SIP, with very few homeowners willing and able to put their homes on the market during mid-March to about mid-May. As a result, there were very few homes for buyers to choose from which led to pent up demand that was already on low interest rate steroids. July and August are typically months where families put vacations and back to school preparations ahead of home buying until after Labor Day. However, July was a very strong month for home sales and August is also shaping up to be unusually good. Family vacations have been curtailed and back to school has become back to Zoom. People have had the bandwidth to search for homes and the motivation. People are longing for a fresh start in so many ways. A new home is a great place to start.
Weighing heavily on the question of ‘when’, as we get older it gets physically more challenging to move. I’m not just talking about moving homes, moving our bodies in general gets tougher! It’s nice to do it while you have the energy and strength, however even for someone like me whose kids will be leaving in the next few years, if I was downsizing (I’m not) I’d need help. There are professional organizers who can step in and get people on the right track. There are also movers who will do all the packing for you. However, you’ll be paying for their time so the more you can do up front the better. If you are looking for suggestions for assistance please let me know.
Over the years we tend to accumulate a lot of material possessions. Eventually you are going to need to deal with yours, and the sooner you start the better. Even if you aren’t moving, it’s probably not a bad idea to live a little lighter. I like donating things. I think it’s important to keep useful things in circulation and not add to our landfill if possible. Inevitably some of what you have will end up in landfill. I’ve never sold a house that didn’t require dump runs, dumpsters or a junk company.
Unless you plan on staying in your house forever at some point you are going to decide to move. Getting to the point of being ready to sell your house can take as little as a few weeks or as much as a few years. Eventually you find the path and pace that is right for you. Being a guide alongside people as they travel that path can be one of the most rewarding aspects to selling real estate. Every sale is a journey which ends with an empty house, ready to create new memories for generations to come.