DOWNSIZING MADE EASY, WHETHER YOU STAY OR GO

MY MOST COMMON DOWNSIZING ADVICE by Anna Novak, November 19, 2023

Introduction:

Does it seems like everyone is talking about downsizing right now? If you’re over 50, you’re probably hearing it a lot! In fact, the typical home seller in 2023 was 60 years old, according to the National Association of Realtors. When you combine the Baby Boomers’ buying power with a less-is-more attitude and a desire to pursue a carefree lifestyle, it’s easy to see how the downsizing trend can be expected to continue many years into the future.

I’ve spent the last six years managing downsizing moves in the Washington DC area. After helping people of all ages downsize in all kinds of circumstances, I have learned to start the conversation with the same general advice: Keep the focus on what’s going with you, don’t get hung up on the value of the things that aren’t, and take advantage of the resources available to you to get everything done correctly, respectfully, and completely with a minimum of stress.

Step 1: You don’t have to empty your entire home by yourself

This is probably the biggest misconception that I hear from downsizers who are just beginning their process. I can see why some would jump to this conclusion, but wow is that overwhelming or what? Many downsizers have accumulated the stuff in their homes over decades, and the sheer volume of belongings puts the job squarely in the “I can’t do this by myself” category.

Yes, technically it is “your” stuff, and “your” responsibility to make decisions about it, but the kindest thing you can do for yourself in the early stages is to set a different goal for being “finished”. In my experience, your mental and physical energy should be reserved for the hard work of working on what you’re taking with you, and leaving the stuff you’re not taking with you to the professionals to disburse appropriately and efficiently.

The other benefit of this approach is that you get to spend the last months in your current home enjoying it, instead of dismantling everything and living in chaos for weeks or months on end. So, that brings us to tip #2, which is…

Step 2: Focus on the stuff you’re keeping

Your real job is to get focused on preserving the items that you truly want and need in your next chapter, especially items that literally can’t be replaced. If you have any lead time, use it to go through your personal items like family jewelry, tangible proof of family history, awards, photos, mementos, slides, videos, yearbooks, letters, and cherished drawings—anything that contributes to your personal narrative.

These collections should be dealt with early in your process, or if you don’t have enough time, you should at least gather them all together and make a plan for transporting and storing them until you have the time to give them the attention they deserve. Obviously, legal records and financial documents should be identified early in the process and secured accordingly.

After securing your personal history and vital documents, you’ll turn your attention to the most appropriate, useful, and beloved household and decorative items that will come with you on your move. This process involves careful consideration of the actual space that you’re moving to, and deliberate decisions about where everything will live. We highly recommend a careful floor plan and detailed decisions about art and decorative items that will make your home feel exactly the way you want it.

By the way, some people want their next home to be smaller versions of their previous homes, while others are excited to create something totally new in their next space. It’s totally up to you, but either way, there is quite a bit of advanced planning either way.

Step 3: Don’t waste valuable time trying to figure out what your stuff is worth

When you embrace the idea of keeping all of your focus on what’s going with you (see tip #2), the flip side of that decision is letting go of overthinking or worrying about the stuff that’s not going with you.

I’ve been doing this work for a while, and the one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that you have no control over what unneeded stuff is worth, either from an emotional standpoint (“they don’t want Grandma’s china??”) or a resale standpoint (“but we paid $8K for this dining room furniture!”). Anytime you spend trying to research, anticipate, or calculate the amount of money your unwanted belongings might bring in the secondary market is time and energy you could have spent on either setting yourself up for success in your next chapter or relaxing and enjoying your current home, community, lifestyle, etc. in advance of your move.

Of course, you’ll want to make sure that anything of value is handled with care and sent to the appropriate final destination, but I strongly advise you to leave this process to professionals who actually know the best avenues to disburse or liquidate your unneeded items efficiently and can provide the labor to get everything where it needs to go. The good news is that a reputable estate specialist will be able to identify everything that may be sold and will maximize efforts to net as much money as possible for your items.

This goes for real estate, too. I’ve noticed that many times, the Realtor is the first one to get the call when people decide to downsize, even if their goals are months or even years into the future. However, the real estate landscape literally changes week to week, and even the numbers you may find on the internet are ballpark (and frequently misleading), Sadly, I’ve seen some families get so focused on unrealistic gains from selling their home that it negatively influenced the entire downsizing process.

My advice is to keep an open mind and use a conservative guesstimate of how much your property may be worth because neither you nor your Realtor have control over the market forces that will impact your sale at the time that you are actually ready to sell.

Step 4: Your choice of mover matters.

Your actual move has both the potential to be a joy of efficiency and care or a total nightmare that stresses you out to no end. Choosing the lowest cost mover rarely works out. Remember, you’re only taking the things that mean the most to you. So why would you risk loss or damage to your very favorite, most important things?

The other risk is dependability. We usually work with a complex timeline that relies on a strategy of logistics, building, and staff availability, and tight windows to complete the job, and unexpected delays can end up costing you a lot more money and stress in the long term. Also, in my experience, low-end moving estimates are also notorious for hidden fees and escalating costs.

Step 5: Accept that you’re going to need help.

If you’re still reading, it should be no surprise that I advocate a careful plan for downsizing and moving, and that it may include more services than you were initially picturing. I’ve seen industry estimates that project over 80 hours of work to complete a typical downsizing move, but some of my most experienced colleagues tell me that 80 hours seems like a low number to them! Of course, just like anything else, it all depends on your goals, your location, and your specific situation.

Difference Between Decluttering and Downsizing

By Anna Novak, Home Transition Pros

When you’re downsizing you’ll undoubtedly hear that you need to “declutter”. I think what people mean is the obvious fact that you’ll end up separating out clutter from your good stuff in the process of downsizing. I agree! Downsizing is definitely a time when you’ll need to make decisions about what to keep and what to throw away.

But, at the risk of putting too fine a point on it, I want to clarify the difference between the activities of “decluttering” and “downsizing”, because in my world they are actually two dramatically different things.

Decluttering

If you’re decluttering, you’re looking to reduce your belongings by 15% to 30%. You’ll select and remove things that are either no longer serving your needs or no longer good for anything to anyone. You’ll remove accumulated paper, household items you’re not using anymore, clothing you don’t wear, furnishings that take up too much space, or outdated décor that makes your home look tired. The goal of decluttering is to make more space in your home so that it will be more organized, easier to keep clean, and generally a nicer place to be.

If you’re selling your home, you’ll be advised to declutter so that your rooms will appear larger, more clean, and more stylish. Too many belongings in your home will make buyers think there isn’t enough storage available. In fact, when photographs are taken to market your property, you’ll be asked to remove just about everything off of counters, tables, and shelves in order to best showcase the features of your home. If you’ve ever visited a model home or a fully staged property for sale, you’ll notice that the ideal scenario includes almost no personal belongings at all.

Downsizing

If you’re downsizing, the ratio is basically flipped. When you are actively engaged in a move to a much smaller space, you’re looking for the 15% to 30% of your belongings that you want to KEEP. Yes, obviously everything will eventually be removed from the home, but your priority is selecting the things that will go with you. This includes irreplaceable sentimental and personal history items, vital documents, necessary household objects, and the most comfortable, useful clothing and personal items. You’ll want to carefully choose furnishings and art that reflects your personal style and fits your new, smaller space.

Most of my clients agree that it’s a lot easier to focus on cherry picking their favorite things instead of getting hung up on finding a home for everything that’s not going with them. When you limit decisions to what you’re taking, you eliminate hundreds of tiny decisions that can really wear you down and add stress.

At the end of the day, it’s actually more efficient and productive to leave your unneeded things behind to be handled by people who know what they’re doing and have the physical resources to move things safely.

Of course, decluttering and downsizing are both important activities for anyone who wants to improve their comfort at home and their overall lifestyle. But, if your goal is to downsize and move to a smaller space, you may actually be wasting valuable time and resources on decluttering.