Downsizing -- pros/cons?

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@Jolynne_Smyth if I were to get an RV I would probably tow a small car behind it.

We went and looked at some at a show recently. I will say some of the 5th wheel trailers were pretty nice.

What I am most worried about is the cost of RV campgrounds etc.

If we don’t go the RV route I will buy a house or condo outright in full. So I would only have my property taxes and insurance to deal with. And utilities of course. That would be cheaper, but we would be stuck in one place.

I probably should have mentioned that my wife really just can’t get comfortable in a hotel room.

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gpo613 - my friend’s 5th wheel is really huge! Some are very nice!

If your wife doesn’t care for hotel rooms - that sounds like a significant factor in favor of something like an RV! Does she feel the same about Air BnB or VRBO places?

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Re: RVs. My biggest beef with hotels etc. is mattress quality. The older we get, the less excited we get about sleeping on a brick. :slight_smile: At least with some hotel brands, you know what you get - most of the time, but not always. Our friends considered buying an RV for that particular reason - so they could always sleep on a comfy Tempur while they travel. We think we will just stick with Marriotts. :slight_smile:

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I think we might rent an RV at some point. I have no desire to buy one. Seems way too expensive and a big headache. Just owning a snowmobile has turned out to be a much bigger expense than I realized! Buying the vehicle is just the beginning of the costs.

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I suppose you could insert an RV or snowmobile, but…

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Like a boat: a hole in the water into which one pours money. Or Bust Out Another Thousand. :slight_smile:

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This is a good place to start. It’s not only the amount of space needs/wants that change but how it is used.

I have shared that we recently (closed on Monday) bought a house which we will be moving into. Our original plan was to buy a small condo in the city and a house on a lake. We realized that the small condos in the neighborhoods we liked were very expensive. And with the pandemic I was no longer comfortable with shared hallways/elevators/fitness rooms. So our next thought was a townhouse. But the townhouses we liked (which were in budget) were not in the area of the city that we had fallen in love with. We decided to look at single family homes smaller than our current house. Thant’s when we found THE house. I never thought we would buy a 4 bedroom place again but with one bedroom set up as an office (with built ins) and another set up as a fitness room (with a built in murphy bed), the 4 bedrooms made sense for us. The yard is the size of a town house yard, which IMO is perfect.

Our idea of what will work for us evolved until we found this place. Don’t be surprised if that happens as you go through this process.

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When considering rooms at a new place, don’t forget to think about your current attic and basement and garage.

Example - In a condo, we would not need the lawnmower or snowthrower from the garage. But we still might want some folding chairs, a cooler, skis and bikes. And we’d miss storing our car inside, especially if in a location that has Winters. There would be lots of compromises downsizing. And I have not even delved into Basement example.

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@Colorado_mom - I agree.

We are in our second condo. I have mentioned this before, but we initially downsized to 935 sq ft and have since upsized to 1,600 sq ft. However, the condo in the first building had a small, on-site storage unit - I think it was 3’ x 4’ and 8 feet tall. We don’t have that here, unfortunately. It’s surprising what a big difference NOT having that makes, and I miss it. Kitchen and clothing storage (closets) in this unit is perfectly adequate, but extra things are harder. We do have a storage contraption in our garage - not sure what to call it, but it is almost like a freezer chest in its shape and not conducive for odd-shaped things or for getting things in and out easily. A cooler is a great example. We can hang chairs and bikes in the garage in front of our space, however.

Parking is definitely something to think about. We have one designated spot in our garage, but there is pretty decent guest parking. That is definitely something to look for in a condo or townhouse situation. Where will friends and family park if they drive over to visit you.

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This is exactly why I think we will end up renting a storage unit if we stay with living in an apartment only. Yes, I will get rid of most of my home maintenance items (things like leaf blower, many tools, etc.) But, I still need a place for my holiday decorations, culled down mementos, etc.

Many apartments have underground parking for a fee. A very few have storage lockers for a fee.

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My seasonal rental is probably 800 square feet, but I have been in some that are smaller. I rent a small storage unit for $45/month for photo albums, Christmas stuff, and so on. Right now I move to a summer rental then back here to a winter rental I like, in an area close to the elderly parent I care for. When she dies I can rent seasonally anywhere and am interested in New Mexico to start.

The rents in my area are astronomical so flexibility is key in getting the best deals for my seasonal rentals, and spending time in lower cost areas will help stretch my retirement funds.

Eventually I will settle near a kid or two. Right now the idea of buying furniture and pots and pans all over again is daunting. Be careful with the RV idea: if it doesn’t work out you may also face buying furniture etc. COVID makes it even harder.

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This is what I think I would do. Pay $45 a month for a small storage unit. Pack up anything I put in there in labelled plastic containers. And have out of the way, stuff we never use (but want to keep - like my husband’s father’s war letters) and stuff we use once a year (like the holiday decorations). This really makes more sense (financially also) then having a bigger apartment or condo (with space you don’t really need) just to house these extra things.
I feel the same with the actual space in the apartment. Yes, one room is doubling as my office and a place for my daughter to sleep over. When she is sleeping over that is a little tight. But we are only 30 minutes from her, so her staying over will be minimal.

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I will share our storage unit experience. Maybe it is unique to where I live (FL), idk.

Without going into unnecessary details about the why’s of our relocation situation, we started out with a 10’ x 10’, climate-controlled storage unit. If memory serves me correctly, that was about $80 per month. The storage places down here are very transparent about the fact that your rates will increase at stated intervals of time. Every few months - can’t recall how many. But, the rent on that 10 x 10 space had probably gone up to around $120 per month.

We were able fairly easily at that point to go down to a 5’ x 10’ space. We stayed at the same spot the entire time we needed a storage unit, btw. I think that dropped us down to around $65 per month? Then that went up a couple of times in price.

Ds visited and purged some things we had of his, and we were able to go down to a 5’ x 5’ foot unit. By then, they had raised their rates across the board, and, I think we paid $75 to start for that size. As time passed, the rate went up to around $135 or $140 per month. So, eventually we were paying more for the 5 x 5 space than we had originally for the 10 x 10 space. At that point we decided we needed to be done with it.

Now, you can save money by changing storage unit places and starting over with a lower rate at a new location. Many offer first month at half price or some other promotion as well. But, then you have to schlep your stuff from on facility to another. Depending on what you have stored, your personal vehicle may not be conducive to that.

As I wrote, maybe some places start at $45 per month and stay that way. It doesn’t work that way here - at any storage place. Definitely worth it to investigate. But, yes, if the price differential on an apartment or whatever is less than storage, perhaps it makes sense. Just be aware that costs can creep up over time and sometimes fairly quickly.

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Making note to self to let the lads know we’ll be storing some things at their places in the future… :sunglasses:

I guess it’ll be swapping roles since they still have things here.

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A $45 monthly storage unit rate sounds like a decent deal. I’ve heard people complain about $100/month (for not huge units)… or much more at peak demand times.

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Just a note about storage units. My inlaws had one for 10 years in FL. By the time they finally got around to going through the boxes they didn’t part with when they downsized, they didn’t want anything. I think they gave the entire contents away other than one single box. If you can go a year without touching what’s in the unit, toss the stuff and save the money ; )

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Donate the stuff if possible… helps save the planet. :sunglasses:

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My storage unit is 5 X5 and is already down to bare minimum contents. I have thrown out things like old letters for instance. I reread them and determined that I have behaved decently on paper and then threw them out :slight_smile:

I have to admit the owner of our storage unit is a wonderful guy who treats customers like friends. He told me the prices have gone up but he is not raising mine, so I am lucky.

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@FallGirl read my mind – except we’re still looking for THE house. We originally started looking at everything, from a condo in the city, to a cabin in the woods or on water. Condos in the city were too small, often lack parking, and $$$$; we would miss access to a private green space; and dislike entering our “home” through a hall or elevator lobby, even before Covid. Townhomes in the suburbs are few, less accessible, and still too $$$. Small cabin in the woods, unfortunately not as practical at our age, and only $$.

We didn’t buy immediately, first waiting to see if the children were settled. We were also hoping for something “special”, thinking we would know it when we saw it. In the meantime, prices in the PNW have skyrocketed, unlike our current Midwest home. So, we rent a very small “pied-a-terre”, and commute (via plane) which is more difficult, if not unwise, during Covid.

Space in the small apartment is not a problem for just two of us, but only because we know it is temporary, and return to our home for about 6-7 months over a year’s time. We treat our lives very differently in the two locations. Ex: Crafts or music / Long-time friends: at home. Exploring / Family time: apartment. With two distant residences however, something we want, or need is often at the other location (anything from specific equipment to MD’s to older paper files). USPS is a royal pain, despite unreliable Informed Delivery, forwarding, holding, and most communication/banking/bills via the web.

Renting has taught me that I do not want to purchase anything that is stacked or too dense. Neighbors can be great – or not. HOA’s can be fine – or not. Ask me how I know. Much easier to ignore (or relocate) when renting.

Originally looking for condo/townhouse/cabin/house was fun. Now it is simply disheartening. At least we have a home somewhere. I feel for the next generation who by the time they have enough saved for a down payment on a first home, continue to fall substantially behind because of exponential real estate increases.

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From what I have heard, a lot of the stuff that is donated gets tossed as well.