Downsizing homes is something I’ve had to do with my family several times during my life, but it wasn’t until my recent move last summer that I realized downsizing isn’t as easy as it seems. Moving to a smaller home or living space does have a lot of pros, but could potentially have an equal amount of cons. For those of you who are considering downsizing it’s beneficial to consider what’s most important in your living environment. Below are some key points that I recognized after moving. But, as they say, hindsight is always 20/20!
Family Members
I don’t have any human children, but I do have my fur babies. In downsizing, we lost more than 500 square feet inside the home but thankfully gained a significant amount of backyard space. After the move I experienced the animals being under foot a lot more than normal inside, but with such a big back yard, I didn’t feel bad about putting them out. But, we all know how energetic children (human or four-legged) can be, so downsizing to a space that doesn’t have much room for playing indoors or outdoors could quickly become a problem.
Storage Space and Clutter
Downsizing homes means downsizing storage space. With the lack of storage and closet space, I find my self stacking things in corners of rooms, on chairs and in places around the house that shouldn’t be cluttered. I also have a collector in the family who wants everything to be displayed just right, but with the lack of space, shelves, cabinets, countertops and end tables got pretty cluttered very quickly.
Attachment
If I could just let go of certain things, clutter wouldn’t be an issue and neither would deciding whether or not to rent storage space. But, I can’t. I’m emotionally attached to all of my belongings. A lot of people don’t want to go through the emotional pain of scaling back or getting rid of things from loved ones who may no longer be alive, or meaningful family possessions passed down from generation to generation.
Entertaining Guests
It’s true…when friends and family come over, everyone tends to gather around and hang out in the kitchen. I noticed right away that with less room in the kitchen, it was harder to cook for and entertain family and friends.
* Some people wind up regretting downsizing. Do you have a story to share?
