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Sometimes, moving up in life means downsizing your home. Downsizing may seem like an impossible endeavor, but it could be the fresh start you need to enjoy new found freedom during this season of life.
Simplifying your lifestyle may actually add dividends back to your life and spark new joy. Keep on reading for 5 perks of downsizing your life!
Love the Space You Live In
If your house has entire rooms that haven’t been used in quite some time, downsizing may be a good idea since you’re not efficiently using all the space in your home.
You may be paying for parts of your house that you aren’t necessarily “living in” anymore, whether that be through property taxes, air conditioning, or cleaning services.
This doesn’t necessarily mean a guest room or extra bathroom, but a good rule of thumb is if you’re only going into a room to clean it, you’ll probably be fine without it. Add more value to your life by loving and using the space that you call home.
Let’s reflect – when was the last time you used your basement for a movie night? Do you now only use it to store old memorabilia or DVDs? This could also be an exercise room that has now turned into a storage room, or an office room that’s picking up a lot of dust because of it’s rare use. Sarah Susanka wrote about quality over quantity in her acclaimed book, The Not So Big House: A Blueprint for the Way We Really Live.
Spark Joy
Owning too much stuff that is of little use could be a sign it’s time to clean out, but it may also mean it’s best for you to downsize. Streamline your life and have it default to easy instead of chaos by only keeping items that spark joy. The results may just surprise you!
"Now imagine yourself living in a space that contains only things that spark joy. Isn't this the lifestyle you dream of?" – Marie Kondo, author of the life-changing magic of tidying up.
Throw away anything that seems of little use and give away the things you surely won’t be needing anymore in your future home to family, friends or charity. Not to mention, the emergence of apps such as Facebook Marketplace, Nextdoor, Decluttr, and Offerup make it easy to sell your items online.
Imagine how much joy it will bring you knowing that once special items you used, now provide others with significant use.
For example, when Arden team member, Martha Bader's father downsized and gave her a family dresser, he would always comment when he visited her how happy it made him that it was in her home and well-loved. Him passing along something he didn't use, brought both him and his daughter much happiness.
Have More Time For You
Another significant reason to consider downsizing has to do with how you’re handling the upkeep of the home. Home maintenance is a never ending task, taking up time and energy, why not outsource all of that drain to make more time for yourself.
Think about it this way: Is keeping the house clean and safe becoming difficult? Is lawn-care, snow removal in the winter, and gutter-cleaning becoming too much of a hassle or expensive?
Not to forget all the time it would take coordinating to find a trusted person to do the work, hoping they show up on time and get the problem fixed on the first try. Imagine how easy it would be to just outsource that in-house to a professional full-service maintenance team?
If it’s become a strain on you, either physically or financially, you should consider moving to an active community that provides an efficient home and lifestyle that’s easier to maintain and has fewer upkeep duties.
At a brand-new community, like Arden, maintenance, appliances, and landscaping are all taken care of so you can enjoy living life at ease and to the fullest.
Easier Money Management & Simplified Financial Planning
Community living and downsizing can be an effective way to cut costs and shift funds to other things that are more important.
Smaller living spaces are generally less expensive and incur lower monthly maintenance costs – lower rent payments, lower energy bills, fewer items to repair around the apartment, etc.
It’s no secret that housing costs take up a huge chunk off of your disposable income and any way to decrease these expenses will let you have more breathing room when managing your finances. In addition, living in a 55+ community makes it easy to plan out expenses without having to worry about an unexpected cost such as a new roof, replacing an air conditioning unit, or changing housing taxes.
Obtain Freedom & Choice
Moving from a house into an apartment community will free up a considerable amount of time you would either spend mowing the front lawn, household maintenance, or pulling out annoying weeds around your house.
Suddenly, it’s all up to you to decide how to best use the extra hours you are given – more time to try new things, meet new people, or just enjoy the extra time doing what you already love. You now have the freedom to choose your own adventures again and get back in the driver’s seat of your life!
Our community is dedicated to building a rich and vibrant lifestyle so that everything you could ever need or want will be right at your fingertips. With a maintenance-free life, you can foster meaningful relationships in our close-knit community while creating the life you want and deserve.
Is It Time to Downsize?
The best part is, you don’t have to downsize, but the choice is there if you want it! Downsizing your life is a big decision. Doing so will not only be a great feat but also become the start of a new and exciting chapter of life.
The process of moving into a new home is a personal experience similar to a journey of self-discovery, and the benefits you’ll get from a program-enriched active adult living community are well worth the change.
When you’re ready to downsize, we’ll be happy to show you where to start – Arden Senior Living’s fully equipped living spaces and close-knit community are ready to welcome you home. To make things easier for you, we have partners in place to handle the details so you don’t have to – Life Easier, NASMM, and Sage Organizing Co.
Fill out our contact form here and our friendly team of leasing professionals will reach out to you shortly!