Downsizing: Where to Start

If you’ve been thinking about downsizing but keep putting it off because you don’t know where to start, you’re in very good company.

After nearly 30 years in real estate, I’ve met many homeowners who know their current home no longer suits their life. Maybe there are rooms they rarely use. The stairs are becoming a nuisance. The yard feels more like a job than a pleasure. Or maybe they simply want less house, less maintenance and more freedom.

They know they want something different.

They just don’t know how to get from here to there.

And that’s where people often get stuck.

The first thing to do is NOT start packing

This surprises people.

You don’t need to start with the basement. You don’t need to call a junk removal company. You don’t need to paint the house, replace the kitchen counters or spend your weekend sorting through 30 years of belongings.

And you definitely don’t need to start throwing things out in a panic.

The first thing you need is a plan.

Before you make decisions about your belongings or your house, you need to understand what you’re moving toward.

Ask yourself a few basic questions.

Do I want a condo, bungalow, retirement community or something else? Do I want to stay in my neighbourhood? Would I consider another part of Toronto or the GTA? Do I want to buy again or rent? How much space do I actually need? What would make my day-to-day life easier?

And, of course, there’s the financial question: What is my current home worth, and what will that allow me to do next?

You don’t have to know all the answers yet. That’s the point of starting with a plan.

Find out what your home is actually worth

For many longtime Toronto homeowners, their house is one of their largest financial assets.

Before making decisions about where you can go, what you can afford or how much money you’ll have left after the move, you need a realistic understanding of what your property could sell for in the current market.

Not what the neighbour’s house sold for three years ago.

Not what an online calculator says.

And not the number you’ve been carrying around in your head because someone at a dinner party told you what houses in the neighbourhood are worth. Dinner parties are wonderful. Property evaluations, perhaps not so much.

A proper evaluation should look at recent comparable sales, current competition, your home’s condition, location, lot, features and what buyers are actually responding to in today’s market.

Once you have that number, you can begin looking at your options with much more clarity.

Figure out where you would go before worrying about how you’ll get there

One of the biggest fears I hear is:

“If I sell my house, where am I going to go?”

It’s a very reasonable question.

This is why downsizing shouldn’t begin with a FOR SALE sign.

We can explore what your next home might look like and what it would cost before you commit to selling anything.

Sometimes people discover they can comfortably move to exactly the type of home they had in mind. Other times, we need to adjust the plan.

Either way, information is far less frightening than uncertainty.

Then look at the house

Once we know what you want, where you might go and approximately what your home is worth, we can turn our attention to preparing the property for sale.

And please don’t assume you have to renovate everything.

One of the most common mistakes homeowners make is spending money on improvements without knowing whether buyers will actually pay them back for it.

Sometimes painting makes sense. Sometimes a repair is important. Sometimes decluttering or rearranging furniture is enough. And sometimes I walk into a house and tell the homeowner, “Don’t touch it.”

The goal isn’t to create somebody else’s dream house at your expense.

The goal is to determine what, if anything, will help your home show well and achieve the best possible result when it comes to market.

What about all the stuff?

Here we are.

The basement.

The garage.

The closets.

The china nobody wants but nobody is allowed to get rid of.

For many people, this is actually the most overwhelming part of downsizing.

A home you’ve lived in for decades isn’t simply full of things. It’s full of memories, family history and belongings that have accumulated one perfectly reasonable item at a time.

You do not have to deal with all of it in one weekend.

Start with what you know you won’t need in your next home. Work in small sections. Decide what will move with you, what family members might want, what can be donated, what can be sold and what can finally go.

And if you need help, get help.

There are professionals who can assist with sorting, packing, donating, selling contents, moving, repairs, cleaning and virtually every other part of the process.

You shouldn’t have to become a project manager just because you decided to move.

Downsizing is a series of decisions, not one giant decision

I think this is one of the most important things for homeowners to understand.

You do not wake up one morning, decide to downsize and immediately put your house on the market.

At least, you shouldn’t have to.

A good downsizing plan happens in stages:

First, we talk.We figure out what isn’t working anymore and what you’d like your next stage of life to look like.

Then, we make a plan.We look at your home’s value, your housing options, timing, finances and what needs to happen before you move.

Then, we prepare.We deal with the house and its contents in a sensible order, bringing in trusted professionals when necessary.

Then, when you’re ready, we sell and move.

You remain in control throughout the process.

You don’t have to be ready to sell to start planning

This may be the most important point of all.

Talking to a real estate professional about downsizing does not mean you have decided to sell your home.

You might move in three months.

You might move next year.

You might look at all your options and decide to stay exactly where you are for now.

That’s okay.

The purpose of the first conversation isn’t to convince you to move. It’s to replace some of the uncertainty with information so you can make decisions that are right for you.

So, what should you do first?

Don’t start packing.

Don’t start renovating.

And please don’t attack the basement armed with 47 garbage bags because you suddenly decided today is the day.

Start with a conversation and a plan.

I offer a free Downsizing Concierge Service for homeowners who want help figuring out what comes next. We can look at your home, talk about what it may be worth, explore your options and put together a step-by-step plan based on your timing and priorities.

There’s no obligation to sell, and there’s no need to have everything figured out before you call.

In fact, that’s exactly when you should call.

If you’re thinking about downsizing your Toronto or GTA home but don’t know where to start, let’s talk. We’ll figure out the first step together.

Sandra Rinomato | Real Estate Broker, SRS®, SRES®

Helping homeowners and homebuyers who feel stuck overcome obstacles and move forward with confidence.