How To Downsize Your Home: 6 Key Steps To Success

Reviewed by: Brandon Brown

Found yourself asking: should I downsize my house? Family homes are filled with a lifetime of loving memories, but when your house becomes more of a burden than a reprieve it’s probably time to downsize your space for a smaller home to accommodate your changing lifestyle.

Don’t worry too much about downsizing home base, though—moving into a new house doesn’t mean you need to toss out every memento without a second thought. In fact, downsizing offers a unique opportunity to revisit memories as you clean and declutter your current home and opens up space in your life to create new memories to cherish. 

If you’re ready to shrink your square footage and simplify your life, follow this helpful guide for how to downsize your home. 

#1 Get Organized

Now that you’ve decided to sell your larger home and downsize to a more manageable house size, you can begin by planning how you’ll approach the task of whittling down a lifetime of collected items and memories. 

For that, you may want to create a downsizing home checklist that documents items by room. In this document, you’ll also want to include measurements of your larger furniture items that you plan to sell or move to your new home. 

That said, going through your belongings takes time. Budget a few weeks of organization into your timeline to avoid unnecessary stress prior to moving. 

Then, visualize the type of home you’ll be most comfortable in and how you want it to function—are you looking for a one-story ranch house or opting for a cozy townhome? Think about what you need from the area you’re moving to as well, like easy access to shops or medical facilities. Then begin your home search online. 

#2 Declutter & Discard Unwanted Items

Once you have a better idea of your new living space and what will work for your lifestyle, start taking stock of your possessions. Bring out your inner Marie Kondo to sort through your clutter and keep a shortlist of items that “spark joy.”¹ 

But we have several other helpful tips, too. Remember that decluttering is a crucial step when moving into a smaller space. 

Tip #1: Sort Through Sentimental Items

Going through your family home you’ve created decades of memories in will have you walking down memory lane. But it’s important to keep in mind that you probably won’t have the space for every sentimental thing in your new smaller home. Items that evoke strong memories like wedding dresses, your child’s first grade artwork, or high school yearbooks are often the hardest to part with. Memories bring with them heavy emotions, and revisiting life’s milestones can be overwhelming. 

When sorting through sentimentals, ask a family member to help you make unbiased decisions about what to keep and what to give away.² 

If something’s been stored away out of sight for years and years, though, it will most likely stay that way through your next move as well. Give forgotten items to family and friends, and whittle down the finger painting portraits to one or two favorites.

You can also consider digitizing some of your more precious notes and photographs to create more space in your new home. 

Tip #2: Have A Yard Sale To Make Extra Cash

Once you’ve identified which items you’re taking with you and which you’re parting ways with, organize a yard sale. 

Begin by advertising your sale with neighborhood posters or online listings, then sort through your items and price then accordingly. 

Although hosting a yard sale requires lots of time and space to prep, it’s a good way to quickly free up space while bringing in extra cash for your efforts. You can also enlist the help of friends to make it a memorable farewell day for your old favorites you no longer need. 

Tip #3: Try Online Sales Outlets

If a yard sale isn’t possible, consider listing your unwanted items online. 

Focus on local forums like Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist where buyers can easily buy and collect heavy furniture. If you’re prepared to add shipping to your list of pre-move to-do’s, collectibles and household items often sell well on sites like eBay. 

Tip #4: Donate Gently Used Items 

When you’re sorting through unwanted items, set aside gently used things like clothes, shoes, and books to donate rather than toss out. Some organizations will even come to your home to collect large tax-deductible donations, including furniture and household goods. 

You could also reach out to your local buy-nothing group to give some of your old favorites a new life. 

#3 Pack & Store Your Items

After you’ve managed to successfully declutter your home, packing and storage solutions should be comparatively easier. Think about how you want to handle the moving process:

• Stay organized – Box up your belongings bit by bit as you go through each room and sort out what you want to keep so you aren’t packing everything at the last minute. This will be extremely helpful when unpacking in your new place.

• Consider the cost/benefit of hiring movers – While moving yourself can save money, you’ll still need to rent a truck, secure boxes, and call in favors to family and friends for help. A moving company can save you time and handle those extra-heavy items with ease.

• Use portable storage pods – Portable storage pods allow you to pack and load your items on your own time, without having to handle the transportation logistics. And they’re the perfect temporary storage solution if you sell your house before you’ve moved into your new home.

• Take your time – If you’ve already got the keys to your new home before selling your current one, you can take your time moving your belongings and have wiggle room for doing any design tweaks to the new space before you fill it with boxes and furniture. 

#4 Get Your Finances In Order

When you’re getting ready to downsize, keep in mind hidden costs that could make your new abode less affordable than you think. Consider the area you’re relocating to as well as how you’ll finance your new home to help you set a target sale price for your current place. 

Some other factors to consider include:

• Any remaining mortgage payments

• Moving fees 

• Insurance 

• Maintenance cost

• New rent or mortgage 

• Furnishing your new space

• Taxes and utilities 

• HOA fees 

Knowing what you can afford will help you make the best choice when purchasing or renting your new house. If downsizing your home is part of your retirement plan, consider a leaner debt to income ratio when calculating your housing budget to conserve your fiscal resources.³

#5 Make Repairs & Stage Your Home For Sale

Now is also a good time to make the repairs your current home needs before selling it. Getting your home ready to list and show can make life uncomfortable, especially once it’s on the market—having to deep clean, hide personal items, and disappear at the drop of a hat can be a challenge.

Housing experts typically advise sellers to adjust decor and make repairs to a home to appeal to potential buyers with a wow-worthy first impression. Oftentimes, these upgrades include:

• Revamping kitchens with new appliances

• Patching and painting walls

• Improving plumbing in kitchens and bathrooms

• Modernizing light fixtures, banisters, and countertops

• Staging the home with rental furniture

• Removing identifying photos and keepsakes

 

#6 Consider a Cash-Buyer

If you’re looking to close quickly, consider selling your home to a cash-buyer. There are quite a few benefits of accepting a cash offer on a house. In this case, you can oftentimes sell your home as-is—no renovations needed.

When you work with an off-market homebuyer like FlipSplit, we pay top-dollar, tackle renovations, and split the profit with you once the home is resold. 

Selling a house to a cash buyer as-in also involves fewer selling fees—you won’t have to worry about realtor commissions or closing costs—and you’ll receive your money more quickly than if you were dealing with a mortgage loan from a buyer’s bank.

Make Downsizing Quick And Easy With Help From FlipSplit

Just like any move, downsizing your home takes ample planning—and time. Because you’ll be moving into a smaller space, it’s critical that you make an inventory of your items and sell those that won’t fit in your new home. You’ll also want to organize your finances by factoring in selling fees or considering a cash-buyer option.

If you’re downsizing in pursuit of a simplified life, why not simplify your home sale process as well? At FlipSplit, we buy your home fast with no muss or fuss, making your next move easy. You don’t need to worry about negotiations, financing red tape, or contingencies. 

We can even take on decluttering and renovations. 

If you’re having trouble clearing out unwanted items from your home, just leave them in place and we’ll take care of it for you after the sale. We’ll tackle the tough stuff like demo and reno so you can spend more time revisiting memories while you prepare to make new ones. 

Make things easy with FlipSplit.

Sources: 

1. KonMari. How to Downsize. https://konmari.com/how-to-downsize-a-home/
2. AARP. How to Cope With Downsizing Your Home. https://www.aarp.org/retirement/planning-for-retirement/info-2019/coping-with-downsizing.html
3. Time/NextAdvisor. This Is How Much of Your Income Should Go Toward Housing, According to the 28/36 Rule. https://time.com/nextadvisor/mortgages/how-much-income-should-go-to-your-mortgage/
4. Senior Living. Downsizing Tips for Seniors. https://www.seniorliving.org/housing/downsizing/
5. U.S. News & World Report. The Do’s and Don’ts of Downsizing Your Home. https://realestate.usnews.com/real-estate/articles/dos-and-donts-of-downsizing-your-home