Moving to a smaller home. Bad idea?

[HairLikeAMadWomansKnitting]

I know the house v's location question gets asked a lot, but I'm in a quandary...

We have the opportunity to buy a plot of land and build our own home (OH is a builder). We LOVE the location of the plot; beautiful quiet lane, closer to school, near friends, lovely walks, nice town etc. but the only problem is the house would be considerably smaller than we currently have.

At the moment we have a garage and a utility room, but would have neither at the new place. I've thought of a few practical solutions as to where to keep the dogs food/bed/washing machine etc. but I'm wondering if we'd be completely crazy to leave a home which is the perfect size (and we're happy enough here), to move to somewhere smaller.

The problem is, if the plot/house was bigger, we just couldn't afford it.

Any advice/ideas please?

This would be my dream; a simple, small, low-maintenance self-build in the ideal location. I'd love a back-to-basics lifestyle, but then again I've never had a garage or utility room to miss in the first place.

What would the over all benefit be if you did this?
Reducing outgoings? Better quality of life?

Would there be opportunity to expand in the future if you felt you needed to?

You can use small spaces cleverly e.g. putting in a bunk bed over a desk / storage area will give more floor space. Lots of storage can make a small space feel bigger as there isn't the clutter.

I suppose the overall benefits would be banking some money, reducing our outgoings a little, living within walking distance of the children's school (we currently live in the next town so they have to get a bus) and living in a nice location.

At the moment we live on a large housing estate, which does have its advantages at times, but we'd prefer to live on a more rural lane.

I don't think we could increase the footprint of the house really as it would already fit quite snuggly onto the plot. We're already planning a bedroom in the roof so there's not much scope to extend at all.

I just love the road the plot is on, and we probably couldn't afford to buy anything else on the road. The garden is quite small but there is plenty of open space for playing/walking around the plot.

I literally change my mind on an hourly basis at the moment! [Grin]

How old are your DCs?

If they are already teens it won't be that long until they leave home (hopefully ).

If they are young I don't think I'd want to reduce size. And I would really miss a 'futility' room.

They are 20, 14 and 12. Our one year old grandson lives with us as well at the moment.

I would do it!

Basement.?

Do it.

Basement is a good idea! We're going to look into it. A small basement big enough for a washing machine and bits and pieces would be perfect!

I really want to do this.

OH is busily drawing up plans as we speak...

Thanks for your input everyone.

Hurrah....... Freezer, cold room........... Shelving ..laundry chute direct to basement

Gets carried away..

We moved to a smaller home last week. It needs loads of work but we LOVE the position and it will be gorgeous when the renovations are complete. We've gone from a 4 bed/5 rec house to a 3 bed/2 rec bungalow. Our outgoings will have halved and we'll be here forever.

Do it!