Are you planning to downsize when you are older?

[D20]

What age/life stage are you aiming for? We’ve always assumed at some point we will downsize (physically) when we retire. Our Mortgage will be paid off, kids will be well on their way into adulthood. Both of our neighbours are now in their 70s and in failing health but no plans to move so I wonder if we’ll end up the same.

We are planning to in the next few years. We live a big rural house and plan to move into town to a smaller house where we can walk to shops, etc. We don't want to be here in our 70s.

Having just cleared 40 years of stuff from my mum's house I absolutely want to downsize and declutter ruthlessly once my dc leave home. She had passed the point of being able to manage the house and garden a few years before she died and I don't want to lay that burden on my dc. I'm 45 so anticipate it in the next 5-10 years

I’d love to but bungalows aren’t much cheaper than what I have now so can’t see it happening unfortunately. I hate housework and often dream of living in the tiny 2 bed (well, 1.5 really) bungalow that I rented 15 or so years ago.

Really? But you would surely release so much money tied up in a 6 bed house that 20k would be minimal in the grand scheme of things. Think about how much less it would cost to heat and maintain a 2-3 bed house compared to a 6 bed house

I started again at 40 so will have at least another 20 years where I am. Will then look to move into a smaller property ready for (hopefully) retirement.

I downsized to a smaller house in my mid-50s, and aim to move to smaller again at 70 - I think I’ll be fed up with the garden by then. Perhaps to a 2-bed terrace or flat.

My parents left it too late to move.

Nope.
DH retires next year. Mortgage is paid off. We intend to spend at least the next 10 years enjoying our lovely house.
Adult kids come and go as relationships break up / changes in circumstances.
We really love the area and it has everything we need within walking distance. If we lived out in the sticks then yes, we would consider moving. I saw how hard it was for my grandparents when then could no longer drive. No public transports, so they were very isolated.

my house was built in 1999 and I am the original owner. I kept the house after my divorce. It’s mortgage free. As is common in the USA in houses of this age I have a first floor primary bedroom and bath. I really wanted to downsize when my youngest graduated in 2020. But Covid/interest rates/really changed my view. There are small cute communities but the fees are ridiculous and those go on for eternity and subject to rise. New builds are not the same quality as my older home. I have fallen back into like with my home. It’s a dated but it’s solid and we can get around easily in the future. I do believe in DOWNSIZING my possessions. I have done a full clean out since kids gone and I will continue to do so. My house isn’t too big but if full it would be too much. I see us simply not using upper rooms as we age. It’s difficult already to get rid of large items at 58 have to hire help and it’s $$. Lastly the very last thing my mother did was go up a flight of steps and then die peacefully in bed. She was moderately active and remained so until her death in her 80s.

Not on your nelly! I'm ony 5 ft 7 now!

Couldn't buy a 2 bed bungalow in a similar area for less than this 3 bed semi costs

so couldn't afford to downsize except to a ground floor flat - and I don't know of any that have sound proofing like this house ( music )

Wouldn't want to change area - move away from friends and family and the doctors surgery and local shops

Guess that's a no

It's a good point, a decent 3 bed bungalow with garden where I live costs more than a 4/5 bed terrace.

55! I have plans to buy an apartment in my favourite city, no need to garden or organise gardeners. Cleaner once a week, groceries delivered once a week. Theatre, church (choir and orchestra), restaurants within walking distance. Husband and I enjoying life before we are too old to do things. Ahhhh (now to play the lottery and win big 🤣!)

There isn't a shortage of large homes up north but there is a shortage of smaller 2/3 bedroom houses and bungalows

My mum moved to a bungalow in her early eighties - that lost her the ability to climb stairs. Had to be helped. I’ll stick to my rambling pile.

Is it just about the cost though?

We might end up changing location so our retirement property could be both smaller and more expensive but it would be worth it for us to have a smaller more manageable property in a location with more amenities

We are doing it at the moment...mid 60s.
Currently in 4 bedrooms,3 bathrooms.
We want to live nearer bars/restaurants/transport routes and also get about £150,000 from the house sale to have more fun with

@daffodilfan a smaller house in the area we would possibly consider moving to would be almost double the price of our current home

@buswankerz I've had mobility issues since I was 50 and still working full time! Even if we wanted a bungalow they are often more expensive than we can afford and many need lots of renovation.

I already downsized when I divorced in my early 50s. I had a detached house with a big garden and now I am in a small 2 bed terrace. I couldn’t go smaller, I could only move to the outskirts of the city to release a bit of cash.

My elderly parents in their 80s regret not moving 15 or 20 years ago when they had the energy.

We may downsize in size but it won’t be much in price! What I would want may be 3 bedrooms but will still be £700k. That’s not particularly expensive around here

Yeah we will, I'm slowly loosing my mobility and will be a in wheelchair full time by my mid 40s so have about ten years or so to move.

My parents moved into a bungalow when they started their retirement late 50s, said it was the best thing they ever did.

This is how I feel about it, too.
Additionally, I didn't spend time and money getting it (nearly) all done and decorated how I want it, to then have to begin again.
I don't want to have to get rid of my millions of books and stuff I’ve collected for decades.

Also, moving is up there in the top five for stress, and it nearly did for us last time!

“up north” is quite a big area to generalise about…my in laws live near Manchester, have recently downsized to a 2 bed new build from a 4 bed house. Buyers were biting their arms off as very few family homes for sale in the area.

In the U.K. as a whole there are fewer family homes than families.

We’re around 60 and are in the middle of moving away from our big 5 bed three-storey house. We had intended to go for a smaller detached property but all the ones we looked at had all the bedrooms upstairs. Then we found a house that had more square-footage than our current house with two bedrooms on the ground floor, two upstairs and a bathroom on each floor. Plus lots of space for entertaining and a flat garden.

This one we hope to move to will do us well for the next couple of decades even if we become frailer -assuming we live that long. And we are looking forward to having lots of space for our families and friends to visit and space for hobbies when we don’t have visitors.

Yes. We have a lovely semi rural four bed with open fields to all sides, but it's not conducive to older living.
Having seen PIL insist on staying put in unsuitable accommodation leading to broken femurs and the like, and family picking up the pieces of the life they now can't manage having made zero preparation, I'd like to think I'd be more proactive for their sakes as much as anything. Relationships have been irrevocably spoiled because of their 'we'll cross that bridge' mentality.
Maybe late 60's/early 70's.