Tips for Downsizing Your Home

Many situations in life arise that require one to downsize their home. Kids grow up and leave the nest leaving parents with more space then needed. Financial crises like lay-offs, divorce and even sickness may cause one to have to sell their home and move into a smaller home or even an apartment. No matter the reason, downsizing one's home can be very difficult. Can you imagine trying to pack a 2500 square foot home into a 1200 square foot apartment? Or taking 25 years of memories from a 4 bedroom home and putting it into a 2 bedroom condominium? It can be quite a challenge. Here are some tips for successful downsizing.

Preparation
The time to begin downsizing is as soon as you decide to look for another place. Begin the process by:
1. Asking adult children and others to come and pick up items they've left or stored at your home. Give them a deadline to do so explaining that you will be moving soon.
2. Start eliminating other items by throwing away worn, broken and unusable items. In cleaning out or garage, we discovered business signs from the previous owner. They'd been in our garage for years. Starting with simply getting rid of "junk" is a great beginning.
3. Once you've found your new place, draw a floor plan of your new home, condo or apartment. Make sure your drawing is to scale and includes windows, doors, etc. for adequate placement of furniture. Measure your furniture and be sure to record the measurements in case you need them later. Now incorporate your furniture into your drawing to see what items you need to keep or not keep. Remember, you don't want to take things with you that you won't be able to use. 4. Plan for a couple of garage/yard sales over the downsizing process. A week or so before moving, donate any unsold items that you're not keeping to Goodwill or another charity.
5. If you're moving to an apartment or condo, be sure to get rid of lawn care items, i.e. the lawn mower, rakes, etc.

Downsizing the Bedroom

1. First begin with the size of the bed. Bedrooms in a smaller home, condominium or apartment will probably be smaller, so if you have a king bed you may have to downsize to a queen or even a full.
2. You may have a full bedroom suite in your master bedroom. Your new master suite may not be able to accommodate the entire suite. Stick with the high dresser or armoire in place of the standard dresser with mirror. This will take up much less space.
3. Consider a day bed, sofa bed or futon for guest bedrooms that might need to double as offices.

Downsizing the Kitchen/Dining Room
1. Depending on the shape of the space, you might opt for a round or square table in lieu of a rectangular one.
2. If you have a complete dining room set with china cabinet and buffet, you'll probably have to get rid of the china cabinet or both.
3. Downsize dishes as well. Possibly consider giving special china to your children and/or loved ones, or storing them somewhere for safe keep.
4. Get rid of kitchen appliances that haven't been used for over a year. This includes items like mixers, food processors, dehydrators, etc. Remember, you'll have limited kitchen storage in a small space.

Downsizing the Living Room/Family Room
1. Most living rooms/family rooms have a couch, love seat, chair, coffee table and two end tables. A small living room will look cluttered with all of these items. Consider keeping the couch and getting rid of the love seat. Instead of the coffee table and end tables, consider purchasing an ottoman which can double as a table and seating.
2. Don't forget to downsize artwork, vases, etc. Remember they will need to also fit the scale of the room and you may have to go smaller on these items.

Memories/Personal Items
1. If you are older, it might be time to pass some of your memories on to your children. This is especially true for antiques.
2. Store photos and treasures in a trunk. Cover the trunk with a nice throw and keep at the foot of your bed as a bench.
3. Books - If you haven't picked up the book in over a year, you probably don't need it. Give it to a friend or donate it to your local library.
4. Clothing - If you can't wear it, or haven't worn it for an entire season, it's time to let it go.