Have you Downsized or Considered doing so?

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SlurrySlump

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Just wondering if anyone here has downsized their home or has considered doing so?

We live in a 5 bedroom, 4 reception home. Lovely in the summer. Cold in the winter. The house is about 30 years old. Back garden 60' x 40'. Nice area in Dublin, close to all supermarkets, DART, N11, schools and hospitals. Plenty of off street parking.

We are not sure if we want to make the move. Nor are we sure if we should move in to a smaller house or apartment if we do. But it makes sense to do so as we will have difficulty managing the garden and maintaining the house going forward.

I feel that if we don't make the move now we never will. We are in our late 60's.

Has anyone regretted downsizing to an apartment that ended up being too small or downsized to an apartment that was too big and therefore a waste of money?

It would be nice to have a lock up and go that would free us up to going abroad to the places that we like for longer periods of time.

One of our concerns is that while our garden is a bit of a chore, we like pottering about in it, and would miss it. Not sure if a balcony would be a substitute.

My own parents didn't downsize. In the end the house was in a poor state after years of taking care of it. The garden became overgrown after years of proudly showing it off.
 
Are you comfortable financially?

My own view is that if you have cash and plan to stay where you are, draft in help. Hire a cleaner and a gardener etc. Not enough people do that, even those with money.

And if you’re downsizing from a nice and valuable property, don’t necessarily downsize financially. A lot of apartments are grotty, but if you’re selling your house for €1m, don’t be afraid to spend €1m on a large penthouse with a sea view within strolling distance of amenities.
 
Something to think about that you wouldn't have thought about before March 2020
How would you feel living in an apartment with only a balcony as your outdoor space during the next pandemic/lockdown???
 
Cervelo said:
Something to think about that you wouldn't have thought about before March 2020
How would you feel living in an apartment with only a balcony as your outdoor space during the next pandemic/lockdown???
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There are balconies and then there are balconies…I’ve seen a few amazing places in Dublin over the years.
 
Apartments have drawback of you living cheek by jowl with potentally lots of random neighbours who might be noisy etc. Not to be downplayed as a risk.

My parents moved in their late 60s from a large rambling house in a nice South co dublin siburb nr N11 etc to a bungalow in a slightly less nicer part of the same suburb. They then had their " old age proof" new house and a nice nest egg.
 
twofor1 said:
And there are ground floor apartments with very manageable gardens
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I pass by these homes a few times a week and I think that they are one of the ugliest new builds that have come on the market in recent times. The whole corner site that used to have one lovely home on each corner now looks like some sort of mini shopping centre (without shops).
 
deanpark said:
My parents moved in their late 60s from a large rambling house in a nice South co dublin siburb nr N11 etc to a bungalow in a slightly less nicer part of the same suburb. They then had their " old age proof" new house and a nice nest egg.
Click to expand...
The house I lived in before my present home was a bungalow. It was three rooms deep. This meant that the middle rooms basically looked out on our neighbours side wall. It had been built in the 1940's and needed complete renovation. It had a very long back garden. We moved because we needed extra space and because of all the work needed doing. We also had availability of good credit and good salary, so it was easy to move "upwards" to a larger new house in a better location.
Subsequent owners of our former home have now done all the work required, including extending it into the back garden. It looks really well. It still has the problem of the middle rooms though.......
I still like having an upstairs but I would consider a bungalow in a good location.
 
SlurrySlump said:
I think that they are one of the ugliest new builds that have come on the market in recent times.
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Fair enough, this one is not for you, just pointing out to all that there are apartments that would be suitable for downsizers who still want their own managable garden to potter around in.
 
My grandfather is in his mid-90s and is still in his own house.

His mobility is getting worse but he still gets full use of it.

The key to him staying him in his own house so long is that it is a bungalow.

Bungalows can be hard to find in the location that you want of course. But they can give you years of comfortable extra living in your own home.
 
This is interesting because when a person is downsizing many consider downsizing price wise also.

I like the area I live in. I visited other parts of Dublin city in recent times, very busy places traffic wise, changes to road layouts etc. I breathe a sigh of relief when I return to familiar areas.

Likewise, there are certain roads and areas that I like in my locality. I would not move to another area just because the new house is the right price. It has to be the right location also.

Unfortunately, some of the smaller houses in our area are smaller in every way. Tiny bedrooms with beds that you can hardly walk around for lack of space.

I presently live in a 2500 sq. ft. house. I would like to move to a 1500 sq. ft. house. Not one with 4 tiny bedrooms squeezed in. Maybe one with three or even two large bedrooms, with modern ensuites. Good sized open plan dining room/kitchen. Smaller garden.
Many house do not have these and require renovation.

We always end up saying to each other......sure we might as well spend the money on this house (one that we know) instead of spending money on the unknown.
 
I have posted about my parent's experience elsewhere so here is a brief summary of their experience.

  • My folks downsized in their mid-60s to a large 3-bed appartment in the same suburb as the original family home. They did what Mr Gekko mentioned above and pretty much spent most of the proceeds of the house sale on a penthouse with two balconies.
  • They still talk about the downsize move as one of the best financial decisions of their lives.
  • They intentionally chose a development with lifts with a view to future infirmity (which is sadly now a reality)
  • There are large communal gardens but my parents were never into gardening so they don't miss having their own to potter about in.
  • Their development was designed I think with downsizers in mind so there is quite a community of local retirees on their doorstep. One less obvious benefit of this is that they are never lacking in volunteers to represent the owners when running the management company and the place is well managed.
  • Their appartment seems to have been well built and it is a lot more energy efficient than the old family home - it is a warm and comfortable place to live in whereas the old house was cold in the winter.
  • There is a handyman on site 2-3 times a week and he keeps an eye on everyone and seems to earn a decent amount doing all kinds of nixers for the older residents (changing spotlight bulbs, moving furniture, assembling furniture etc).
  • There was no issue with spending lockdown here either. From the outset residents got into the habit of having evening drinks on their balconies so everyone got to speak to someone pretty regularly. It really helped my parents get through it all.
 
A reduction in their CGT rate of 0% when they sell their home?

A reduction in their Stamp Duty rate of 0% when they sell their home?

A reduction in their Stamp Duty rate of 1% when they buy the smaller place?

Not much to work with there!
 
I know several people who have downsized (or resized).

Successful Case:-
1. When the Central Statistics Office relocated to Cork from Dublin it brought many Cork people back to where they came from. They sold their homes in Dublin and bought in Cork and what they had left over amounted to the equivalent of a huge Lotto win. These people probably did the right thing and made the move work in their favour. Money Matters!

Unsuccessful Cases:-

2. A former PS workmate sold the house in Cork and bought an apartment in Cork and the subsequent "profit" went towards buying a holiday home in Co Cork. Maintaining the holiday home, gardens etc proved onerous with two hour journeys each way and hassle from holidaymakers. His neighbours in the holiday home location moaned about everything too (alarm going off, holidaymakers being drunk etc). Eventually, he sold the holiday home and the apartment and moved back to the area where he had sold the family home. But, the whole experience cost him. He didn't listen to me and neither did he do his homework. Lack of Money Matters!

3. Another guy with whom I worked in Dublin back in the day sold his home in the capital and moved to the area where he had lived for the first 18 years of his life. His wife missed Dublin, his children couldn't come to terms the further they drove from The Pale. The small town where they were now relocated was anything but private - No Penneys, No Dunnes (except the wrong kind of Dunnes), No Almost Anything. Even the dad eventually became peeved because the quaint town he left when he was a teenager now rehoused many people "rescued" from rough city areas most of whom wore their prison time as a badge of honour. Right Sizing suited the criminals and didn't suit the good people.

4. So you still want to downsize? Do your homework and do it truthfully. Take a tip from Leper - It's all about the money.
 
It absolutely depends on each family’s individual circumstances and needs.

The property needs to be ‘future proofed’ though. And by that I mean on a single level or with a downstairs bedroom and bathroom. And by bathroom, I mean potentially accessible wetroom with a seat etc. And potential ramp access to the property. If that can be done with the existing property, great, albeit subject to the comments below regarding money. Moving home is stressful and typically older people don’t want to do that.

Then there’s the question of moving. There are reasons such as Fair Deal why taking money off the table and ‘downsizing’ mightn’t make sense given how different assets are assessed.

I suggested elsewhere that downsizing could be done into a seriously nice property without taking much money off the table at all. Nobody wants to downsize into a grotty apartment and unfortunately a lot of what has been built in Ireland is rubbish. People shouldn’t be afraid to downsize into an equally valuable and ‘nice’ property. I’m thinking of developments in Howth, Sandymount, Dalkey, Mariannella(?) in Rathgar, etc.

But if additional retirement income is needed, or a holiday home, further thought is required.
 
My own parents are late 60s. They have a semi-D in a row of semi-Ds. It is fine for their needs but it's on three levels and at some point mobility and maintenance are going to be a problem.

I could possibly convince them to move to a large, new-build penthouse with maybe a rooftop terrace in the next ten years or so. Ideally very near to where they already have friends and family, and closer to shops and amenities. This would be well within their means.

The problem is that this option doesn't exist. Their only options nearby are several thousand other semi-Ds pretty much like their own.

Financial incentives don't really matter here. What would make them move is a much better housing product than what they already have.

If policy can get apartments (of all types and sizes) getting built again then you will see people downsize.
 
Interesting thread and I am surprised that so far there has been little or no mention of Neighbours...
My Parents are in their late 70's now, 15 or so years ago they thought about downsizing; family home was a 5 bed large home in a nice suburb of Dublin and all kids flown the nest; the garden was huge and neither green-fingered. They thought about it and wasn't something they felt they could do owing to the attachment they had to the Neighbours.
They did build a house in the garden, not too much smaller but more modern layout and eco-friendly.

Would be interested to hear from OP how attached they are to the Neighbours and the immediate area e.g. the Park across the road etc.
 
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