When is it Time to Downsize?
At some point, after your kids have moved out and started their own families, you may start thinking about downsizing your house. Depending on your personal situation, that may mean either moving into a smaller house, or to a senior living or independent/assisted living community. If you’ve been considering such a move, ask yourself these questions:
- Is it too difficult maintaining your home and property?
- Are you finding it more and more difficult to move around your house, especially if it has more than one story?
- Are you struggling each month to keep up with household bills?
- Are you far away from family, or do you live in an isolated community?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you may want to start seriously looking at your options and the benefits that come with moving into a smaller home. It’s crucial to examine what’s important to you, and what will work best in your situation – especially if you’d like to be closer to family, if you want to live somewhere that takes care of property maintenance, or if you need assistance with household chores like cooking and cleaning. From there, you can determine the area you’d like to live in, the type of housing or community that would suit you best, and what type of home you can afford to live in.
You should also consider the financial benefits that downsizing may provide. Your home probably has appreciated in value after you bought it, which will give you more funds when looking for a new, smaller home. Depending on whether or not you need any type of care or assistance, there may be some additional financial options open to you. If these are options you’d like to explore, it may be worth your while to meet with an elder law attorney so that your situation can be reviewed, and a plan of action can be laid out. Speaking with an elder law attorney can also have the added benefit of examining not only your current situation but also where you may find yourself in the future, especially if you’d like to protect assets in the event that you need nursing home care.
If you have questions about downsizing, or if you’re preparing to downsize and want to make sure you’re taking the right steps to protect your assets, please set up an appointment with one of our attorneys at The Elderlaw Firm by calling (336) 378-1122.
