5 Awesome Benefits to Downsizing Your Home
There is a recent trend with families; making the decision to downsize within their home.
What does that mean to downsize and live a more simple life?
Downsizing means that one is looking for a more simple way of living in their current environment. It’s not just for those who are retiring, or seniors who need to move to a different location.
You don’t have to be a minimalist, and you don’t have to move to a tiny home when downsizing!
It’s about a more simple way of living with less . . . . and freeing up space in your home!
Downsizing has become a trend that can be for anyone, in every stage of life. The LA Times has reported that the average US home has 300,000 items in their home. That’s a lot of stuff!
This past year, I too have been downsizing. I am going at a slower pace, because that’s what works for me, plus I don’t have a deadline.
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Some are anxious and want to make a change more quickly. There is no wrong way to downsize. It really depends on what your goals are, and the timeline that you have set for yourself and your family.
If you are on the fence about downsizing, I’m going to share 5 awesome benefits to downsizing your home that may give you a fresh perspective and inspired to move forward!
Even those with young kids can benefit from downsizing their lives. I love that our family has lived a fairly simple life, a really good life, but very simple.
Because we made the decision to live this way, we have been able to do very special things and not feel overwhelmed. We decided that we wanted to share experiences with our kids, rather than have fancy stuff.
I know that God will always supply what we need.
We like to plan ahead as much as possible with expenses. I have learned that our family’s contentment has never come from the “stuff”. The kids may think that at the time, but I see how they enjoy the time we spend together, experiences and activities way more.
1. Save Money
This is probably one of the biggest reasons why people consider downsizing.
Ways that your family can save money by downsizing:
- Less money spent on buying more stuff
- Less money spent on maintaining stuff
- Save money by not having to replace things that break
- Save money not paying monthly or annual fees to maintain
- Less space to maintain and keep clean
- Less space to keep warm or cool, keeping utility costs down
- Smaller yard means less money spent for maintenance
There are no rules that say we have to have a certain lifestyle. Imagine living a more simple life and having a nice savings for retirement, college, live debt-free, and travel.
2. Gain Time
If we have less stuff, we have less to maintain, which means we gain time!
When I think about the time I spend cleaning, fixing, maintaining things in and outside of the home, that motivates me to let go of more and more.
Do you think about what you could let go of that would give you back some time?
It’s not just what can you give up that would give you time, it can also be what can you say “no” to that will give you time?
Things that can take more time:
- Yard work
- Getting a new pet
- Volunteer work you don’t enjoy
- Hobbies you don’t enjoy
- Furniture that needs to be dusted
- An abundance of clothes to be washed
- Lots of toys to clean up
- Overflow of papers
- Variety of home repairs and cleaning
- Looking for lost stuff
The time wasted just looking for things alone is a motivator! I know I have done this a few times, and I get frustrated with myself thinking about the time that was wasted looking for something!
3. Help Others
There are a number of ways that we can help others by making adjustments in our own life. The decisions we make for ourselves can have a ripple effect.
By downsizing you can help others by:
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- Donating your items to ARC, VVA, or other non-profits helps to support jobs for those in need.
- Giving items that others need, like friends or family, so they don’t have to go buy them.
- You have more time to give to others, whether it family or volunteering.
- You can share your experience of downsizing and changing your life with others.
- Being an example to your children.
4. Time To Do What You Love
Now that you have downsized, you have time to do more of what you love!
Journaling about this will help to remind you on a regular basis about your reasons why you want to downsize.
Your goals will be reaffirmed, thinking about the time you can spend doing things that you love!
What do you love?
- Read more
- Time with kids
- Travel
- Relax
- Write
- New hobby
- A dream you have put off . . . until now
5. Changes Your Focus
Have you ever noticed how projects around the home, or managing our time, takes lots of our focus. We spend hours focusing at work, then to come home to projects and tasks.
Maybe you don’t do projects and tasks in the evening or on the weekend. If not, then our homes and the things become neglected.
Downsizing our lives allows us to have the brainpower to focus on things that are more important to us than our stuff.
This can be very freeing.
Letting go and seeing how your focus can change to people and experiences that you truly desire to be a part of.
Downsizing Home Checklist: Getting Started
It helps to have a plan in place before you begin downsize. By having a plan, and knowing WHY you are doing it, will help you to stay on track and keep your momentum.
Here’s a free printable to help with your Downsize Plan. With so many benefits to downsizing your home, it’s a very exciting time with so many possibilities ahead of you and your family!
Cheering you on to a more simple life!
Lately I’ve been looking at downsizing my activities! Something was on my to-do list which was going to require delaying some other tasks on my list. When I considered the low value of the task in question, I decided to just scrap it. Not only did it free up time, it allowed me to carry on with my original plans.
That’s so true! The activities we say ‘yes’ to can be time wasters just like our clutter! I think it feels good to say ‘no’, even though it’s hard sometimes.
Hi Angela,
Yes, I love this and am all about Decluttering Your Life in whatever way possible. Emotional and Physical Clutter. Anything that doesn’t add to the quality of your life. At this time in my life with spring and summer on the horizon my clutter is the outside work. Ugh! I enjoy some parts of it but am having trouble with how much there is of it and how it affects my body. Its a lot of physical work and the benefit is great but it just seems like we never get to the fun part. Also I think about other things I could be doing with my time or that I have to do. It just never ends and I am not in a position to downsize. I guess I could think about hiring out some of the work? Will need to look at the funds. hmmm??
What’s cool is downsizing can also be simplifying what we have, even if we aren’t moving. Even having less in our current space can cut down the time and expense of maintaining our current living space. This is what I am doing. I know the kids will be home for a few more years, but I am simplifying now. I’m tired of thinking of all the things “I’m supposed to be doing”. Maybe do a little bit each day Kim, and after time, you will see big results!
Nothing like the long list of spring projects to make me think about downsizing! Taking care of a home is so much work. This post reminds me a time when we were renovating our current home and living temporarily in an apartment. In many ways, I feel like I had a higher quality of life while living there as we didn’t feel the need to be constantly spending every free moment taking care of the house. Worth a thought!
I totally agree. Having less space, or even less stuff, can give us some of our time back!
I spent a good portion of last year clearing out and preparing my parent’s home for sale. What struck me was how much stuff they had collected (books, music, decorative objects, papers and more.) When it was cleared out, all that remained was the house and space. The memories were there, but the stuff was gone. It made me think about all of the things I’ve collected so far. I’ve been on a slow quest to reduce the number of things that I own. I don’t want to leave all of our items for our daughters to have to handle. We live in a relatively small house. And even so, there still are many things to manage and maintain. I’m in pursuit of less and take as many opportunities as possible to de-possess stuff.
This is a work in progress for me too, Linda. It is a slow process for me, not like the organizing shows we see on TV. I am able to let go better if I do it in chunks or phases. I agree, I don’t want my kids to have to go through my things when I am no longer here.
I agree. I benefits to downsizing are huge! I’m working on downsizing my busy – ness. I can create work for myself at the drop of a hat. I’m working on doing less and being more.
That is so true Diane, time is just as valuable as things . . . actually way more valuable. It’s priceless!
Great post! I am a minimalist at heart. I find with a smaller home; you can buy more quality stuff which in turn will be more affordable because I do not need as much of it; and more durable because it is better quality. While I have less stuff, I would love more room to spread out. I guess that is a sacrifice I made years ago.
I agree! The old saying is still true today . . . . less is more! Thanks for reading!