Downsizing your home is something you’ll rarely want to do when you have a family. With that said, there are a few cases where switching to a smaller home is a good idea for your family’s circumstances. Here are four instances when it may be wise to move your family to a smaller home.
Your Income Drops Significantly
If you’ve suddenly lost a large amount of income, you may want to look at less expensive living arrangements. Trading a large house for a smaller home or apartment may not be the most appealing idea in the world, but it can help you stretch your savings until you can restore your income. If you need to downsize your home for a more affordable mortgage, you may want to consider apartment living to save extra money while you are searching for a smaller, less expensive home. Keep in mind that is a bit of a drastic solution, so it’s best to try to find ways to pad your income out before resorting to a move.
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You Have One Child Who’s Much Younger Than the Rest
If you have one child who’s quite a bit younger than the others, you may want to consider downsizing after the older children leave for college. If you only have one kid still living at home, you can easily move into a two bedroom apartment while the youngest finishes school. This will allow you to save money and leave you free to ponder your next moves once all of your children have moved out. Keep in mind that it might be nice for you to find an apartment near your old home so that your child doesn’t have to change schools and make new friends, unless that is something they want to do.
You Need to Change School Districts Quickly
If you want to get your kids into a better school district, moving into a small, inexpensive home may help. Parents sometimes choose to change school districts if their current one has lesser funding, if their child wants better extracurricular opportunities, or if the parent has drastically differing views from the school board. Living somewhere small will get you into the school district you want while you save for a larger home. In the interim, your kids can still enjoy the benefits of better educational opportunities.
You’re Moving to a New City
As with moving to a new school district, getting a small place is a good way to get yourself established in a new city. Renting a small apartment for a year or two while you start a new job and set yourself up in your new area will allow you to keep things simple. Once you have some roots put down, you can consider the more permanent step of buying real estate in your new city.
If any one of these situations apply to you, it may be a good idea to downsize. While you usually won’t want to move a large family into a smaller home, there are times when it can be extremely beneficial to do so.