The Finance Blogger


Boomers Downsizing to a Bungalow

Boomers Downsizing to a BungalowAre boomers downsizing to a bungalow to save money or avoid stairs and can they save money when the make this transitions? Many baby boomers are retiring and thinking about whether they should stay in the home they have raised their children in or should they move to a small home with no stairs to climb, i.e. a bungalow! This is a huge step for many people with a lot of issues to be considered.

For most there is a huge emotional issue to consider. After all they have many fond memories of raising their families, great neighbors and comfortable surroundings. Some people must move for financial reasons or perhaps they do not have the positive memories that we mentioned earlier and cannot wait to move away. On the other hand many consumers cannot wait to move. They may not have had the positive experiences that we mentioned earlier and want to try another neighborhood.

Boomers Downsizing to a Bungalow

Stress Associated with Moving

It is a difficult and troubling time for those people that must move, especially if they would prefer to stay where they are. When boomers are downsizing to a bungalow, they are motivated by finances, or by health issues. Sometimes it is a change of scenery or just to be closer to the family. We have gone through the same analysis ourselves. Although we have been thinking about this issue for more than 5 years, we still have not made a decision. I guess we like our home and neighborhood too much and there is nothing urgent that would force us to make a decision.

The other big issue about downsizing to a bungalow is that you really do not save that much money. We have found that bungalows today are priced high because they are in high demand. Compare the cost per square foot for a bungalow against a normal two story house and you will probably find that the costs are much higher for the bungalow. We think that builders are trying to take advantage of the baby boomers who are trying to downsize and save a little money. The prices are high and you may not save that much money! Bungalows are also in demand since many people would prefer a bungalow and this drives the price up.

An Example of Some of the Issues

A friend of mind downsized to a bungalow and had to pay $1000 just for installation of his appliances by the builder. I asked him why he did not do it himself since he is quite capable of doing his own installation. The answer was that the builder would not honor the warranty if he were to do his own installation! So he was left with no choice but to pay the $1000. How many other things are like that, which add a lot of extra cost to the overall price of downsizing?

Many baby boomers are pretty handy when it comes to doing their own repairs. This includes the associated installation of new appliances as mentioned above. What happens though as we age and cannot perform some of these tasks any longer? Is it time to downsize to a bungalow or move into a condo, were everything is done for you? We think that it is cheaper or less expensive to stay right where we are. Even if we have to pay the extra costs to have someone do the work for us. The money we save from not having to pay legal fees, real estate fees and moving costs will pay for the services we need for many years.

Save Your Money

The money you would spend moving, paying for legal and real estate costs can all be invested into your current home. Avoid the hassle of having to move, of having to throw a lot of things out. No need spending money on a lot of new furniture. The old furniture will not fit the smaller space or will not complement the décor. For my money we are going to stay right where we are.

Another factor that comes to mind is that sometimes the kids come home after being away for many years. Downsizing might prevent that, but then keeping that large home means you can help them out as well.

Your comments on boomers downsizing to a bungalow would be appreciated. Are you planning to downsize? For more ideas about downsizing your home, click here.

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One Response to “Boomers Downsizing to a Bungalow”

  1. I always assumed that when you downsized your cost of ownership would also go down. In our area new small homes, bungalow style are costing as much as our older home which has been updated. It makes no sense to move and spend all of that money.

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