Knowing when it’s time to downsize is hard enough as it is, but the actual process of moving into a smaller home can be a serious hassle as well. Downsizing isn’t something that people do often, which means that there aren’t many people who are very good at doing it. All you need to downsize successfully is a little bit of guidance about what to look out for, and you’ll be fine. Keep an eye out for these common mistakes people make when downsizing homes to make the process easier.
Not Decluttering Enough
Getting rid of extraneous or outdated items is incredibly important when you want to downsize, but it’s not always easy. Sometimes, clutter items can be sentimental, and you might have trouble seeing things you once cared about go in the trash. Many people will overestimate how much space they have and bring far too many things they don’t need to their new home. Take some time to declutter your possessions thoroughly before moving.
Putting Off Going Through Everything
Time will be one of your worst enemies when it comes to downsizing. A very common mistake people make when downsizing is that they assume they have more time than they really do. Moving day can sneak up on you faster than you might think. You can only put off going through your belongings for so long. The longer you wait, the more frantic the pace will have to be when you finally get to it, and going through everything quickly will lead to mistakes and things getting thrown out that you wanted to keep.
Not Measuring the New Space
Even if you declutter efficiently, it won’t matter much if the things you bring into the new place won’t fit through the door. It’s easy to assume that your furniture will fit into your new home, but downsizing is all about condensing your life, so you won’t have as much space for everything. Before you bring something to the new home, get a solid measurement of both the item and house’s measurements to make sure that all furniture can at least make it into the right rooms.
Lying to Yourself About What You Need
It’s not always easy to get rid of things, especially if you grew attached to them over time. However, lying to yourself about the things that you’ll need in your new home will only hurt you in the end. You need to take a more brutally honest approach when it comes to what you’ll move over to the smaller house. Knowing the difference between wanting something and needing it is crucial to downsizing success.
