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Our Journey to Retirement—Selling the Family Home and Downsizing

By
Industry Observer with You Can Live Rich On Less

Buying your first home is very exciting.  In fact, it’s really huge! But I believe that the decision to downsize, sell the family home, and live in something much, much smaller, is equally as exciting, if not more so.  The freedom to travel, indulge in your passions (like mine for golf) and heck, just to get out of these Canadian winters, these things and more can be very seductive. 

 

Let me share why.

 

I loved our family home, with the granite countertops in the kitchen, the huge oak staircase, the glassed-in shower in the master bath, and of course my beautiful spa jet tub!

 

This was my dream home and for a time that was enough.Our home boasted an enormous family room, and second floor laundry, a 600 square foot deck off the kitchen, and a full basement, ready and waiting to be developed into more bedrooms, or a home theatre!

 

But life changes,  and we go through different stages of our lives.  My dream home ten years ago was perfect for us then, or for a growing family. 

 

Living in suburbia, in the Greater Toronto Area afforded us a lovely home, at a reasonable price, but with a lengthy commute.  Both my husband and I worked in downtown Toronto.  Thinking about retirement, we knew we wanted something much smaller to live in, and we were pretty sure we didn’t want to own bricks and mortar any time soon. 

 

With retirement about 5 years away, we started a plan.  After extensive travels in our RV, we knew we could happily live in a much smaller space and give up the large two-storey, four bedroom home that we had become accustomed to. Once we made up our minds, that we should jump into a very hot real estate market, and sell the family home, we knew the agents we wanted to work with. 

 

They lived in our neighbourhood, and we had talked to them before.  We really liked their approach to selling homes. In other words, their engagement with us resulted in a trust, which I think you will agree is a key component to a successful relationship.

 

What sealed the deal for us were the services that our realtors provided at no cost to us, prior to closing. 

  • Initial interview and advice – what needed to be fixed/painted etc. what didn’t
  • Realistic pricing
  • Professional Staging
  • House cleaning
  • Discounts on a number of services including garbage removal

The sale of the house was painless, I think only two people viewed it before it was sold! How did we survive downsizing from a 2500 square foot home to an RV?  By getting rid of a lot of stuff.  Decluttering and organizing your home, has become mainstream, with folks watching hours and hours of Marie Kondo! 

 

Fast forward to today, and we currently split our time between a small apartment in midtown Toronto, and our brand new park model trailer in Lindsay, Ontario. 

 

Ten months to go until I am fully retired and we will spend our time between Florida and Lindsay, with lots of travel in between.

 

The same year we sold our home, I established myself as a lifestyle blogger.  Until now this has been my side hustle, and once I’m retired, I will be able to devote more time to it, and of course my other passion – golfing with my sweetheart.  We have a plan, and are living our dream.  It doesn't get much better than this! 

 

Judy Kahansky

You Can Live Rich On Less

Show All Comments Sort:
Li Read
Sea to Sky Premier Properties (Salt Spring) - Salt Spring Island, BC
Caring expertise...knowledge for you!

Wow...great reminder to all of us to get on with it.  

Feb 27, 2019 12:29 PM
Judith Kahansky

Hello Li!  I know, time flies right?

Mar 03, 2019 05:18 PM
Gita Bantwal
RE/MAX Centre Realtors - Warwick, PA
REALTOR,ABR,CRS,SRES,GRI - Bucks County & Philadel

Thank you for sharing your story. Looking forward to reading your blog

Feb 27, 2019 02:53 PM
Judith Kahansky

Thank you Gita!

Mar 03, 2019 05:17 PM
John Pusa
Glendale, CA

Welcome to the ActiveRain community. Congratulations on your first post.

Feb 27, 2019 07:32 PM
Judith Kahansky

thanks John!

Mar 03, 2019 05:17 PM
Margo Mcgill
ShortTermHousing - Denver, CO
Real estate agent serving in South Colorado Blvd

Wow Judy this is inspiring. We all wanted to live a life that we dreamt of but very few succeed in it. Love to know that you are happy after retirement.

Feb 28, 2019 12:47 AM
Judith Kahansky

Hi Margo! Thanks for your kind words, and I will definitely post updates here!  

Mar 03, 2019 05:17 PM
Kate Steven
5homestyle - Adak, AK
Best Real Estate agent

Welcome to active rain. Good luck in achieving your goals on active rain

 

Feb 28, 2019 09:05 AM
Judith Kahansky

thanks Kate!

Mar 03, 2019 05:16 PM
The Woodland Team of Texas
The Woodland Companies - Austin, TX
Land Specialists

Welcome to ActiveRain, I hope that your participation here helps your business to grow.
Btw, I followed your blog, and would be honored if you followed mine.
Thank You!

Mar 03, 2019 02:15 AM
Judith Kahansky

Hi Sara, I'd be happy to, and thanks!

Mar 03, 2019 05:16 PM
George Souto
George Souto NMLS #65149 - Middletown, CT
Your Connecticut Mortgage Expert

Judith Kahansky welcome to ActiveRain and congratulations on posting your first blog successfully on this site.

Mar 03, 2019 03:34 PM
Judith Kahansky

thanks so much George!

Mar 03, 2019 05:15 PM
Katerina Gasset
The Gasset Group & Get It Done For Me Virtual Services - Provo, UT
Amplify Your Real Estate & Life Dreams!

Welcome to ActiveRain! This is a great place to learn about real estate and get support for you as an agent or broker. 

 

Make sure to become a Rainmaker if you are not one yet because that is how you will get a strong link back to your website. 

 

The public, consumers consisting of buyers and sellers of real estate will only see your posts if you have a Rainmaker account. 

 

I wish you luck on your online journey of marketing!

Mar 12, 2019 06:32 PM
Bob Crane
Woodland Management Service / Woodland Real Estate, KW Diversified - Stevens Point, WI
Forestland Experts! 715-204-9671

Welcome to Active Rain, looking forward to reading many more of your posts, let me know if there is anything that I can do to help as you get started here.
All the best of success to you.
Bob

Apr 03, 2019 10:14 PM