After months of living through the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us are rethinking what we want out of our homes. Some are choosing to take advantage of historically low interest rates and upgrade to a larger, more expensive home. Others are being inspired to move into a smaller, less expensive home. Those who are opting to downsize their Richmond homes are often coming out ahead financially.

Whether you’re an empty nester moving on to the natural next phase in your life, or you’re just looking to simplify, downsizing your home is a powerful way to save money. It’s also a big, emotional decision that deserves careful consideration. Here are four reasons you may want to think about downsizing your Richmond home.

• Downsizing your home can save you money.

In most cases, trading a large home for a smaller one means taking on a smaller mortgage. And in Richmond’s current seller’s market, there’s a good chance you have some equity in your current home — meaning its value today is higher than what you paid for it. So by selling your property and purchasing something less expensive, you may very well earn money from the equity of your current home. You’re likely to get a better interest rate as well. But that’s not the only way you could save money by downsizing. With a smaller house, your utility bills, insurance premiums, and taxes are likely to decrease significantly as well.

• Downsizing your home can give you more financial security for the future.
  

Without a giant mortgage to pay and all of the other associated costs, you can start investing your money in other ways. You may want to put any profits toward your retirement savings or a college fund for your kids. Without a hefty mortgage and everything associated with it, you’ll have more flexibility to make your money work for you through smarter long-term investments.

• Downsizing your home can save you time.
  

Big homes often call for big maintenance. There’s the yardwork, inevitable repairs, and of course the time and effort required to clean a home with serious square footage. Downsizing usually equates to a home that’s much easier to maintain, saving you time and energy that would be better spent elsewhere.

• Downsizing your home forces you to simplify.

Moving to a smaller home means you’ll have to get rid of some of your belongings. This can be a challenging experience — especially if you’ve lived in your current home for a long time. But it can also be emotionally freeing. Discarding items you no longer need or want, clearing out the bedroom of a child who has long since flown the nest, paring down to only the pieces you really love and want in your life — these are all powerful steps in a personal growth journey that downsizing offers. Sometimes it can be healthy to push yourself out of your comfort zone and reassess your priorities.

When the timing is right, downsizing your home is a major move that can majorly impact your financial future. Reach out to the Ruckart Real Estate team today to start the discussion about whether you’re ready to downsize your Richmond home.