would you down size your house after...

[Dancing Fire]

the kids move out?

 

[luvthemstrawberries]

My parents filled up my room and my brother''s room with other stuff when we left, haha. Mostly boxes and extra furniture.

Now they have to clean out the rooms whenever people come to visit.

My aunt and uncle downsized their house from a massive 4 story country club home to a one story patio home after their 3 kids moved out. Then that home proved to be too small, haha, so they''ve upgraded again to a more "average" 2 story home - still huge in my book compared to the one I grew up in, but more along the lines of today''s "normal" luxury home I suppose. Now they have room for all 3 kids to come home for the weekend, plus extra family, haha.

 

[D&T]

depends on how many kids I end up having and how many bedrooms I''d have, but, probably not, told hubby that next house is our dream house, in moderate size/scale for our living and that I don''t want to move ever again... and besides, all those extra rooms can be great for grandkids sleep overs

 

[Rhea]

My parents are trying to downsize. My mother insists that a one bedroom is enough for her. We''ll see what she finally ends up with in a few years.

 

[tigian]

I definitely would if there were rooms being unused. My husband and I would prefer a smaller than average house to raise our children in for various reasons. After the kids move out, I wouldn''t mind downsizing.
I was raised thinking the more room the better, but after seeing how his family lives in Europe, they make do with much less space and don''t seem to mind a bit. I''d like to meet somewhere in the middle.

 

[DivaDiamond007]

My in-laws have lived in their home for probably about 20 years now - the same home they raised 6 children in. It''s about 2600 sq ft. and has 5 bedrooms. Even with DH and me living there with our infant son, there are still 2 bedrooms that are used for guests. If I had to guess I''d say that they''re not ever going to move out. Their mortgage is nearly paid off and the house sits on 10 mostly wooded acres - hard to come by these days around here.

My parents just bought a house - probably their last. It''s about 1300 sq ft. and has 3 bedrooms. My sister still lives with them and, for the forseeable future, she''ll probably not move out (ever). If she does happen to move out I doubt my parents will move again.

When DH and I finally get our chance to buy/build I''m thinking we''re going to stay put for a long time - especially if we build. We both hate moving and have moved three times in four years and are just tired of it - and we don''t even have that much stuff.

 

[snlee]

Nope, don't plan to down size after kids move out. I want a house that's big enough to raise our children but not too big when they move out and it's just the two of us.

 

[Icce]

If mortgage was paid, I would be too lazy to move. I wouldn''t want a big house anyways...as small as I could get by on(less to clean!) plus a decently big backyard.

 

[CNOS128]

My parents didn''t really downsize when we all left the nest; they just moved from an extremely affluent suburb (with its exorbitant property taxes that paid for high-ranking public schools) into a nice house in the city. They are so much cooler now that they''ve become ''urban.''

 

[Rhea]

Date: 5/4/2009 11:10:28 AM
Author: tigian
I was raised thinking the more room the better, but after seeing how his family lives in Europe, they make do with much less space and don''t seem to mind a bit. I''d like to meet somewhere in the middle.

This is what pushed my mom over the edge, seeing our one bedroom. We now have a two bedroom with tons of space for us. I can''t imagine living in a larger floor space house. When we buy we''ll probably buy a three-bedroom and knock it though to create a two-bedroom because those London houses have such smaller bedrooms.

I never thought I''d survive in a house this small, but I love it! We have everything we need. I hate my parents four-bedroom house.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

I'm not sure! We live in a 2,300ish sq. foot and it's 4 bed and 2.5 bath and perfect for us and the kids. After they move out, I still want an office and guest bedroom, so we probably would look for a slightly smaller house - 3 bedrooom. There's at least 11 years to figure out future plans so I haven't considered beyond making it through kids' high school years!

 

[lyra]

Can I do it before they move out? As an incentive for them to move out?

Just kidding! But seriously, although all we want in our next house is more parking space, I don''t want a bigger house at all. I want something small and manageable. Basically, I want a big kitchen with a big family room and big master bedroom. Everything else can be small!

Or non-existant. Just a 3 room house would be fine.

 

[Snicklefritz]

I absolutely would...more money for traveling to exotic places!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

I''m not sure if we''d downsize. We''re probably in our forever house (was in FI''s family since it was built) and it''s pretty modest. There''s really only enough room for 2 kids or so which is what we want. We''re comfortably living in it now without kids (3 br with finished basement), so I imagine we''d keep it after they''ve flown the coop!

 

[bebe]

We are in this situation now. DD has graduated and basically on her own. DS will be going to grad school next yr., so I don''t really look for him to
return to the nest so to speak! But you never know.

Anyway, our house is big (5600) and it''s just the 2 of us in it. We wouldn''t mind moving, but honestly we don''t know where we would go that
is any better than where we are. It''s just the size of our house, the cost to run it and the high property taxes that are somewhat motivating. If we built somewhere
else, the cost is still going to be high. I know how much new construction is and with my experience building custom homes, it would be tough
to get everything I want and keep the size and price down. So really it makes sense now for us to stay put and maybe update a little here and there.
But everytime something goes wrong, you start wondering.... And wishing you were in a smaller place. Moving could also mean giving up privacy.
Our backyard is very private, we see no neighbors and no other houses.

It''s a tough decision for us, for others, maybe a no brainer!!

 

[HollyS]

Since I would never buy the McMansion to begin with . . . No, I wouldn''t need to.

 

[sunnyd]

My inlaws and my parents both want to ASAP! My parents are waiting until their 2 St Bernards pass on, then my mom wants a place in the city.

My inlaws have 2 kids sort of at home still - 1 is in college and lives at home on breaks, the other is graduating next week and will be living at home until she gets a job and can afford to move out. But as soon as they do, it''s into a townhouse with no yard to take care of!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Probably. It would be too big for just two people.

 

[partgypsy]

Here''s a word of warning:
My Mom got the house with the divorce and never got around to downsizing (it''s a large 4 bedoom, 2.5 bath house). Nature abhors a vacumn. After 10 years first my older brother moves back in, and then my sister.

Downsize while you can!

 

[zhuzhu]

Since CA homes do not have basement, I can down size to a home < 2000 sf but we still need 3 car garage for DH''s "things". It will be more difficult to find a nicer, smaller home with 3 car garage I think.

 

[icekid]

IF we move to the burbs with kids (and that is a big if, I am considering having city kids), we will definitely move back to a city and get a smaller place post-kids!

 

[jewelerman]

Date: 5/4/2009 10:04:07 AM
Author:Dancing Fire
the kids move out?

In a heart beat!Quailty of life is not dependant on a large home...Taking care of a large home and expensive furnishings are time comsuming and take away from other life experiances....travel,read, do charity work,go back to school after the kids are gone....get a home big enough for a guest or two to come visit during the holidays, and that wont take on an identity all its own!

 

[Fly Girl]

Date: 5/4/2009 2:29:26 PM
Author: HollyS
Since I would never buy the McMansion to begin with . . . No, I wouldn''t need to.

Good plan, HollyS!

We are still living in our 1300 sq ft, 3 bedroom "starter home" that is now paid off. The kids are off at college, (one graduated last spring) and we have no need to downsize. In fact, I''m sure that our son''s former bedroom, which measures 9'' x 11'' and is located right next to the dining room, is a big reason he looked so hard for a job. He didn''t want to move home!! Fine with us.

 

[FrekeChild]

My parent''s house was designed to be "collapsible". Meaning that it''s 3,600ish sq feet, with two separate air conditioners, and two separate radiant heating systems.

On one side is their bedroom, the TV room, 3 bathrooms, the garage, the kitchen, sunroom and the laundry room, as well as the door to the backyard.

And on the other side is 2 bedrooms, one more bathroom, the entry/front door and the formal living and dining rooms. So when they have company/kids, they can open up the french style doors separating the two sides of the house and turn on the temperature system that''s needed, going from a smaller 1,800ish sq ft house to the full 3,600ish sq ft house. It''s pretty cool.

 

[Sabine]

I think it''ll depend. If we''re not planning on relocating and can afford to keep the house, I think we''ll keep it if at all possible. I think kids always appreciate having a "family home" to come home to. I know it makes me sad that I don''t. My dad downsized, and although we stay with him at times, if my brother and his wife are coming too, or we come with kids once they are past the infant stage, it will be too small and we will stay with the il''s.

 

[musey]

My parents have kept their enormous house in the hopes that people will come and fill it up over the holidays. Once my dad retires, they plan to move to the west coast (and a much smaller house) to be closer to us kids, who are all out west now.

 

[bee*]

My parents are going to keep their house and don''t plan on downsizing. It''s not a huge house but it''s 4 bedrooms and I adore it. They have a house in France too so if anything I''d say they''ll split their time more evenly between Ireland and France.

 

[vespergirl]

In a word, yes! I would go back to the city, where I grew up, and get out of these kid-friendly burbs! I don''t need to go to public school!

 

[Elmorton]

Probably. DH''s dad has a HUGE house (Dh has four siblings/step sibs) and it seems very, very strange to me when I visit, though it''s great at the holidays because everyone has a bed. But if we visit for a non-holiday, it feels like a B&B!

Right now, we''re talking about maybe just having 1 kid, so if that happened, no, we probably wouldn''t downsize, since we wouldn''t need/want a large house to begin with. But if my pre-child 20''s are any indication, I''ll always want a house that fits the # of people in it. I don''t like feeling like I''m rattling around in a house that''s empty.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 5/4/2009 2:29:26 PM
Author: HollyS
Since I would never buy the McMansion to begin with . . . No, I wouldn''t need to.

What sq. footage constitutes "McMansion?"