Empty Nesters: What To Expect When You Downsize

Your kids have moved out and you’ve traded in the family home for a smaller abode, one that’s closer to the action (or the beach). Along with the memories you’re leaving behind, which you’ll have mixed feelings about, your new abode will bring with it changes to your lifestyle you may not anticipate.

Prepare yourself for this exciting next stage in your life by arming yourself with knowledge – if you know what may be coming, you’ll be better equipped to make the transition with ease.

You can see and hear your neighbours

Only once you move into a new house do you tend to discover who you’re living next door to, and how loud they are – something far more obvious when you have a wall in common or your backyards sit side by side. Upgrading the window treatments in your home may be necessary to increase privacy, and screening plants may be needed to make your backyard feel more like an oasis.

On the upside: Get to know your neighbours and you’ve taken the first step towards building a community in your new neighbourhood. Old friends are gold, but making friends next door will enhance the everyday.

Storage becomes your new best friend

The double vanity, benchtop and plentiful storage you’ve taken for granted may well be things you miss about your old bathroom – and this could be one of the first rooms you renovate in your new home. In the meantime, rest assured that you’ll get used to having less surface space on which to rest your belongings, and accumulating bathroom clutter will no longer be an option.

On the upside: Give yourself permission to acquire only products you love. You’ll have fewer of them, so it’s the perfect excuse to splurge.

It’s harder to have your own space

If you live with your partner, moving to a smaller abode means more time spent face to face. Retired empty nesters who’ve planned ahead do well to develop separate interests (to give each other space and things to talk about), as well as activities they like to do together (retirees who play together stay together).

On the upside: You may have a smaller home and fewer opportunities for time on your own, but you’ll also have fewer rooms that need cleaning.

Your furniture may no longer work

Even if you've made careful measurements and re-homed all the furniture that's clearly not going to fit in your new abode, it's often not until you move in that you realise what you've brought with you is just not going to work. A light-filled room can highlight stains you hadn’t noticed, the colour or style may be all wrong for the space, and the way you find yourself using a room may mean your furniture feels like a mismatch. For example, you may find yourself watching TV in bed but reading in the sitting room, and would be far more comfortable with a reclining armchair than a formal couch.On the upside: You have the perfect excuse to go shopping for new furniture.

Your backyard shrinks, and your lifestyle changes along with it

Moving to a smaller home almost always means a smaller backyard, particularly if you’re moving from the suburbs into the inner city. If you’re used to lazing by the pool and know you’ll miss it, consider a Jacuzzi instead.

On the upside: Mowing the lawn will no longer be a time-consuming chore.

Likewise if you’re used to a spacious back deck with room for lounging and dining. A compact backyard can still meet your needs for a restful outdoor escape and a place to entertain family and friends; you just have to be a bit clever about it. The owners have made the most of this rear courtyard with built-in seating and a barbecue.

A kitchen servery connects the inside and out, and the garden makes effective use of the available vertical wall space to envelop the space in greenery.

On the upside: A smaller garden allows you to actually enjoy gardening, rather than wearing yourself out trying to stay on top of it. Plant what you love.

Dos and Don’ts of Itsy Bitsy Balconies

Your compact kitchen changes the way you cook

When you have metres of island bench space, banks of storage cabinets, drawers and a butler’s pantry, strutting your culinary skills is relatively easy. A smaller kitchen will require you to clean as you go, shop for ingredients more often, and to pare back your serving-ware, glassware and kitchen gadgets.

On the upside: Embrace your downsized lifestyle and eat out more often – meet friends out for dinner instead of always having them over, head out for impromptu visits to new or favourite restaurants, even if you’re on your own – you never know who you might run into or meet. Life is short; simplify the meals you do cook at home, focusing on using only the very best produce and ingredients.

Rooms have to serve more than one purpose

Many empty nesters have the luxury of turning rooms their children once occupied into everything from craft rooms and man caves, to home offices and TV dens. Downsizers must readjust to multi-purpose rooms and make do, particularly when guests are staying.

On the upside: The accumulation of stuff is less tempting. You’ll buy only what you need or genuinely love, and it will become plain to see what you actually like doing versus what you might one day do. The artist you once imagined yourself becoming when you retired, for example, may rarely show themselves, but you may well find that the entertainer in you often wants to come out and play. Or vice versa.

If your kitchen and laundry are now one, figuring out what to do with baskets of washing can become a challenge – separate laundries are prime dumping grounds for all manner of items, from shoes needing a clean to socks soaking in the sink. Doing smaller loads more often is the key to a successful kitchen/laundry combo.

On the upside: Piles of laundry will become a thing of the past. Staying on top of dirty washing, folding and ironing will become the norm. Reward yourself.

Guests make their presence felt

Larger homes often come with guest rooms for visiting kids and grandkids, but downsizing empty nesters will have to get creative to squeeze in more than one guest at a time. Bunk beds, wall beds, sofa beds and air mattresses are all options. It’s up to you how many guests you want to accommodate at once – and sometimes it will take a visit or two to see what will work.

On the upside: If only a couple of family members can visit comfortably at once, quality time together is assured.