Downsizing your house.


Downsizing Your Home: 3 Money Benefits


If you think moving up in life means buying a bigger home, it’s time to set the record straight. Most American families have plenty of room to downsize their home without cramping their style.
Consider the numbers: The average new single-family home comes in at nearly 2,300 square feet, according to National Association of Realtors. You may not think that’s all too big until you look back at history. The National Association of Realtors also reports that the average home size in 1950 was less than 1,000 square feet—and families were bigger back then. By those standards, today’s homeowners are living large!
Moving into a smaller home may feel like a step down, but a closer look reveals quite a few upsides. Are you ready to find out if downsizing is right for you?

Downsizing Your Home: Less Is More

One question we always hear when the topic of downsizing comes up is: “Where will I put all my stuff?” Here are a few ideas: your neighborhood yard sale, eBay, or Craigslist. That’s right—sell it and take that money to the bank, baby!
Sure, a smaller home means less space, but it also means less time, stress and money spent on upkeep. Think of all the fun you could have if you didn’t have to polish your miniature unicorn collection every weekend. You just might find a whole new world outside your door!
Downsizing your square footage might mean your family has to gather around one TV at night instead of spreading out across three or four different rooms (Gasp!). But is more time with the ones you love really all that bad? It just might be the kick in the pants you need to spend more quality time together!

Let’s Cut to the Financial Chase

Still not convinced? Then it’s time to bring out the big guns and talk money. What if you reduced your mortgage by $500 a month and put that cash toward other financial goals? Check out three strides you could make:

1. Attack Your Debt Snowball

If you’re working hard to kick debt to the curb, downsizing your home can help you maintain that gazelle intensity. Let’s say you owe $18,000 on your student loan. With a 6% interest rate and a minimum payment of $200 a month, you’ll be paying on that loan for 10 more years!
But throw an additional $500 at your loan each month, and you’d trim a whopping seven years and eight months off your pay-off date. Sallie Mae will have to find a new place to live, because you’ll be free from student debt in less than two-and-a-half years!

2. Boost Your Retirement Fund

Once you’re debt-free with a fully funded emergency fund, it’s time to build wealth for the future. Dave recommends investing 15% of your household income into Roth IRAs and pretax retirement plans. If you’re still working your way up to 15%, that extra $500 could be the push you need to get there. And, boy, the difference $500 could make! In 30 years, you could have an additional $1–1.6 million in the bank to get you through your golden years. You can do a lot of living and giving with that nest egg!

3. Pay Off Your Mortgage

Want to downsize Dave’s way? Trade in your mortgage for a paid-off home! Use the proceeds from selling your current home to pay cash for a smaller one. Just imagine what you could do with no mortgage holding you down!
If you can’t pay cash, aim for a 15-year, fixed-rate mortgage and put at least 10–20% down on your new home. Apply the $500 you saved from downsizing to your new monthly payment. At 4.5% interest, you could pay off a $200,000 mortgage in less than 10.5 years, saving almost $25,278 in the process. Cha-ching!

Ready to Downsize? We’ll Show You Where to Start.

Downsizing might not make sense in every situation, but it’s worth a look if saving money and simplifying life appeal to you. Ask an experienced real estate agent to help you determine what your home is worth and show you options for cutting costs. A true pro knows what it takes to get top dollar for your current home and negotiate the best deal on a new one. Ready to downsize but don’t know where to start? 
Source: https://www.daveramsey.com/blog/3-money-smart-reasons-to-downsize

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How Smart People Plan Accordingly For Their Retirement.

Do you know anyone who is considering retirement and do they have a healthy nest egg? How did they achieve their nest egg? They are not financially smart like Warren Buffett or hold the secret solution to retiring comfortably. They did not play the Russian roulette with the stock market or watch it every single day. People who are ready for retirement constantly make contribution towards their investment and saving plans for every month. They are very responsible with their spending and intentional savers in their daily lives. They use the help of professional financial advisor to achieve their goals. The Secret of Saving for Retirement Successfully are listed below: 1). Use your biggest wealth building tool to your financial advantage. 2). They keep their expenses low. 3). They invest 15% of their income. 4).  They do not fund any expenses without referring to their budget. 5).  They meet routinely with their investing professional. 6).  Have a plan and update ...
Read more

The Mistakes We Make everyday About Money.

Here are some of the mistakes we make everyday: It can be cars that we cannot afford, personal loans or house mortgage causing people to file bankruptcy. Here are some money myths that will keep you broke and not compete in today's society. So, why are people still making money mistakes and not changing their ways. Most people are still mismanaging their money and still blaming the society for not setting a law. Please, do not buy into the society popular money myths. Here are some myths that are bad for your money. 1). Debt is a tool. 2). Car payments are a way of life. 3). Loaning money to your family show you care. 4). You cannot go to college without student loans. 5). You can make enough money to catch-up on your retirement. 6). You already understand spending your money, so you do not need a budget. 
Read more

Money and Relationship.

Do you think that most couples argument is about money? The recent survey shows that 63% of couples think that their significant other overspends in many ways, according to TD bank. Money is the leading cause of fight and divorce in North America. Those little fights can cause serious marital problems as time goes on based on the National Council on Family Relations. It is extremely important to figure out how to argue with your significant other in a productive way. In addition, to cultivate a solid marriage and relationship, it is essential for couples to take time to work on their relationship and money. Marriage brings people from different backgrounds and different life experiences together, if they can succeed they need to work on their money and relationship daily. Whether couples realize it or not, money issues can cause havoc in relationship and lead to a fail marriage. The Seven Area of Conflict in Marriages: 1). Separate but equal. 2). Lifestyles. 3). Personality Diff...
Read more