Downsizing
Posted by admin on May 31, 2011 | No Comments
Downsizing is a popular trend. This type of consumer forms a large part of our current pool of buyers.
Most downsizers don’t choose a smaller house, but rather they choose to go to apartment condos or townhouses. Part of the joy of downsizing is the joy of no longer being a slave to yard work. Yard work is just fine if you have physical health and you enjoy the gardening and upkeep as a hobby. Somehow though, most empty nesters call it work and look to other activities to fill their leisure time. They choose golf, camp, boat or do any number of other activities that potentially conflict with maintaining their own lawns and gardens.
Deciding on what type of real estate the downsizer will choose can be a multi-faceted question.
The first basic decision is between apartment-style or townhouse style. In an apartment you generally have more privacy. Your neighbours don’t see your comings and goings. Usually they don’t even know if you are at home. You enjoy lower heat bills in most apartments and good views are easier to come by. However, the amount of daylight in units with only one face to the sunlight can be an issue. Storage can be a factor. Many apartments have both a utility room and a storage locker, but not always. Secure underground parking is commonly available. The majority are in downtown locations and so one can benefit by using one’s car less or even not at all.
Adult community townhomes offer different benefits. Firstly, you have a front door and back door and no elevators. So, it feels like a house. You usually have the use of a rear green space. Sometimes one can find green space in both front and rear yards, as in the case of detached bare land strata developments. Your covered parking is commonly attached in most cases. That saves the trips with the grocery cart from the parkade that apartment dwellers experience. Adult communities are generally safer than regular communities but apartments are safer yet. Access is more difficult for thieves and so on.
The transition for a homeowner from a house to a townhouse is easier. It is not such a stark change. Many adult community townhomes feel almost exactly like homes on their own lots.
You can see there is diversity in the benefits and the differences. I recommend that if you are downsizing, you look at both types of properties. You will soon know which type feels the most like home to you.
To suggest topics for future articles or to ask Jane questions, email her at jane@vernonrealestate.ca or call 250.503.3755. Previous articles published in the Morning Star appear on Jane’s website – www.vernonrealestate.ca
Filed Under: Buyers
