Are you tired of having to maintain a big house now that your children have moved out? Do you no longer find your location convenient? Whatever your reasons for wanting to move into a smaller space, downsizing your belongings ensures everything you need fits in your new home and expedites the process. Here are a few tips for downsizing to prepare you to live in your new retirement home.

5 Downsizing Tips For Moving Into a Small Luxury Rental

1. Focus On One Room at a Time

Avoid feeling overwhelmed by focusing on one room at a time instead of trying to tackle multiple spaces at once. Sort your items into piles such as “Keep,” “Maybe,” “Trash,” and “Donate” to help you streamline the process. Keep in mind that donating to Goodwill and charity locations offers tax write-off benefits.

2. Use the “One Year” Trick

Get rid of any items you haven’t used in over one year, as you’re unlikely to use them regularly enough to warrant moving them to a small retirement home. If you’re uncertain about keeping a belonging, ask yourself if it’ll do more good in the hands of someone else. A mixer you rarely use, for example, would make a wonderful gift to a friend or grandchild with baking aspirations.

3. Sell Valuables

If you believe something you own has retail value, consider selling them at auctions or to pawn shops. Antique and designer handbags, precious gem and metal jewelry, electronics, firearms, sporting equipment, and quality auto parts are among the items that usually do well at these shops.

4. Digitize Your Documents

Transform piles of paper documents into digital files to save space in your new retirement home and reduce the number of allergens and dust they gather. Save the files to a hard drive or external drive to ensure you have copies of everything you might need in the future.

5. Keep Sentimental Items

Downsizing doesn’t mean disposing of things that hold sentimental value. To eliminate boxes of photos, event ticket stubs, brochures, stickers, and maps, consider compiling all of these items in a couple of scrapbooks.

If you’re looking for a luxury rental to begin a new chapter of your life, visit Traditional Trades Inc. In addition to building the home of your dreams, they provide retirement homes and luxury apartments for people over the age of 55 in friendly and safe communities throughout Onalaska and La Crosse County, WI. Visit their website to view their latest properties, or all (608) 783-4785 for more information.