Your guide torightsizing
Your guide to rightsizing | 32 | Your guide to rightsizing
What is
rightsizing?‘Rightsizing’ is all about choosing the right hom
e to !t your lifestyle or the dream
lifestyle you’re working tow
ards. As
we grow
older, our focus in life may change; m
ost people approaching retirem
ent want to live a peaceful life and enjoy
time w
ith their friends and family. A
dapting the right-sized hom
e to suit your changing lifestyle can help achieve this.
When thinking about the ‘right’ hom
e for your retirement,
there’s a lot to consider. From understanding your lifestyle
and choosing the perfect home, to actually m
aking the move.
In this guide, you’ll !nd resources to help you through your rightsizing journey.
Your Life - Your Lifestyle A
re!ection excercise4
The Options: Rightsizing
options to consider1014
The minim
alism trend
18Finance your dow
nsizing option
21Your notebook
Your guide to rightsizing | 54 | Your guide to rightsizing
‘Rightsizing’ as it sounds, means fi
nding the ‘right-sized’ home for your
lifestyle. This means fi
rst reflecting on your current lifestyle as w
ell as your short and long-term
lifestyle goals. Here are some prom
pts to consider w
hen reflecting on how
your future home could be best
built to suit your lifestyle.
● Think about m
aintenance costs
While a large hom
e with a pool and garden
might have been the perfect choice w
hen your children w
ere home, think about the future
costs of maintaining such a property. M
oving into a sm
aller home m
ay free up cash spent on bills and m
aintenance, and can be used to fuel other interests such as m
ore holidays or pursuing a new
hobby!
● Consider how
you’d like to spend your tim
e
Is travelling your passion or do you love spending tim
e outdoors doing recreational activities or sw
imm
ing? You might w
ant to consider a secure gated com
munity w
here you can lock-up and leave w
henever you feel the urge to travel. A
lternatively, if you prefer the com
fort of home, but like the option of having
a variety of entertainment options nearby,
think about amenities such as having a cinem
a or the beach or a bus stop close to your new
hom
e.
Your Life.Your Lifestyle.
A re!ection exercise
● Think about storage space
Proper storage is all about organising your space so that !nding and putting things aw
ay requires m
inimal e"
ort. Get rid of the clutter in
your life by discarding things that are no longer of use to you. If you have been storing things for children w
ho have #own the coop, this
might be a good tim
e to reduce the excess!
● Consider visitors staying over
If you have family that live far aw
ay, you m
ight want a hom
e that can accomm
odate an extra room
for when they com
e to visit. A
lternatively, a sofa bed may be the ideal
space and cost-saving solution if you like the option of having visitors stay overnight.
● How
will the space be used?
Think about what you love doing w
hen thinking about rightsizing your hom
e. If you love entertaining or enjoy gardening, it is still possible to have a dow
nsized patio or backyard garden that w
ill allow you to pursue
your interests and !t your budget.
Your guide to rightsizing | 76 | Your guide to rightsizing
● Can your current house keep pace w
ith changes in your health and m
obility or the health and m
obility of your partner?
Even if health and mobility are not an
imm
ediate concern, it is wise to think about
whether changes in physical health m
ight a"
ect you in the future. If you have a two-storey
house, navigating stairs in the future might pose
a problem, w
hich may necessitate m
oving to single-level hom
e. If you have health issues, you m
ight want to consider a hom
e with m
edical and healthcare services nearby.
● Consider location
You may decide to sell your car and use public
transport, avoiding the maintenance costs and
hassle of driving in tra$c. C
onsider where
you would like to live w
hen choosing your new
home, think about nearby am
enities such as shopping centres and cinem
as. If you love nature, you m
ight want to choose a hom
e closer to a greater variety of recreational spaces such as parks, bike paths and gardens to enjoy.
Your guide to rightsizing | 98 | Your guide to rightsizing
How to choose the option that’s right for you?
Now
you know w
hat you want to see in your future lifestyle, consider how
your needs align w
ith the options outlined on pages 10 - 13.
Worksheet.
Use the follow
ing worksheet
to jot down your thoughts.
1. Things I’d like to see change in my current lifestyle
2. What I’d like for m
y new lifestyle
What I’d like for m
y new lifestyle
Things I’d like to see change in my current lifestyle
● Start sw
imm
ing
● Becom
e more active
● ●● ●● ●● ●● ●● ●
Your guide to rightsizing | 1110 | Your guide to rightsizing
Moving to a sm
aller hom
e or apartment
Staying in your current hom
e
ProsPros
ConsCons
● Less storage space, m
ay need to declutter a num
ber of items before
moving
● M
ay be harder to accomm
odate more
overnight visitors (on-street parking can be di$
cult in a high rise)
● A
partments generally have speci!c
rules, which m
ay be more restrictive
● A
partments generally charge a body
corporate fee
● Rising m
aintenance costs and utility bills leave less disposable incom
e than w
hat you would spend in a sm
aller home
● C
ouncil and water rates are required
to be paid
● You’ll need to travel to and pay
additional cost for entertainment (cinem
a, bow
ls club, tennis, local pool, etc.)
● N
ot able to bene!t from the equity that
is tied up in your home as an asset
● C
hoose a new hom
e based on your desired lifestyle
● Reduced m
aintenance costs that come
with a new
home m
ean more disposable
cash for spending
● Low
er utility bills; it costs less to heat or cool a sm
aller home
● Less stress and m
ore free time
● Possible intercom
security
● Selling your current hom
e to downsize
may allow
you to free up cash that has been tied up in your large asset
● The m
emories you’ve had in your hom
e m
ay mean you have a special connection
to it
● A
void costs associated with m
oving and !nding a new
home
The Options
Rightsizing options to consider
Your guide to rightsizing | 1312 | Your guide to rightsizing
Moving to an over
50s gated comm
unity
ProsCons
● Som
e restrictions on exterior home
colours and allowable additions to a hom
e
● O
ften include a Deferred M
anagement
Fee (average between 20 - 40%
of the hom
e sale price)
● G
enerally an ongoing maintenance
fee to cover the costs of running the com
munity including on-site C
omm
unity M
anagers and landscaping
● O
ften require permission for visitors
to stay longer than 30 days
● G
reater sense of security without
comprom
ising on privacy
● Independent living w
here residents are of a younger average age
● G
enerally located in peaceful and beautifully landscaped neighbourhoods
● G
enerally more inexpensive than
similar sized hom
es in other neighbourhoods
● M
ove in with like-m
inded neighbours of a sim
ilar age (with an assurance that
there will be no loud renters next door)
● G
enerally less expensive than a retirem
ent village
● G
enerally no entry fees
● V
isitors are often welcom
e
Moving to a
retirement village
ProsCons
● Increased costs of skilled nursing/
health care
● O
ften include a Deferred M
anagement
Fee (average between 30 - 40%
of the house/unit sale price)
● O
ften include additional entry and exit fees (e.g. com
pulsory refurbishm
ent costs)
● Less independence w
hen it comes to
organising your own schedule and
activities
● Possible restrictions around children
and visitors
● M
edical and healthcare facilities available on site (suitable for those w
ho m
ay require health services)
● A
vailability of social activities such as cultural festivities and concerts
● Save tim
e and costs on home
and garden maintenance
Your guide to rightsizing | 1514 | Your guide to rightsizing
● Save m
ore money
When you live w
ith a minim
alist mentality,
you’ll !nd yourself appreciating the items you
purchase more and as a result, spending less
on items you don’t love. W
hile it may m
ean spending a little m
ore initially on an item that
will stand the test of tim
e, it also means you can
choose an item that you truly love. O
ur top tips? Invest in classic pieces of clothing such as w
hite shirts, black pants and denim
in block colours, and use m
ore inexpensive accessories to change your style as fashion trends change. Sim
ilarly, choose furniture item
s in colours and patterns that w
ill be popular for many years to com
e and use cushions and throw
s to modernise your
living room look.
The minim
alism
trend.M
inimalism
has become a w
orldwide trend adopted by
many for its physical and m
ental bene!ts. Here are a few
reasons to consider trying m
inimalism
for yourself.
Your guide to rightsizing | 1716 | Your guide to rightsizing
● Less clutter and cleaning
There’s something to be said for the phrase
“a messy house equals a m
essy mind” and
minim
alism can be the answ
er. Having less
items m
eans there is less clutter to clean. G
enerally, items w
ill have their own “hom
e” to go back to, and your hom
e will feel bigger
and more spacious w
ith less in it.
● Create space for the m
ost important
things in your life
When you carefully select a sm
all number of
items to surround yourself w
ith, you quickly learn to love, respect and be grateful for the item
s you do have. Not only w
ill your mood
be lifted to be surrounded by items that m
ean som
ething to you, but you’re likely to hold onto them
for a lot longer when you treat
them w
ith care.
Tip Top
Minim
alism can extend beyond the item
s in your hom
e. Many choose to practice a
minim
alist lifestyle in many aspects of their
lives. Why not replace som
e of your ‘screen’tim
e today with a m
ore mindful activity such
as meditation, gardening or going for a w
alk?
Finance your dow
nsizing option.W
hen it comes to choosing the ‘right’ option for you in
retirement, it’s just as im
portant to calculate the di"erences
in cost of living as it is to understand the type of lifestyle you w
ant to live.
The best way to do this is to sim
ply list your current expenses and current incom
e along with your future expenses
and future income. U
se the prompts on the next page to get
started and add your own additional expenses or incom
e.
Monthly C
ouncil Rates
Monthy Building &
Contents Insurance
Monthly W
ater Rates
Monthly Electricity and G
as
Hom
e Repair and Maintenance C
osts
Gardening C
osts
Mem
bership Fees (Tennis, Bowls, G
ym)
Entertainment (C
inema, Foxtel, Sport, O
ther)
Current expenses
Total expenses:
Total income:
Di"
erence:
Your guide to rightsizing | 2120 | Your guide to rightsizing
Notes
Monthly C
ouncil Rates
Monthy Building &
Contents Insurance
Monthly W
ater Rates
Monthly Electricity and G
as
Hom
e Repair and Maintenance C
osts
Gardening C
osts
Mem
bership Fees (Tennis, Bowls, G
ym)
Entertainment (C
inema, Foxtel, Sport, O
ther)
Future Expenses
Total expenses:
Total income:
Di"
erence:
Pssst! Be sure to consider the savings on your
expenses. If you’re downsizing your hom
e, you’ll be likely to see a reduction in m
ost expenses from
a reduction in utility bills and insurance prem
iums.
If you’re downsizing to a land lease
comm
unity, you may also save additional
money w
ith no council rates or water rates to pay.
Your guide to rightsizing | 2322 | Your guide to rightsizing
Notes
Speak to one of our friendly Lifestyle Consultants to !nd out m
ore about Lifestyle C
omm
unities and how w
e can help you on your rightsizing journey.
Call us on 1300 50 55 60 for a friendly chat or !nd m
ore information
on our website: w
ww
.lifestylecomm
unities.com.au
Still thinking about your lifestyle options?
Find out more handy tips on the Lifestyle Communities blogwww.lifestylecommunities.com.au/blog