{"id":9084,"date":"2016-08-23T01:00:08","date_gmt":"2016-08-22T15:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/realestatetalk.com.au\/?p=9084"},"modified":"2016-08-23T01:00:08","modified_gmt":"2016-08-22T15:00:08","slug":"downsizing-pros-and-cons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/","title":{"rendered":"Downsizing pros and cons – Jodie Walker"},"content":{"rendered":"

 
\nDownsizing is what happens when the kids have moved out and, hopefully, taking the pets they grew up with, leaving you free to travel and do all the things you couldn\u2019t do because you had kids. But downsizing comes with a whole set of new challenges. We look at those with Jodie Walker<\/strong> from Secret Agent.
\n <\/p>\n

Transcript:<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Kevin:<\/b>\u00a0 We have an aging population, and of course, with more people choosing to live in units, downsizing becomes a bit of a reality. Sounds like a great idea, doesn\u2019t it? The kids are off your hands, they\u2019ve moved out, they\u2019re making their own lives, and now it\u2019s time for you to live. One of those choices is getting rid of the big house and maybe moving to an apartment. But downsizing isn\u2019t as easy as it sounds. There are a number of challenges.
\nJodie Walker joins me from Secret Agent.
\nJodie, you\u2019ve prepared a report on this. Tell us about some of the things that people are going to face when they make this decision to downsize.
\nJodie:<\/b>\u00a0 Downsizing itself seems like a simple task, but it\u2019s actually quite complicated. There are a lot of hurdles that they\u2019re going to face. I think one of the biggest hurdles is being able to fully commit to the idea and let go of any emotional attachments that you may have to the memories that you\u2019ve created over the years.
\nIf you\u2019ve raised a family in there, you may be very attached to the residence, and you\u2019re probably also quite attached to the friends, family, and networks that you\u2019ve built up in the area. Letting go of all of this can be quite difficult.
\nKevin:<\/b>\u00a0 Yes, that final one you mentioned there about family and friends in the area, you could always choose to live in the same area and still keep those connections, though, couldn\u2019t you?
\nJodie:<\/b>\u00a0 You could, but I guess I\u2019m speaking about people who are moving from the outer suburbs on a large block of land and they\u2019re moving into the inner city, which is a trend that happens alongside downsizing. People want to live where the amenity is and where there\u2019s good access to transport and caf\u00e9s, and that tends to be in the inner city.
\nKevin:<\/b>\u00a0 I always think it\u2019s a good idea if you decide to downsize to maybe go and rent somewhere first to see if you really like it before you commit to buying something. I\u2019ve seen a lot of people, Jodie, over the years sell that big house on the big block of land, move to an apartment, and then find six months down the track that they really need that bit more space and they weren\u2019t quite ready for it.
\nJodie:<\/b>\u00a0 Yes, exactly. We highly recommend the same thing \u2013 spending a few weekends in the suburb that you\u2019re thinking about renting in, because each suburb has its own culture and own demographics, so you really want to make sure that it suits your personality and what you value and the lifestyle that you want to create for yourself. So if you can\u2019t rent, then stay in the suburb in a hotel for a few days to just really experience it.
\nKevin:<\/b>\u00a0 Yes, you could have a holiday there. Let\u2019s talk about some of the things we can do while we\u2019re still living at home in the home that we choose to, to prepare ourselves \u2013 like making a list about the things that I like and even doing a bit of de-cluttering. Tell us about some of the things we can do there.
\nJodie:<\/b>\u00a0 De-cluttering is super important. Obviously, storage space is one of the biggest things you\u2019re going to lose when you downsize. With de-cluttering, I would highly recommend to be analytical and not emotional. Ask yourself \u201cDo I use this?\u201d not \u201cWill I use it?\u201d because as soon as you ask \u201cWill I use it?\u201d it\u2019s easy to start imagining when you\u2019re likely to use it in the future, but the truth is if you haven\u2019t used it in the last month, you\u2019re probably not going to. It\u2019s just about being organized, starting early, and tackling one room at a time so that it\u2019s not so daunting.
\nKevin:<\/b>\u00a0 It\u2019s just occurred to me, Jodie, that a good exercise would be if you decide to downsize \u2013 you don\u2019t make that decision overnight; you might do, but most people don\u2019t \u2013 you could prepare yourself for it by doing a little bit of de-cluttering and starting to get rid of some of that stuff, but do it over a long period of time.
\nJodie:<\/b>\u00a0 Yes, exactly. So just prepare yourself mentally and physically, as well, over a longer period so that it\u2019s a lot easier when you actually do move.
\nKevin:<\/b>\u00a0 I was interested to read in your article, too, that you highlighted the need to make sure that you buy quality. Tell me about that and why is that so important?
\nJodie:<\/b>\u00a0 One of the benefits to downsizing is having less space to clean and maintain. If you buy something that\u2019s low quality, it\u2019s more likely that you\u2019re forever going to be needing to repair or replace things, and that negates the initial benefit. You\u2019re already getting used to less space; you don\u2019t really want to have to get used to a lower quality house, as well.
\nKevin:<\/b>\u00a0 Yes. When we\u2019re downsizing, what are some of the important things to bear in mind \u2013 like car parking, maybe the second bedroom or even a big balcony? I mentioned the big balcony, Jodie, because I think a lot of people like to continue to maybe get their hands in a bit of dirt, so you could do a little bit of indoor gardening, couldn\u2019t you?
\nJodie:<\/b>\u00a0 Yes. Outdoor space is very important. I think you definitely want to make sure it has outdoor space, a good outlook if it is an apartment, and natural light, obviously. And you want to be really careful with the car parking because I think a lot of people get shocked by that. They\u2019re used to having excess car space available and it\u2019s especially important not just for yourself but your friends and family who come and visit you to be able to find a park close by as well.
\nKevin:<\/b>\u00a0 Another frustration, I think, for people moving is to make sure that you have plenty of storage in that garage, and it just occurred to me then when you\u2019re looking at your car park, see if you can get an area to put a little bit of storage \u2013 whether that\u2019s bikes or maybe some exercise gear that you might not be able to fit into your apartment. Those things are pretty important, too, Jodie, aren\u2019t they?
\nJodie:<\/b>\u00a0 Yes. A lot of apartments nowadays come with a car space and a storage cage, or they might come with two car spaces. But you want to also be careful then about the owners corp rules because usually they govern what you can do with the car space. We\u2019ve had a few people who have purchased an apartment with two car spaces and then were not allowed to put a storage cage into that. So you just want to be really careful.
\nKevin:<\/b>\u00a0 Yes, body corporates are a whole different frustration that we don\u2019t have time to talk about today. Jodie, it\u2019s been great catching up with you. Thank you for your time.
\nJodie Walker is from Secret Agent, and some of the secrets there of downsizing. Thanks for your time, Jodie.
\nJodie:<\/b>\u00a0 Thanks, Kevin.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Downsizing is what happens when the kids have moved out and, hopefully, taking the pets they grew up with, leaving you free to travel and do all the things you couldn\u2019t do because you had kids. But downsizing comes with a whole set of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":176692471,"featured_media":8711,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[32,10,11,13,17,22,23,25],"tags":[101],"class_list":["post-9084","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buying-a-property-topic","category-kevin-turner-sponsored-channels","category-kevin-update","category-latest-story","category-property-investment","category-research-topic","category-selling-a-property-topic","category-sponsored-channels","tag-podcast"],"yoast_head":"\nDownsizing pros and cons - Jodie Walker - Realty Talk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Downsizing pros and cons - Jodie Walker - Realty Talk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"  Downsizing is what happens when the kids have moved out and, hopefully, taking the pets they grew up with, leaving you free to travel and do all the things you couldn\u2019t do because you had kids. But downsizing comes with a whole set of...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Realty Talk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-08-22T15:00:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"rolanrush\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"rolanrush\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"rolanrush\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/384a57ac9e52cb9bf19896cb15eaa52d\"},\"headline\":\"Downsizing pros and cons – Jodie Walker\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-08-22T15:00:08+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1321,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"\",\"keywords\":[\"podcast\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Buying a property\",\"Kevin Turner\",\"Kevin's Update\",\"Latest Stories\",\"Property Investment Topics\",\"Research\",\"Selling a property\",\"Sponsored Channels\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/\",\"name\":\"Downsizing pros and cons - Jodie Walker - Realty Talk\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-08-22T15:00:08+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/384a57ac9e52cb9bf19896cb15eaa52d\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"\",\"contentUrl\":\"\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Downsizing pros and cons – Jodie Walker\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/\",\"name\":\"Realty Talk\",\"description\":\"Your Trusted Voice For Property Investing. Anywhere, Anytime.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/384a57ac9e52cb9bf19896cb15eaa52d\",\"name\":\"rolanrush\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/86544778804295a7fa45cbde097dc3a58a45ba6ed28859f17059ca74c38723d2?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/86544778804295a7fa45cbde097dc3a58a45ba6ed28859f17059ca74c38723d2?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/86544778804295a7fa45cbde097dc3a58a45ba6ed28859f17059ca74c38723d2?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"rolanrush\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/channels.realty.com.au\\\/realtytalk\\\/author\\\/rolanrush\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Downsizing pros and cons - Jodie Walker - Realty Talk","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Downsizing pros and cons - Jodie Walker - Realty Talk","og_description":"  Downsizing is what happens when the kids have moved out and, hopefully, taking the pets they grew up with, leaving you free to travel and do all the things you couldn\u2019t do because you had kids. But downsizing comes with a whole set of...","og_url":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/","og_site_name":"Realty Talk","article_published_time":"2016-08-22T15:00:08+00:00","author":"rolanrush","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"rolanrush","Est. reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/"},"author":{"name":"rolanrush","@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/#\/schema\/person\/384a57ac9e52cb9bf19896cb15eaa52d"},"headline":"Downsizing pros and cons – Jodie Walker","datePublished":"2016-08-22T15:00:08+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/"},"wordCount":1321,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"","keywords":["podcast"],"articleSection":["Buying a property","Kevin Turner","Kevin's Update","Latest Stories","Property Investment Topics","Research","Selling a property","Sponsored Channels"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/","url":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/","name":"Downsizing pros and cons - Jodie Walker - Realty Talk","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"","datePublished":"2016-08-22T15:00:08+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/#\/schema\/person\/384a57ac9e52cb9bf19896cb15eaa52d"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/#primaryimage","url":"","contentUrl":""},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/downsizing-pros-and-cons\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Downsizing pros and cons – Jodie Walker"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/","name":"Realty Talk","description":"Your Trusted Voice For Property Investing. Anywhere, Anytime.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/#\/schema\/person\/384a57ac9e52cb9bf19896cb15eaa52d","name":"rolanrush","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/86544778804295a7fa45cbde097dc3a58a45ba6ed28859f17059ca74c38723d2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/86544778804295a7fa45cbde097dc3a58a45ba6ed28859f17059ca74c38723d2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/86544778804295a7fa45cbde097dc3a58a45ba6ed28859f17059ca74c38723d2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"rolanrush"},"url":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/author\/rolanrush\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9084","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/176692471"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9084"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9084\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9084"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9084"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/channels.realty.com.au\/realtytalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9084"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}