We recently assisted a widowed senior to downsize from his home of many years to a retirement residence.

After creating a space plan for the new home, five team members worked to de-clutter, distributing items to family and charitable organizations and separating recycling, chemicals, and other waste for eco-friendly disposal.

By coordinating cleaning services and movers and carrying out the stager’s and realtor’s recommendations, we were able to help the client and his agent to prepare the home to sell for the highest price in the shortest amount of time.

If you or a loved one is preparing to downsize, here are 5 tips to help you through the transition.

  1. To ease into the process, a good starting point would be to gather up all your important paperwork, such as the deed to your home, insurance policies, passports and other legal documents. This will benefit you even if you decide to stay where you are for a while.
  2. Draw up a floor plan of your new home to see how much of your furniture you can realistically take with you. There’s no sense paying to move more than will fit safely and comfortably in your new home, saving you time and money.
  3. Take some time to enjoy going through all your treasures, and be realistic as to what you can take with you to your new home. Family members might be happy to take some of your things, but you may need to consider donating others to charity or selling them. If you have lots of stuff to sell, consider holding a garage sale.
  4. A smaller home means less space and a greater need for creative storage solutions. Small shelving units that can attach to the top of closet shelves, and storage containers that can easily slide under the bed, are some of the products designed to allow you to use space that would otherwise go to waste. Consider closet organizing systems for your new closets to maximise 100 % of  the closets space.
  5. Once you are all settled in, hanging your beloved pictures can add warmth to any room and make your space feel like home.

It’s sad to grow old, but nice to ripen.  ~Brigitte Bardot