A home for a new age
Part of actively aging is figuring out what living situation fits you best
Chet Fiske’s entire weekends were dedicated to yard work, and when snowstorms hit the region, he would wake up early to snow blow his driveway and shovel the walk. But after years of raising his family in the large home, Fiske, as he neared retirement, decided it was time to worry less. He and his wife sold their house and downsized, ultimately moving to The Spinney at Pond View, a 55+ apartment community in Castleton-on-Hudson.
“It was just wanting to get rid of a lot of the responsibilities,” Fiske said. “It was good to be able to just say, ‘OK, if something goes wrong, I don’t have to be responsible for fixing my roof or the plumbing issues.’ I could just pick up the phone and call.”
Fiske and his wife are among many people who have retired or are reaching retirement and making similar decisions: Sell the house they’ve owned for decades, and either downsize or move out of state.
“I’d say about 20 percent of the people that I work with are people who are downsizing,” said Capital Region real estate agent Alex Monticello. “As I think through the people who are downsizing, it might be 50 percent of the people are relocating and 50 percent are staying local.”
Living at The Spinney at Pond View has been a particularly great experience, Fiske said, because of the great neighbors and community, as well as frequent activities to enjoy. He said spending time at the
“
It was just wanting to get rid of a lot of the responsibilities. It was good to be able to just say, ‘OK, if something goes wrong, I don’t have to be responsible for fixing my roof or the plumbing issues.’ I could just pick up the phone and call.”
— Chet Fiske
pool, being part of the book club or doing flower arrangements were all major reasons the couple chose the community.
While Fiske would love to get away from the snow, he said, his children and grandchildren are in the Capital Region, so he and his wife would not be more than snowbirds.
“I don’t want to move away permanently because my children are here, my grandchildren are here,” he said. “The plan is to go away for a couple months in the winter, and the kids can come down on spring break and stay with us.”
Monticello said during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic downsizing and
For a lot of folks who are downsizing, these are plans that they have been thinking about for several years, they’re not quick decisions.”
— Alex Monticello
relocating halted, but interest and activity has picked up over the past year as people have put into motion plans that had been paused.
“For a lot of folks who are downsizing, these are plans that they have been thinking about for several years, they’re not quick decisions,” he said.
That’s been the case for Ann Dreyfus, who sold her house to downsize to a condo in 2015, but is now planning to move down South with her sister to be with family.
“In November 2019, we had already made plans, and even had tickets to fly down and look for a house… and guess what happened in 2020,” she said. “Once COVID hit, that put us all back.”
Dreyfus said that while she loves the community she has in her new condo, she and her sister need to be closer to family now. They plan to move by the end of July. With the hot real estate market, the sale of her condo was under contract within a week of its posting.
But while Dreyfus is excited to reunite with her brother and his children, she’s going to miss the Capital Region.
“I love it here. I actually love winter ... I love the Adirondacks,” she said. “I grew up in New York state and I have never lived anywhere other than New York state.”