Buying bigger: When it makes sense to upsize
You hear a lot about empty nesters wanting to downsize. And for many people, that’s a solid choice. But other people are in the market to “upsize,” and for them, the best way to do it is to buy a bigger house. Now sometimes, you can add on to your existing home and get more living space and storage without changing your address. In some cases, that’s even the smart move.
Many times, however, that’s not the best decision because your current property and location won’t support the upgrade. That is, you’ll be spending money you have little or no hope of getting back whenever you bring the home to market.
So, the question is, when does it make sense to go bigger?
To try and answer that question, I have compiled some information from real estate blogs and added some thoughts of my own. Here are a few things to keep in mind:
■ Consider family size. If the family is growing, it’s only a matter of time until you need more living space. This is definitely true if you have a wide range of ages in the house — younger children and older children who will be coming back from college and maybe bringing friends. And what about grandparents? If you’re becoming multigenerational, you don’t want to be crowded.
■ Home office. Great idea. If you have the space to do it right. Nothing is more frustrating than trying to work from home in a bad space. Makes for an unhappy home life and unproductive work life.
■ Added storage. If the family is growing, so is the need for more storage space.
■ Income change. Maybe your first home was a “starter” and a stretch to afford. You’re doing well now and you are in a position to buy your dream home or the next-best thing. Hey, timing is everything.
■ New appeals. If you want to go bigger and newer, you can find it in one place by upsizing to a new home.
■ Change of neighborhood. I added this one because I know from personal experience some neighborhoods, more than any one particular house, are the way you realize your dream. But you might have to buy more home than you originally intended to get into that neighborhood.
■ A gathering place. And I added this one because let’s face it, a bigger and more comfortable home will be a more attractive landing place for your kids as they grow up and get out on their own. A fun and bigger place just might be the ticket to bring them back for summer vacations and holidays.
To view MAAR’s area market statistics on home sales, go to http://www.maar.org/marketreports.