Purchasing a larger home makes a lot of sense for several families especially if you are growing your family and are working to support the larger expense. But when retirement comes, a large number of Americans find themselves choosing to downsize.

There are many reasons that those in retirement look to downsize their property. Whether it be to spend less money on housing to be able to focus on other expenses with a fixed income or just having less house to take care of to be able to focus on other things.

When downsizing your home in retirement there are three features of a home that are important to focus on.

The Amenities

When you are no longer working a daily job you have much more free time on your hands and filling that free time could end up costing a good amount of money if you are always going out beyond the walls of your home. This is why so many retirement community properties offer amenities within the price of their home through homeowners association or condo association dues.

Amenities within communities can help you to have the ability to get to know neighbors and spend time with them while doing fun things within the neighborhood or enjoying community activities that are already paid for in your housing costs.

Common community amenities can include fitness centers, community events, sports courts, swimming pools, clubhouses, meeting rooms, and various different clubs geared toward different interests like crafting or game playing.

Energy Efficiency

Being able to spend more time doing whatever you enjoy may mean spending more time within your own home and as such this can be translated into a higher utility bill with the extra time spent inside your own living space. It is a good idea to consider the energy efficiency of a home to help keep these bills at a minimum to help cut down on your housing costs.

Property Taxes

Taxes can be a pain for any homeowner as they can climb significantly at any time. They can be especially burdensome for a retiree on a fixed income. It is a good idea to look into a property with a great property tax rate that is more than affordable, to begin with. This will help you to continue to afford them should they rise.

It is also good to note that you should not assume property taxes will decrease because the size of your home decreases. Often purchasing a resale home instead of a brand new construction one will save you quite a bit of money in property taxes. It is also good to note that California does have Prop 19 to help senior citizens with the rising cost of property taxes. Make sure to ask a trusted real estate agent how you might benefit from Prop 19 in California in retirement.

For more information on purchasing a home in Palm Springs and surrounding areas please contact us anytime.

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