Bring up the subject of downsizing and some homeowners break into a cold sweat.
Make do with 1,000 square feet of indoor space, instead of 4,000 or more? It seems impossible.
For some owners of a single-family home, the move to a condo or townhouse, where in addition to having less room they will answer to members of an association, can be traumatic.
Yet many are making such a move. A recent study found that more than half of all housing going up in the Chicago area consisted of condos and townhouses.
Housing consultant Steve Hovany says there are something like 130 developments in the Chicago area catering to buyers who are aged 55 or older, and the number keeps growing. Many of the buyers are downsizing.
“It is an example where demographics rules for the construction industry,” said Hovany, of Strategy Planning Associates, in Schaumburg. “The number of empty-nesters and active adults continues to grow.”
He said the industry has been following the Baby Boom generation for 40 years, and there are no signs the trend will end anytime soon.
When married or single empty-nesters downsize, they find that all their furniture, appliances, pots and pans and clothing can’t be squeezed into the new space. And the choices can be agonizing.
What happens to family keepsakes? Is it worth rehabilitating that old sofa and taking it to new digs? Should a set of cherished golf clubs be taken to a fresh location or should they be given to a grandchild?
“We are torn over these decisions. Are we ready to give up our big house?” says Heidi Matan, 52, who with her husband, Michael, 58, is leaving a five-bedroom, 3,600-square-foot house in Glenview to move into a 2,500-square-foot penthouse unit at the Metropolitan, a building under construction in downtown Skokie.
“We are definitely Baby Boomers,” she says. “It’s a struggle everyone in our age group is facing. But my parents moved into a condo when they were relatively young and in good health. They were always thankful.”
The Matans own an upholstery business that was once located on the very spot where their condo is under construction. Their business moved about 2 miles farther north; so they can be at work in less than 10 minutes.
“We are looking for easier living,” said Heidi Matan. “This will be very convenient for us.”
Michael Matan says they were determined to live in Skokie because “the community has been very good to us. Our business, Matan’s Upholstery, will celebrate its 35th anniversary next year.”
The couple have lived in their current home for 16 years.
Economist Gopal Ahluwalia of the National Association of Home Builders says that while some older buyers are downsizing, it is not a wholesale trend.
“Over the last two or three years, the size of the average new home has held steady, at 2,320 square feet,” says Ahluwalia. “We don’t expect the size of new homes to decline any time soon.”
Instead of seeking more and more space, however, he says many buyers are opting for higher quality features, such as hardwood floors, higher ceilings and fireplaces.
And not everyone who decides to downsize is over age 55. Steve Genyk, 35, and his wife, Dana, along with their three children, moved from a five-bedroom house in Orland Park with more than 5,000 square feet of space to a more costly, older house of less than 3,000 square feet in Park Ridge.
“It may seem odd, but the smaller house was the right fit for us,” said Genyk. “It actually has brought our family closer together.”
He said their oldest son, Michael, 10, now shares a bedroom with 2-year-old Jensen. But the family prefers the convenience and charm of Park Ridge to the more suburban feel of Orland Park.
“For my job, this is much handier,” said Genyk, who is a real estate agent with @properties. “But most of all we like the quality of life.”
He said the family walks frequently to the shops and coffee houses in downtown Park Ridge. They love the mature trees. And son Michael walks to school.
Art and Arletta Mundt made the decision to downsize more than a half-dozen years ago. They sold a three-bedroom home with a family room and full basement in Hinsdale, built in 1957, to move to a two-bedroom ranch condo unit in the Eagle Ridge development in Orland Park.
“We don’t really miss the basement because we were up and down the stairs constantly,” says Arletta Mundt, who is in her 70s.
The move involved getting rid of a lot of excess items, she says, “but that process never ends. Nobody ever downsizes fully. We still have plenty of things on shelves in the garage.”
The couple volunteer at a thrift resale shop in Orland Park run mostly by church members, to which they recently donated a spare kitchen set.
Arletta Mundt says her husband, who is slightly older, misses his garden, but is able to take part in cultivating some plants at a daughter’s house, which is about 15 minutes away. The best part of their new home, she says, is that there are two bathrooms, one for each of them. What they don’t miss, she says, is shoveling snow or cutting grass.
“I didn’t want to get on my knees anymore in a flower garden,” Arletta Mundt says. “And as for downsizing, we agreed it is best to make the move while we were both in good health.”
Experts say some downsizers find it worthwhile to pay for a modest amount of off-site storage space for items infrequently used such as holiday decorations and legal papers.
Just as difficult as deciding where to move can be finding space for two or more cars, which are a mainstay in most suburban driveways. Yet buying a parking space at a downtown condominium building may cost up to $30,000. Renting a space may cost between $150 and $200 a month.
While moving to a smaller space may pose a dilemma for many homeowners, the trend isn’t going away. Baby Boomers, the generation born between 1946 and 1964, number about 77 million, the largest demographic group ever.
Many in the group are growing weary of having a large house and realize that, as they age, they no longer need the playroom and extra bedrooms, says housing consultant Hovany.
“They want to keep the rooms that they actually use, and they realize that it takes a lot of time and effort to maintain a large house,” he said.
Economist Sung Won Sohn said that, as people age, they may want the best of both worlds when it comes to housing. Some buy a second home, and keep the one they have.
Because the market for second homes is so powerful, he said, another construction boom may lie ahead.
“Downsizing is not hurting the housing market,” Sohn said. “As long as people want every luxury, construction activity will continue to roll.”
The downsizing trend has transformed the face of many suburban downtowns in the Chicago area, amid a growing demand for condominiums to enable homeowners over age 55 to remain near family members, houses of worship and friends.
Indicative of the trend is southwest suburban Mokena, which has its first such project under construction, known as Mokena Mills. The development, by Network Real Estate Group of Orland Park, is adjacent to the Metra tracks near the commuter station. It consists of 24 residential condo units plus office and retail space, as well as parking.
A survey by home builder Del Webb, conducted in April and May, showed that 36 percent of Baby Boomers will move to a new home once their children move out. Another 26 percent are considering purchasing a home in an active-adult community, which may require one resident to be older than 55 and doesn’t allow anyone younger than 19 to live there.
The survey polled 1,174 residents age 40 to 70. Perhaps surprisingly, it found that 24 percent of them expect their parents or in-laws to move in with them eventually. Further, 25 percent said they expect their grown children to move back home.
There still are plenty of home buyers over age 55 who decide downsizing isn’t for them. Adopting a contrarian tack, they decide they need a bigger, not smaller, place to live.
Says consultant Hovany: “After many years of hard work, they are beginning to enjoy the fruits of financial success–so they decide it is time to buy not only that dream house but a boat as well.”
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Reasons for downsizing:
Homeowners who decide to move to a smaller place often cite these reasons:
– They want to cash out equity from a big house.
– They are empty-nesters who no longer need spare bedrooms or recreation space.
– They want to get rid of clutter as a way to simplify their lives.
– They would like less home maintenance, meaning no more cutting grass, raking leaves or shoveling snow.
