FROM HOUSE TO CONDO / DOWNSIZING:
Have you been wondering if it’s time you moved into a smaller home and got rid of some of your belongings?
To better assess the situation, ask yourself the following questions:
- Does your house make you happy or is it a cause for worry?
- Is your property’s maintenance a burden?
- Is the house you live in the right size for your current needs?
- Do you find your house practical? Does it have several floors?
- Do you have to go up or down stairs to access the laundry room?
- What about lawn mowing and snow removal: are these a concern or not?
You can also consider the financial perspective. The bigger the house, the more you have to spend on maintenance (plus repairs, heating, insurance and property taxes). Some things also represent an investment in terms of time: mowing the lawn, pruning hedges or arranging for snow clearance.
Consider the Advantages of Reducing Your Footprint
Living in a smaller space can be gratifying for a number of reasons. It will help you save time and money. Selling your sizable house will increase your liquidity. You can use the profit from the house’s sale to pay the mortgage on your new condo, to invest in a pension plan or to travel. You’ll also have spare time that you would’ve spent doing property maintenance and repairs. You’re now free to travel, entertain, do some volunteer work or find a new hobby.
Start Sorting Your Things
As you look at what you want to keep, give away, sell or recycle, think of how often you use each item. Your Christmas decorations, garden furniture and seasonal sports equipment can all easily be put away until the next time you need them. Although your new home will have less space, you’ll be employing it more efficiently.
Making the Transition from House to Condo
A condo’s desirable location will ensure that the property will maintain (or increase in) its value. Amenities like a gym, roof deck or pool in the building are also definite perks. If you’re concerned about safety, condos largely outshine other options, since buildings are usually equipped with surveillance cameras and alarm systems. Transitioning from house to condo will compel you to sort your belongings and discard all kinds of things you no longer need. But don’t undertake this project too hastily: you might regret having given away or sold things that you would’ve liked to hold onto after all. Take the essentials with you, along with anything of sentimental value. Put everything else in storage until you’ve settled down in your new condo. You’ll then be able to take all the time you need to sort through your belongings.
Now that you’ve made the decision to downsize, here are some tips on how to whittle down your stock.
Digitize
Scan your paper documents and store them on an external hard drive so you can get rid of that unwieldy filing cabinet. Do the same thing with your photographs: keep only the digital files. And get your DVD collection transferred to a hard drive while you’re at it.
A Second Lease on Life
Fix up that chair, table or bookcase you love by repainting it, or by transforming and repurposing it. For instance, you can turn a china cabinet into a dresser or sideboard by removing the top part.
Maximise Storage Space in Your New Home
Be creative! Attach hooks to the backs of closet doors so you can install hanging organizers for shoes and other items. Install extra shelves in your cupboards until you practically reach the ceiling.
What To Keep & What To Store
When you sort out and pack your belongings before an eventual move, separate things in the following order:
- Things you will undoubtedly need (dishes, flatware, pots and pans, bedclothes, towels, etc.).
- Things you’d like to keep (objects that have sentimental value, souvenirs from trips, framed pictures).
- Things you rarely use (dinnerware for special occasions, extra blankets and pillows, seasonal sports equipment).
- Things you haven’t used for at least one year.
Everything that’s in the first 2 categories should be moved to your new place. If you’re not quite ready to discard what’s in the other 2 categories, put it in boxes. Label them clearly with a list of contents and take them to a self-storage unit.
Contact Us
Call us or fill out our online questionnaire. Our team can recommend solutions so you can store everything that doesn’t fit into your new shared home. We have units ranging in size from 25 to 200 square feet.
1215 Mini-Entrepôts is the biggest self-storage facility on the South Shore of Montreal. We offer very competitive rates, starting at just $50 a month. Our facilities are equipped with a hi-tech security system and state-of-the-art surveillance cameras. With your key card, you can safely access your belongings around the clock, 7 days a week, every day of the year. Our storage facilities are heated and pest-free.