Downsizing - a case study

Moving house at any time of life can seem like a daunting prospect and if downsizing is part of that process it can seem even more overwhelming.

For older clients, especially those living alone, it can be a real challenge going through a house full of belongings and deciding what to keep and what to let go of. Family members may not be local, or may not have the time or ability to help.

However, the good news is that downsizing doesn’t have to be a stressful process. We have helped many people in that situation, and have developed a good understanding of how to make the whole process easier and simpler.

We thought it might be helpful to highlight exactly how we can provide support during the downsizing process by means of a case study.

This is a real life client that we worked with recently and we hope that telling the story of how we worked with him and what we were able to help him with will be useful to others.

We were asked to assist an older gentleman with a move from a large 4 bedroom, detached house in the Cotswolds with garden and garage to a two bedroomed retirement apartment with no garden or garage.

He wisely contacted us some time prior to putting his house on the market, which meant that by decluttering and staging his property we could assist him with getting the best price and a quicker sale on his existing home.

The entire process was quite stressful for him, as not only was he leaving a much loved family home, but he had also experienced several close bereavements in a short space of time. We therefore had to work with patience and empathy while also being quite practical and encouraging.