The idea of being mortgage free is very attractive. I’m aggressively paying on my mortgage in hopes of achieving that goal.
As far as downsizing… I guess it depends on your family and the house you’re moving to. If you’re moving from a two story with large entry halls, curving staircases, etc… to a one story, open plan… You get some benefit of eliminated wasted space. (You can’t live on a staircase – and most folks don’t use their entry foyers as living spaces.)
If the yard/outdoor space in the new/smaller place is comparable – that will help with the transition.
Look hard at your furniture – is it the oversized stuff that is so common now? That will make the rooms seem smaller. I’ve noticed that furniture styles like you find at Ashleys tend to be HUGE – designed for the tract-mcMansions. Smaller scale used to be easier to find. If your furniture is large – it will be harder to transition to a smaller house.
Only YOU know if you’ll adjust to a smaller house. With 1300 sf you probably have one just one living space – not a separate living room/family room setup… do you need separate space for the kids? Is your formal living room used much now?
To answer your specific questions:
1) We bought from my father – no lawyer or realtor – but we used a title company. It was fine. A lawyer reviewing the sales contract is a good idea.
2) If priced right – it will sell. If priced too high, it won’t. I notice there aren’t too many houses on your street – so no good comps… If you want to be under contract in 30 days – you’ll need to price at or slightly below market price. Don’t just count on Zillow for pricing. It’s notoriously inaccurate at times.
3)I don’t know.
4) I think it’s a great idea to be mortgage free. It gives you options and you are no longer a slave to the house payments. It makes the stress of possible job reductions easier. I’m a fan.
5)It’s possible. It’s possible to even be happy doing it. My husband is one of 6 kids (so 8 in the family) – they grew up in a 1200 sf row house… He didn’t know they were being abused and were supposed to feel deprived. We lived in a 1500 sf house before we bought my dad’s house… and had my in-laws in with us for part of the time. We were happy. It’s what you make of it.
