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I recall that my aunt and uncle upsized when they finally could. They spent YEARS with 3 children in a house that was probalby under 2,000 square feet, which was actually a fine house but my aunt always wanted a nicer house. When they could finally afford it, two of the three kids were gone and the third was out the door. At this point they bought a 5,000 square foot home. Yes, it was beautiful. After a year, it was just the two of them and the upstairs never got used. The kids were mostly local so never "came home" much. About 2-3 years into it, my aunt could no longer go upstairs due to mobility issues and both had to pay someone to do all the groundskeeping. They sold that house after 5 years and went into an over 55 neighborhood with a one-level home probably at about 1300 square feet.
I'm not sure if they regret that second move or not but from the outside looking in, it sure looked like a waste of time and moeny.
When my dad died, SS pulled his payment from earlier that month out of his account, something most grieving spouses won't expect.
This happened to my mother also. She died on June 30th so SS took her June payment back. If she had died one day later, that wouldn't have happened.
My stepfather had a great NYC pension plan. When he retired he could have selected a benefit plan for my mother if he died first. Instead my mother talked him into getting his full pension because she was so sure she would die first. (She was a bit of a hypochondriac). Well, guess what? He died first, leaving her with $1200 a month to survive on. She eventually had to sell her beloved house and move into an apartment, something she hadn't had to do in 60 years.
It's hard to talk about planning for one's own demise but it is a necessary conversation.
I think that some people don't count the square footage of their basements. Our first home was 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath, 2 stories. It was a great layout when the kids were little - our bedrooms were close together so it was easy to keep an ear out for them at night. But as they got older we found that we were a bit on top of each other. When we got the opportunity to buy a spacious home in a new neighborhood we jumped on it. We got a lot of house for the money and it has served us well. But now that the kids are leaving the nest, it's time to think about what we want in the next phase of life.
You don't count anything below grade in square footage. A 1500 sq ft ranch with a 1500 sq ft basement is still a 1500 sq ft house even if the basement is finished. That house would probably have a 1000 sq ft attic. It sounds like people here would call it a 4000sq ft house.
You don't count anything below grade in square footage. A 1500 sq ft ranch with a 1500 sq ft basement is still a 1500 sq ft house even if the basement is finished. That house would probably have a 1000 sq ft attic. It sounds like people here would call it a 4000sq ft house.
Maybe in Arizona but not where I live. If it's finished and meets code, including having an egress to the outside it's counted here.
The basement often isn't counted because it often isn't finished space.
I have a 2BR/2BA townhome that's about 1250 sq. ft. There's a loft that could be used as a third bedroom, but it's hot and would be difficult to sleep in at night, especially in the summer.
The drive-under garage is 550 sq. ft., but it's not finished space, and not really considered living space.
My problem is that the layout is just plain bad. It's effectively four levels - garage, main, bedroom/bathroom, loft. The loft has basically become a dumping ground for some of my old office furniture and electronics. The loft is ~175 sq. ft that is basically not usable space. It gets in the 80s up there in the summer.
We rented a townhouse with a roommate when we first started out. It was 3 stories and very, very basic, no garage, no deck but it worked for then - although we only had 2 assigned spots so we had to alternate who parked on the street which was a pain. I can see how dividing the existing square footage up into 4 levels would make the place sort of chopped up with no room really all that functional.
The older SFH that we eventually purchased had a main level and a partially finished basement. It was not a big house at all but it was laid out really well for a family with young kids. In our current house our sons' bedrooms are down a hallway on the other side of the house from our master bedroom. It gives us all privacy and personal space. I can not tell you how grateful we were for that space when the pandemic had the kids distance learning and my husband working from home.
When we downsize it'll be into another new or nearly new smaller, one level home - no stairs, small yard, ideally a garage and a golf cart garage.
If you aren't using that old office stuff up in your loft, I would get rid of it. You would not believe the stuff that we have been carrying around with us from place to place over the past 35+ years that we have never used - it just gets put in a basement, garage, attic or closet where it collects dust.
You don't count anything below grade in square footage. A 1500 sq ft ranch with a 1500 sq ft basement is still a 1500 sq ft house even if the basement is finished. That house would probably have a 1000 sq ft attic. It sounds like people here would call it a 4000sq ft house.
Yes. I have seen people with nice finished areas in their basements, including a bathroom and spare bedroom not calculate the finished areas into the total square footage. But even the unfinished laundry room side is usable, climate controlled indoor space. To me the more accurate square footage would be 3000 sq ft in a house like that. I wouldn't count a garage or a screened porch because those are not climate controlled even though they are nice to have.
I think Mikala is married to my ex husband. Do you live in Virginia?
His habit was if he had money he spent it. No concern for upcoming bills. No concern for upcoming expenses. I took over his checkbook and had a code for how much was really in there.
My husband is great with managing a budget. I am good about planning for the future.
That sounds like a good division of responsibilities & labor. Having a workable division of labor is important to a successful relationship.
In our house, I make the money, maintain the physical plant & equipment of the houses & cars, and tune the skis & bicycles. Mrs. moguldreamer is the Chief Disbursement Officer, paying the bills and telling me in advance when I need to raise cash for large items such as property taxes and federal income tax obligations. She also decorates interior spaces & and maintains the social calendar.
For us, at least, we have never planned or maintained a budget. Instead, we have very congruent values regarding money, investing, preservation of wealth, and consumption. We rely upon our values rather than creating budget line items.
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Originally Posted by springfieldva
When we become empty nesters and downsize into a paid off house, we will have less in the way of expenses. Less stuff. Less to take care of. I'm good with that .
Yeah, we thought that as well, and tried to downsize. Then we upsized. Don't be surprised if your plan to downsize doesn't materialize.
I'm not a real estate expert but basements and attics are counted if they are finished and meet minimum housing codes for livability, whatever those may be locally. Otherwise they are wonderful storage spaces. Garages are not counted in square footage.
Funny how this thread has now twisted into homes and square footage but I'm still finding it interesting.
I believe it varies by county. For example, here in Summit County, UT, we live on the hillside, and our bottom floor is "built into the hill" (retaining walls) on the uphill side, with doors & windows on the downhill side, and is finished (home theater, home gym, full bathroom, boiler room, wine storage room, family room) yet is not counted in square footage calculations. In contrast, our home in Clark County, NV has a finished basement (several rooms & a full bathroom) against retaining walls on 3 sides and open on the 4th side and this subterranean area is indeed counted in square footage calculations.
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