If you choose to relocate in retirement, you will have to sell your home. You need to prepare yourself for the wide range of emotions you will experience in this process: stress, worry, anger, hope, excitement, sadness, and disappointment. You are letting go and detaching emotionally from years of memories in the house you made a home.
You also need to stage your home so prospective buyers can see themselves in your house. As a friend told me, “When you buy, you turn your house into your home. When you sell, you must first turn your home back into a house.” No matter how lovely your home is—and how attached you are to it —it won’t sell itself unless others can see it as their own.
• De-clutter
• Depersonalize
• Repaint with neutral colors
• Change brass fixtures to chrome
• Remove area rugs
• Remove draperies that obscure sunlight
These are lessons I learned selling our own home that I hope will help you:
• Know why you are moving and set goals for your move.
• Educate yourself about selling your home. Trust your agent and listen carefully to what he/she tells you to do and then take action.
• Be able to let go of your emotional attachment to your home and some of your belongings as you neutralize it for potential buyers.
• Allow for flexibility in your thinking and outlook as you downsize.
• Make sure you keep open communication with your partner.
• Have patience with the range of emotions you will experience.
• Trust the process as you gain clarity on what you are letting go of and what you are moving towards.
For assistance in picking the perfect retirement location, download a copy of my book Where Will You Retire?: A Retirement Guide And Exercises For Deciding Where To Retire, Buy A Second Home, Or Relocate * or start start preparing for your successful retirement with a visit to https://www.lifeandworktransitions.com.
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