Why Selling Your Home Could Be the Key to a Happy Retirement

Financial benefits of selling your home for retirement

Selling your home can help fund your retirement in numerous ways, liquidizing cash to allocate towards your savings, buy a new property in full, pay off remaining debts, reinvest into other areas of your portfolio, or use as spending money. (1)

Increase your monthly spending budget

A general rule for budgeting for retirement is to withdraw no more than 4% of your account a year. If you sell your current home, you can allocate part of the earnings from the sale into a lower cost home and shift the rest into your retirement account, boosting your 4% figure.

Lower your monthly property expenses

In addition to saving proceeds from your home sale, you can boost your retirement budget by moving into a lower maintenance home with less monthly expenses. Selling your home and downsizing to a smaller home lowers your property taxes and utility bills in most cases. 

Also, trade in your pool and you’ll have thousands more. The average pool maintenance such as water, cleaning, and repairs costs between $3,000 to $5,000 yearly, meaning in 5 years you can save $25,000 by using a community pool instead of having your own.

Live a debt-free retirement

Selling your home to cash home buyers in Seattle or Tacoma to purchase a less expensive property relieves you of making large mortgage payments with your limited retirement income, your investments and social security, supplemented by limited withdrawals from savings.

Likewise, if your current home is paid off, but you’re carrying credit card, student loan, or any additional debt, selling with the intention to move into a lower cost living situation gives you an opportunity to pay these off.

Leave your family with an asset, not with a mortgage

When you plan for retirement, you need to plan for after retirement—how will your passing affect your family? If you bring a mortgage into retirement and something happens to you, you’re leaving your bereaved with the burden of monthly payments until your home sells. This not only reduces any inheritance passed down, but also adds a layer of financial stress to emotional loss for your loved ones.

Instead, sell your home in exchange for a property you can pay for in cash and leave them with a strong asset. Pass down your new home to your children with limited tax liability by expressing the property transfer in your will.

As your go-to sell my house fast Tacoma experts, HomeLight will help you realize the full benefits of selling your property after retirement. 

Lifestyle benefits to selling your home for retirement

Whether your retirement dream focuses on quality time with family, community involvement, intrepid travel or a new life in an inspiring location, selling your home will free up cash to launch you towards actualization.

Selling your current home for retirement is also an opportunity to transition into a more accessible living situation where you can age comfortably. Your must-haves at this age will likely be different than they were the last time you searched for a home: no stairs, close to quality medical facilities, and proximity to friends and family who can support you with health challenges over the years are now much bigger priorities.

Once you sell your home, there are several routes to choose from to achieve your desired lifestyle.

Downsize to upgrade

You don’t need three extra bedrooms or a home in a great school district anymore. Downsizing for retirement is a straightforward way to reduce or eliminate your mortgage, as well as lower monthly bills and property taxes so you have more money to play with.

Use the equity you’ve built up from your current home to purchase a smaller, less expensive home outright with cash. If you can’t pay in full, downsizing can at least lower your mortgage. If this is the case for you, make the transition while you’re still working so you can better qualify for a loan.

Join an age restricted community for an all-inclusive retirement package

When you move into an age restricted community (PC for retirement community), you gain a home designed to support you as you age, plus a social injection on a scale you haven’t seen since your freshman year of college.

The best age restricted communities feature 24-hour health care nearby, golf cart and walking friendly layouts, tennis courts, community pools, fitness centers, and plenty of organized activities to keep you busy.

Find relaxation through renting

Renting after you sell your home may initially sound like a step backwards, but there’s a case to be made here. To start, say goodbye to home maintenance forever. If pipes leak, if the garage door breaks, it’s your landlord’s responsibility to fix it—not yours. Without the need to budget repairs, you have a fairly predictable cost of living give or take rent rises over time.

Conclusion

With so many paths to choose from, selling your home for retirement and finding a new place to settle down can be daunting.



So, find a top real estate agent to sell your home for the maximum price to kick off your golden years in style. Consider hiring a Senior Real Estate Agent Specialist for a selling experience tailored to your demographic needs.

Give us a call anytime at 253-697-0007 or fill out this quick form to get started today!