About a fortnight ago – and after a very long deliberation – Sue and I finally decided that having lived in our current house for over thirty-eight years, the time has come for us to move.
We love our house, but three floors, a steep staircase from the middle to the top floor, a garden with a 1-in-10 slope, our growing age and – in my case – reduced mobility all mean that we no longer feel that it meets our needs.
We have looked at various alternatives that would allow us to stay where we are (e.g. stair lifts, having the garden terraced etc.) but they are all very expensive options, and in the end we decided that rather than spend money converting our existing house we would be better buying another one that is more suitable.
We would love to move into a sizeable bungalow near to where we currently live so that I can continue to receive treatment from the various hospitals I am currently under, but they are just about as rare as hen's teeth. As a result, we are looking for a house with two floors and a straight staircase to which a stairlift can be fitted. (Our current stairs each have two turns in them, and it would cost something in excess of £25,000 to have stairlifts installed whereas a stairlift for a simple straight staircase would cost about a quarter of that price.)
In order to sell our house, we need to declutter it. The problem is that both of us are collectors, and our collections take up rather a lot of room. Therefore, we have rented a storage unit in one of the big secure facilities that have sprung up over recent years and are currently moving stuff on an almost daily basis from our house to the storage unit. This is not an easy process (moving my stuff down from the top floor where my toy/wargame room is located is difficult as I have to use the steep staircase from the middle to the top floor) but we are just about managing.
The upshot of this is that work on my model railway layout has slowed down considerably ... but it is continuing, as is work on various small wargaming projects. Likewise, the time I can devote to blogging is also restricted, so I suspect that rather than writing a blog post on most days, my output is probably going to be two or three times a week.
Good idea to rent a storage unit, I did the same when we moved.
ReplyDeleteIt made selling the house simple and it was easy to dress the house for sale as we had put 3/4 of the house contents in storage. Plus when we moved into the new hose decoration was easy as all the clutter was in storage.
Good luck on the house sale and keep up the excellent blogging.
Willz.
Tiberian general (Willz),
DeleteMy brother moved late last year and he rented a storage unit for exactly the reasons you give. It’s not cheap, but it’s a minor cost when compared with the other costs involved when one moves.
All the best,
Bob
BOB,
ReplyDeletePleased that you've made the decision to move house- as it sounds very promising as far as your daily comfort is concerned- putting in a single stair lift sounds very good. Understandably your Model Railway, Wargaming and Blogging will necessarily need to be toned down during your de-cluttering process. All the very best. KEV.
Kev Robertson (Kev),
DeleteNow that we’ve begun the process, it feels like a bit of a weight has been lifted off our shoulders.
We’ll be spending time doing other things as well as declutter, if only to maintain our sanity!
All the best,
Bob
I certainly don't envy your having to move but it sounds like the right thing. Although renting a storage seems counterintuitive it makes sense as Tiberian General says and will give you both a better idea of what's in your collections.
ReplyDeleteMy wife's comments on our house have gone from "we have a nice backyard" to "it's all on one level"
Best of Luck.
Dan Foley,
DeleteThe process of sorting out what is going to go into storage had made us aware of just how much stuff we own and don’t use, and two local charities (Emmaus and Cat Protection) have already begun to benefit.
All the best,
Bob
Congratulations on coming to a decision Bob. Hopefully you can find somewhere local with a large games room and space to return all the stored items to the new house.
ReplyDeleteMike Lewis,
DeleteMy wife has already agreed that I will be allowed as big a toy/wargames room as possible … and that was encouragement enough for me to bite the bullet and start moving stuff into storage.
All the best,
Bob
Try and find a house in a street that doesn't share its name and postcode with one round the corner.
ReplyDeleteTrebian,
DeleteFunnily enough, that is on the list of things we are looking for in our new house!
All the best,
Bob
Decluttering can be very therapeutic, so you should consider it as a feature, not a bug! I do it regularly with my book collection and gaming stuff, and it also helps focusing ... "What's the stuff I really want to have around, and what stuff is simply ... clutter."
ReplyDeletePhil Dutre,
DeleteNow I’ve begun the process, I’ve discovered exactly how therapeutic it can be. I’ve done it on a smaller scale before, and quite a few other wargamers have benefited as a result.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob
ReplyDeleteBig decision to make, especially as you didn't have to move. It is one of those decisions which is it all too easy to just put off "until next week", so well done you.
Storeage sounds like a good idea, especially as you don't yet know exactly how much room you will have in your new house.
We had a similar problem when we moved to Spain. We had lived in our previous house for 22 years, and during that time had cleared our my parents in law house when they moved to a retirement home. The best of their contents had gone straight into our loft, and had not moved for 12 years. So we also had the problem of what to do with it all. We had some valuations, but they were so low that most of it went in car boot sales, with the rest going to a local charity shop.
I found it quite a hard job, both mentally and physically. But a great relief when it was all finished.
Fortunately we do not have a loft here in Spain, so we do not gather so much stuff that "might come in handy sometime".
Good luck with the move
Paul
Paul Leniston (Paul),
DeleteI suppose that we could have waited for a bit longer, but Sue and I agreed some years ago that we would rather jump before we are pushed, so to speak. Deciding to rent the storage unit has committed us to decluttering and eventually to moving home.
I will be 74 next week, and I think that I wouldn’t want to leave it until I’m much older before we move. I want to be able to enjoy our new home and not resent the fact that we’ve had to move into it.
We know that things are going to be a bit tough for the next few months, but it will be worth it once it’s done.
All the best,
Bob
Good luck with your move Bob. Renting a storage unit is a brilliant idea.
ReplyDeleteMartin Rapier,
DeleteCheers! The storage unit isn’t cheap, but it does free up space so that we can declutter our house before selling it.
All the best,
Bob
I bet it feels good to have made a decision Bob. I always find decluttering cathartic.
ReplyDeleteNundanket,
DeleteIt was a relief once we had made the decision … but in retrospect it wasn’t an easy decision to make.
All the best,
Bob
Good luck with the move and sensible decision given your circumstances. Bungalows are quite plentiful here, but cost considerably more than a 3 bedroom house, hence most people stay where they are if at all possible. Good idea on renting storage in the interim.
ReplyDeleteSteve J.
DeleteCheers! There are a number of 1930s and 1940s estates of bungalows relatively near to us, but they are all rather on the small side and most have been converted into chalet bungalows … which makes them little better than a normal house and somewhat pricier.
All the best,
Bob
Good luck with this, Bob. Decluttering is good for the soul, and should make the eventual move far easier (what a wise move! If only I would listen to my own advice 😎).
ReplyDeleteCheers
Martin
Martin S. (Martin),
DeleteCheers! I must admit that so far I’ve found the process a little bit unsettling … but the more I’ve done, the better I’ve felt.
All the best,
Bob
Our recent move across the US had us decluttering to an extreme. We got to a point where we were just putting things on the street and letting people take whatever they wanted. It worked out well for us but I had to give up a beautiful, antique buffet. I also ended up losing a large portion of my own collection of toys between moving things to the new house. The loss wasn't so bad, many of the things I lost are easily replaced but it's the inconvenience and having to replace things that hurts the kost.
ReplyDeleteAt least we are happy in our new home!
Good luck to you and Sur
Mr. Pavone,
DeleteFor some time Sue and I have been taking stuff on an almost weekly basis to two local charities. They either resell or repurpose what we take them.
Leaving stuff outside our house for people to take if they want it used to be an option but recently our local council has fined people who did this for littering. Their justification is that they offer a recycling service … but it is not very good (e.g. six weeks to come to collect a redundant sofa whereas a charity will collect it within a few days).
During our decluttering I have discovered stuff that I had forgotten I owned … and in many cases I’ve passed it on to other wargamers.
All the best,
Bob
Hello Bob
ReplyDeleteGood luck on the move! It seems you have a good plan.
My wife and I moved out of our house after 30 years. We spent the last five years before moving getting rid of stuff we would not need. We also spent a year prior moving some things into a storage space so a great idea there. I did seem to be doing daily trips to storage for that year! The amount of effort (and stuff!) to actually move after so long could have been overshelming but taking it slow and steady worked for us as at least we were always moving forwards.
Shaun Travers,
DeleteWe are hoping to get our decluttering done within two or three months, and that will certainly involve very regular visits to the storage unit, possibly up to three a day. That said, we’ve been sort of planning this move for quite a few years, and had begun to declutter on a very casual basis before the COVID pandemic.
All the basis,
Bob
Hello Bob, wish you well with the decluttering and finding the new home etc. We decluttered our home years ago and have never looked back. “Be more with Less” is liberating! It Allowed us to do things we really want to do like focus on hobbies, wargames, research, writing etc. cleaning is a breeze as there is less stuff to look after. It’s amazing that every item that one brings home there is not only a cost but a responsibility to look after that item can get overwhelming. Having less stuff gives you more freedom and is so good for the mind and mental health. We hope you and Sue will enjoy the great and many benefits of a semi-minimalist decluttered home as it has done wonders for us. Quinn
ReplyDeleteGlory to Ruritania (Quinn),
DeleteThank you for sharing these wise words! By nature, Sue and I are collectors … but beginning the process of decluttering has made us realise that over the years our collections have grown to such an extent that they no longer give us as much joy as they used to … and can easily be downsized or dispersed to new owners.
Small is better: I’ve just got to try to remember that in future!
All the best,
Bob