You came up as a suggested video. We didn’t retire early, but we have downsized a lot. It took a couple of moves to get to the small cottage we live in now, but it was definitely the right decision. We too started with decluttering and now that we’ve been here 8 months, we find we’re decluttering again. Glad we found you. 😊☕️🇨🇦☕️
Downsizing is certainly not something to rush into and it was obvious how much time and calculated thought had gone into your plan. Getting into the mindset that you maximise the space you have "For the two of you" and not for other people's occasional visits is a major realisation which I think many people even much older can't get their head around. Your kids are lucky that they'll not have to have those conversations with you about the house being too big to manage😂 Your home is just beautiful and the surroundings awesome. Our issue is our view we have had for 21 years is to die for and any future house would seriously struggle to beat it!
Thanks for the great video! I retired early and downsized to full time travel and I do love it, but of course there are always cons. For me though it just did not make sense to keep a house, especially in the area I was in, which was in the San Francisco area. I feel like no decision is final and I can always start again, but for now the freedom to do what I want, when I want is a lot more important that me having stuff and/or a house! Oh, and I totally agree, that getting rid of stuff ended up being so cathrtic!
I have also been through this journey. Do not underestimate how emotionally draining it is letting go of years of acculated stuff. It is great however to have a lot less stuff. I have moved to a bungalow so do not even have an upstairs. Ultimately it is rewarding and it is great to simplify things.
It feels so nice to now live in a clutter free house - there was very little that we felt a massive emotional attachment to apart from bespoke pieces and toys that Richards dad made for our children 😊
We downsized and relocated and best thing we ever did. Like a life "reset" button was pressed. Still feels a little like we are on holiday here in our new location.
Yes! YES! Yes! Contrary to popular views, the downsizing process is a blessing. Having it all is ridiculous, living more simply and with a lot less things allows you to have a lot more and much richer experiences.❤ Thanks for reassuring others about this.
We did the same 2,5 years ago. We have had no regrets at all. Both for the downsizing as the financial positive impact it had. As of last year we are both now retired and we have big plans to go to Spain in the winter.
I think you both made great balanced and thought out decisions and you have a fabulous home in a fabulous place.....what's not to like! Critically of course this was an enabler to your new life and that is just brilliant decision making. Well done and I 100% get that it has removed some stress and financial commitments, less is more as they say. Have a great week.
We downsized from a 400 year old converted Barn to a new 3 bed apartment. The monthly bills are 50% and only 5% of the chores and maintenance time is required which is fantastic. BTW don’t make the mistake that we made, after downsizing significantly our possessions we then paid for a year of storage …. what a waste as we got rid of all that stuff too!
Absolutely concur Bonny👍 The savings on bills are quite astounding. We really did have a good clear out, and are down to the smallest storage locker known to man...it's more of a storage cupboard😂 There are some things we are just not ready to let go of...yet😉 Hope your trip is going well. 👍
This has been so helpful. We're about to downsize and have found it really hard to imagine ourselves in a smaller place. But you hit the nail on the head- do it for us, not the 2% of our lives where we need bigger. Thanks for making it positive.
Glad you found it helpful 😊 It did help that we moved to one of the places that we absolutely love - the hardest part being moving further away from my mum.
Have you ever thought about living somewhere warm like Portugal, for example? The costs of living there is much smaller and there are plenty of lovely walks.
I’m still getting used to your new intro video! Love it though. Also love the photos of your mum Richard, she is so lovely and smiley it cheers me right up! On downsizing, I downsized my mortgage 4 years ago by selling my relatively new home to buy an old terraced home in a cheaper part of town. I spent about £30k doing it up but by moving I was able to pay off my mortgage much sooner. I have to agree about the kids though - my son was (and still is) very upset with me for leaving our old house, even though he’s now moved into his own home! But it was 100% the right thing to do. Now he’s moved out I’m thinking about downsizing to a two bed but to be honest I love my kitchen diner that I designed from scratch too much! 😂
Thank you, we feel blessed that she is in a place where she is now safe after living at home on her own but more importantly she does seem really happy and content where she is. When we downsized both of our children had already settled down living with their partners and they have both since become home owners so we didn't feel too guilty. If you have a home that you really love and already have downsized once then do what makes you happy - you can always move in your later years 😊🏡
Edinburgh is such a lovely place so I can see why it is such a conundrum. We were lucky I suppose that we had a real yearning to move to the Dales and the mountains so the choice was easy 🏡
Great video and you make some great points, downsizing is a mindset , another point is downsizing frees up properties for larger families looking for more space. We downsized once and will be downsizing again soon , I recommend it, and as you mention gives you more financial freedom and if you are working gives you FU money if needed 😊
We did love that a young family bought our old house as it was in such a great place to bring up children and we definitely did not want or need the space that we had.
What a coincidence - yesterday I was in our loft trying to get rid of stuff and frankly dismayed by the amount of things that we can’t seem to let go, such as our daughter’s sylvanians and our son’s wooden farm and fort toys. Are we really going to hang on to this stuff in case our children want them for their children years in the future? I just don’t know anymore and it goes against my idea of decluttering 😂 where do you keep things like this? Great subject for a vlog and you raised all the important points, especially family coming to stay! Thanks 😊
We had the same feelings, but didn't feel obliged to get rid of stuff we had doubts over. I guess we are minimalist "lites", but we are happy with that and we did clear out most of our "stuff" that was just getting in the way. We do regularly review what we have kept, and if our feeling have changed, we clear it out. Thanks for the comment👍
Nice ,I want to a catamaran ,my partner not so much ,we both love where we live but I prefer constant sunshine and 360 degree sea views at all times. Plus we can just move at a moments notice ….what’s not to love !
Agreed, although life on the high sea's probably wouldn't be for us. We love our life in our campervan and the freedom it affords, but we also like the security of our "bricks and mortar" home to come back to. 👍
@ Once you have sailed you either love it or hate it. We have a big place like you had which we both love because the sea is at the end of the road ,yes we are spoilt ….
Thankyou so much Richard and Jackie. As I mentioned once before, we are in the process of downsizing and moving to another part of the country to be nearer grandchildren and realise some capital. This video has been incredibly helpful. I suspect we may end up living in our tiny caravan for a while (with dog), until we find our new home in the area we would like to be. We are also nothing crafters, so we need a little outside space to accommodate lathes, woodworking tools, spinning wheels and looms!!! I feel we need to think 'outside the box' a bit more. Have constantly decluttered since the beginning of the year. Finding that visualising space is helping (I think)!!!
We downsized and we haven't looked back! So much mental load with a bigger house - we now have time (and money) that we would not have otherwise had to enjoy our travels
Living in the van at the time was quite an adventure at the start of our early retirement- we got the keys in mid November in the end - I was getting a little worried we would have to do a winter in the van but we could have lived with mum for a while if needed - she was in Florida for Jan and feb so it wouldn’t have been a disaster 🚐😊🏡
@@lindastone9385 for various reasons we had to declutter very quickly, and while we were doing it we worried that we would make mistakes and chuck something we'd miss, but actually we never looked back and have since further decluttered in our new place. We have found that we are so much happier with so much less. It's hard work while you're doing it, but it is worth it 😊
Thank you Richard & Jackie for another really inspirational video, as this is something I will need to face sometime in the not too distant future. 🙏🏻❤️. xx
My wife I and will certainly be downsizing eventually as like you we want the equity out of our home. We've ended up living in one of the most expensive property areas in the country so we should have plenty of options when we relocate somewhere smaller and also somewhere where property prices are more reasonable on average.
That's great news when that happens Daz. We loved having the freedom to choose where we would like to base our early retirement. In reality, it was much closer to my Mum, but also in one of our real "happy places". We really do wake up each morning and smile at the area we live in.👍
Downsizing when I retire. Can not wait. My goal is to travel 3 coldest months of year which means closing up home and minimal costs. 2.5 years to go ...if we had health care system like Europe would be done now
We sometimes forget how different health care is across the globe. A lot of people sometimes criticise our NHS but the security it brings makes us feel blessed. Whenever we have needed it, it has been there for us🤞 Good luck with your plans- exciting times ahead! We loved making our plans for early retirement, but not as much as the reality of what it has turned out to be👍 Thanks for the comment🙏
Another great video. I downsized last year and now have no mortgage. My living costs are much lower.I'm retiring from teaching in July 2025 and struggling to not wish it away but am now desperate to go. Can't wait to watch your other videos 🤩
Thank you - it all felt like such a big decision 2 years ago but we have no regrets both downsizing and ER - enjoy your last few months - ticking off the last parents evening was a good one ☺️
You do forget that for them it is all their memories but luckily they love our new house and want to keep coming up and spending lots of time here 🏡😊 lots of new memories being made x
Interesting. We moved a couple of years ago from a modern house, much like your old one, to an old croft house in the highlands. For my wife and I, we simply shrugged it off. We had always planned to move, and knew the old house wasn't our "forever house". However, like you, our kids were really upset. We didn't sell the old house (currently rented out) ...but we are under strict instructions not to sell it, until the kids get a chance to "say goodbye" to the house!!!
It was something that we hadn't really considered - both of them were really quite emotional when we emptied the house for the last time. But as we said - they have no other memories - it has always been their home. It does help that they now love where we live and can't wait to keep coming and staying even when we are not there 😊 🏡
How did you find starting again socially in a new location? Friends built up over 20 years (other parents at childrens school mainly in our case) may be difficult to build up again.
Hi Jon- great question. It has been a challenge as we are travelling so much so haven't yet laid down too many roots, but we are happy with that at the moment. Once we slow down a bit, we fully intend to get involved with groups and clubs in the local area. We still get back to Cheshire quite a bit, and old friends come to visit as well. Hope this helps?
5 or 6 months a year I live on my narrowboat, which is in terms of liveable space, 40' by 7'6. There's very, very little I miss. I come back to my 3 bed semi and think why do I have this?
Sounds ideal Hillary- we feel exactly the same when we have spent a lot of time in our little camper van. In fact, it was probably those feelings that prompted us to simplify our lives, because we realised exactly how little we needed. 👍
Hi, been folliwing you for a while now and enjoy your videos. Question for you if thats ok...... how do you get on with home insurance with so many days away? We are planning a long trip to Norway next year in our MH which could leavenour home empty for a 70-90 days. The best insurance I can currently find is 45 days empty and family sraying odd days does not count. Any tips would be appreciated. Thank you Madc
We have our house insurance with direct line which covers you for up to 60 days per trip. At the moment we don't travel for that long in one go as we like to spend time with both mums as much as we can too. I have followed threads on the European campervan and motor homing Facebook page which has this question asked frequently with lots of suggestions - might be worth having a look.
Can I ask how you found your new home? How did you choose the location? I live in Kirkby Lonsdale and am looking to move to a smaller home but don’t know where to.
Originally we wanted to relocate to Sedbergh as it is close to the motorway, a nice small town with shops and cafes and easy access to Scotland and to get back to Cheshire as our children and my mum still live there. But we also had our search along the A65 corridor looking for 2 bed houses - we did not have our heart set on one particular place. We did love Kirkby Lonsdale but it was so far out of our price range 😂 When our house came up - we fell in love with the potential and location and that was it!
You came up as a suggested video. We didn’t retire early, but we have downsized a lot. It took a couple of moves to get to the small cottage we live in now, but it was definitely the right decision. We too started with decluttering and now that we’ve been here 8 months, we find we’re decluttering again. Glad we found you. 😊☕️🇨🇦☕️
Downsizing is certainly not something to rush into and it was obvious how much time and calculated thought had gone into your plan. Getting into the mindset that you maximise the space you have "For the two of you" and not for other people's occasional visits is a major realisation which I think many people even much older can't get their head around. Your kids are lucky that they'll not have to have those conversations with you about the house being too big to manage😂
Your home is just beautiful and the surroundings awesome. Our issue is our view we have had for 21 years is to die for and any future house would seriously struggle to beat it!
Thanks for the great video! I retired early and downsized to full time travel and I do love it, but of course there are always cons. For me though it just did not make sense to keep a house, especially in the area I was in, which was in the San Francisco area. I feel like no decision is final and I can always start again, but for now the freedom to do what I want, when I want is a lot more important that me having stuff and/or a house! Oh, and I totally agree, that getting rid of stuff ended up being so cathrtic!
I have also been through this journey. Do not underestimate how emotionally draining it is letting go of years of acculated stuff. It is great however to have a lot less stuff. I have moved to a bungalow so do not even have an upstairs.
Ultimately it is rewarding and it is great to simplify things.
It feels so nice to now live in a clutter free house - there was very little that we felt a massive emotional attachment to apart from bespoke pieces and toys that Richards dad made for our children 😊
Absolutely! I can't agree more!
We downsized and relocated and best thing we ever did. Like a life "reset" button was pressed. Still feels a little like we are on holiday here in our new location.
This is soooooo true! I wonder if that feeling will ever disappear? We hope not🤞
Thanks for the comment👍
Yes! YES! Yes! Contrary to popular views, the downsizing process is a blessing. Having it all is ridiculous, living more simply and with a lot less things allows you to have a lot more and much richer experiences.❤ Thanks for reassuring others about this.
We are glad you agree Helen, it has brought so much into our lives🙏
We did the same 2,5 years ago. We have had no regrets at all. Both for the downsizing as the financial positive impact it had. As of last year we are both now retired and we have big plans to go to Spain in the winter.
Exciting times ahead for you - winter sun in Spain would be lovely! Definitely no regrets here either 😊
I think you both made great balanced and thought out decisions and you have a fabulous home in a fabulous place.....what's not to like! Critically of course this was an enabler to your new life and that is just brilliant decision making. Well done and I 100% get that it has removed some stress and financial commitments, less is more as they say. Have a great week.
Thank you - we do absolutely love our new home which definitely helps! And the life it has afforded us to live is immeasurable 😊
We downsized from a 400 year old converted Barn to a new 3 bed apartment. The monthly bills are 50% and only 5% of the chores and maintenance time is required which is fantastic. BTW don’t make the mistake that we made, after downsizing significantly our possessions we then paid for a year of storage …. what a waste as we got rid of all that stuff too!
Absolutely concur Bonny👍 The savings on bills are quite astounding. We really did have a good clear out, and are down to the smallest storage locker known to man...it's more of a storage cupboard😂 There are some things we are just not ready to let go of...yet😉
Hope your trip is going well. 👍
Forgot to say on the last vid...LOVE the new INTRO!! It's SO Richard and Jackie.
Thank you - we thought is was about time we updated it with new photos since our Early Retirement 😊
This has been so helpful. We're about to downsize and have found it really hard to imagine ourselves in a smaller place. But you hit the nail on the head- do it for us, not the 2% of our lives where we need bigger. Thanks for making it positive.
Glad you found it helpful 😊 It did help that we moved to one of the places that we absolutely love - the hardest part being moving further away from my mum.
Have you ever thought about living somewhere warm like Portugal, for example? The costs of living there is much smaller and there are plenty of lovely walks.
I’m still getting used to your new intro video! Love it though. Also love the photos of your mum Richard, she is so lovely and smiley it cheers me right up!
On downsizing, I downsized my mortgage 4 years ago by selling my relatively new home to buy an old terraced home in a cheaper part of town. I spent about £30k doing it up but by moving I was able to pay off my mortgage much sooner. I have to agree about the kids though - my son was (and still is) very upset with me for leaving our old house, even though he’s now moved into his own home! But it was 100% the right thing to do. Now he’s moved out I’m thinking about downsizing to a two bed but to be honest I love my kitchen diner that I designed from scratch too much! 😂
Thank you, we feel blessed that she is in a place where she is now safe after living at home on her own but more importantly she does seem really happy and content where she is.
When we downsized both of our children had already settled down living with their partners and they have both since become home owners so we didn't feel too guilty. If you have a home that you really love and already have downsized once then do what makes you happy - you can always move in your later years 😊🏡
We live in Edinburgh and keep talking about downsizing which would make sense, but we simply cannot decide where to go. It’s a conundrum.
Edinburgh is such a lovely place so I can see why it is such a conundrum. We were lucky I suppose that we had a real yearning to move to the Dales and the mountains so the choice was easy 🏡
Great video again guys. Very well balanced and thought out. Thanks for your insights 👍
Glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks Lynn- much appreciated👍
This video was extremely helpful, thank you 🙏🏼
Thanks Muriel- we are glad that you found it of use👍
Great video and you make some great points, downsizing is a mindset , another point is downsizing frees up properties for larger families looking for more space. We downsized once and will be downsizing again soon , I recommend it, and as you mention gives you more financial freedom and if you are working gives you FU money if needed 😊
We did love that a young family bought our old house as it was in such a great place to bring up children and we definitely did not want or need the space that we had.
What a coincidence - yesterday I was in our loft trying to get rid of stuff and frankly dismayed by the amount of things that we can’t seem to let go, such as our daughter’s sylvanians and our son’s wooden farm and fort toys. Are we really going to hang on to this stuff in case our children want them for their children years in the future? I just don’t know anymore and it goes against my idea of decluttering 😂 where do you keep things like this?
Great subject for a vlog and you raised all the important points, especially family coming to stay! Thanks 😊
We had the same feelings, but didn't feel obliged to get rid of stuff we had doubts over. I guess we are minimalist "lites", but we are happy with that and we did clear out most of our "stuff" that was just getting in the way. We do regularly review what we have kept, and if our feeling have changed, we clear it out.
Thanks for the comment👍
Nice ,I want to a catamaran ,my partner not so much ,we both love where we live but I prefer constant sunshine and 360 degree sea views at all times. Plus we can just move at a moments notice ….what’s not to love !
Agreed, although life on the high sea's probably wouldn't be for us. We love our life in our campervan and the freedom it affords, but we also like the security of our "bricks and mortar" home to come back to. 👍
@ Once you have sailed you either love it or hate it. We have a big place like you had which we both love because the sea is at the end of the road ,yes we are spoilt ….
Another excellent video folks, thanks for sharing!
Many thanks🙏
Great, honest video, well done.
Thank you!
Thankyou so much Richard and Jackie. As I mentioned once before, we are in the process of downsizing and moving to another part of the country to be nearer grandchildren and realise some capital. This video has been incredibly helpful. I suspect we may end up living in our tiny caravan for a while (with dog), until we find our new home in the area we would like to be. We are also nothing crafters, so we need a little outside space to accommodate lathes, woodworking tools, spinning wheels and looms!!!
I feel we need to think 'outside the box' a bit more. Have constantly decluttered since the beginning of the year. Finding that visualising space is helping (I think)!!!
We downsized and we haven't looked back! So much mental load with a bigger house - we now have time (and money) that we would not have otherwise had to enjoy our travels
@liz9147 it is a great feeling 😊
Living in the van at the time was quite an adventure at the start of our early retirement- we got the keys in mid November in the end - I was getting a little worried we would have to do a winter in the van but we could have lived with mum for a while if needed - she was in Florida for Jan and feb so it wouldn’t have been a disaster 🚐😊🏡
Thankyou everyone. Another day of decluttering awaits! But we are looking forward to a new adventure!
@@lindastone9385 for various reasons we had to declutter very quickly, and while we were doing it we worried that we would make mistakes and chuck something we'd miss, but actually we never looked back and have since further decluttered in our new place. We have found that we are so much happier with so much less. It's hard work while you're doing it, but it is worth it 😊
Thank you Richard & Jackie for another really inspirational video, as this is something I will need to face sometime in the not too distant future. 🙏🏻❤️. xx
A tough decision and process for you as it will be a house full of memories for you ❤️ x
Fellow early retired teacher here who downsized and I love it!! You've addressed many of the issues and will be helpful for people considering it 🙂
Thank you - my mum (Jackie) is one of your subscribers and loves your channel 😊
Interesting video, thanks
Thanks Rebecca👍
TY both really interesting ❤
Thank you ☺️
My wife I and will certainly be downsizing eventually as like you we want the equity out of our home. We've ended up living in one of the most expensive property areas in the country so we should have plenty of options when we relocate somewhere smaller and also somewhere where property prices are more reasonable on average.
That's great news when that happens Daz. We loved having the freedom to choose where we would like to base our early retirement. In reality, it was much closer to my Mum, but also in one of our real "happy places". We really do wake up each morning and smile at the area we live in.👍
Downsizing when I retire. Can not wait. My goal is to travel 3 coldest months of year which means closing up home and minimal costs. 2.5 years to go ...if we had health care system like Europe would be done now
We sometimes forget how different health care is across the globe. A lot of people sometimes criticise our NHS but the security it brings makes us feel blessed. Whenever we have needed it, it has been there for us🤞
Good luck with your plans- exciting times ahead! We loved making our plans for early retirement, but not as much as the reality of what it has turned out to be👍
Thanks for the comment🙏
Another great video. I downsized last year and now have no mortgage. My living costs are much lower.I'm retiring from teaching in July 2025 and struggling to not wish it away but am now desperate to go.
Can't wait to watch your other videos 🤩
Thank you - it all felt like such a big decision 2 years ago but we have no regrets both downsizing and ER - enjoy your last few months - ticking off the last parents evening was a good one ☺️
Re the memories and kids. My youngest daughter has said if we think about selling our home- give her first options on it!!
You do forget that for them it is all their memories but luckily they love our new house and want to keep coming up and spending lots of time here 🏡😊 lots of new memories being made x
@@earlyretirementwanderlust hello. Thanks for replying. Hope the ski ing has been fab.
@alegna4132 a blue sky week so far - amazing family time ⛷️
@@earlyretirementwanderlust Fabulous ! Enjoy every minute👍
Interesting. We moved a couple of years ago from a modern house, much like your old one, to an old croft house in the highlands. For my wife and I, we simply shrugged it off. We had always planned to move, and knew the old house wasn't our "forever house". However, like you, our kids were really upset. We didn't sell the old house (currently rented out) ...but we are under strict instructions not to sell it, until the kids get a chance to "say goodbye" to the house!!!
It was something that we hadn't really considered - both of them were really quite emotional when we emptied the house for the last time. But as we said - they have no other memories - it has always been their home. It does help that they now love where we live and can't wait to keep coming and staying even when we are not there 😊 🏡
When you have your first meet and greet we will all have to stay in B&B’s!!
😂
My life is similar. And my eldest sleeps in the van. 😂
Nice one! Our kids actually quite like the novelty of staying in the van (when we refuse to give up our bedroom😂)
Hi guys, hope you are both well. Just curious if you have any house insurance issues when traveling for 30 week a year?
Our house insurance covers us for up to 60 days per trip which we never actually use in one go.
How did you find starting again socially in a new location? Friends built up over 20 years (other parents at childrens school mainly in our case) may be difficult to build up again.
Hi Jon- great question. It has been a challenge as we are travelling so much so haven't yet laid down too many roots, but we are happy with that at the moment. Once we slow down a bit, we fully intend to get involved with groups and clubs in the local area. We still get back to Cheshire quite a bit, and old friends come to visit as well.
Hope this helps?
Ah. This is exactly what I wanted to ask
5 or 6 months a year I live on my narrowboat, which is in terms of liveable space, 40' by 7'6. There's very, very little I miss. I come back to my 3 bed semi and think why do I have this?
Sounds ideal Hillary- we feel exactly the same when we have spent a lot of time in our little camper van. In fact, it was probably those feelings that prompted us to simplify our lives, because we realised exactly how little we needed. 👍
Hi, been folliwing you for a while now and enjoy your videos.
Question for you if thats ok...... how do you get on with home insurance with so many days away? We are planning a long trip to Norway next year in our MH which could leavenour home empty for a 70-90 days. The best insurance I can currently find is 45 days empty and family sraying odd days does not count. Any tips would be appreciated.
Thank you
Madc
We have our house insurance with direct line which covers you for up to 60 days per trip. At the moment we don't travel for that long in one go as we like to spend time with both mums as much as we can too. I have followed threads on the European campervan and motor homing Facebook page which has this question asked frequently with lots of suggestions - might be worth having a look.
Can I ask how you found your new home? How did you choose the location? I live in Kirkby Lonsdale and am looking to move to a smaller home but don’t know where to.
Originally we wanted to relocate to Sedbergh as it is close to the motorway, a nice small town with shops and cafes and easy access to Scotland and to get back to Cheshire as our children and my mum still live there. But we also had our search along the A65 corridor looking for 2 bed houses - we did not have our heart set on one particular place. We did love Kirkby Lonsdale but it was so far out of our price range 😂 When our house came up - we fell in love with the potential and location and that was it!
@ when you find the right one you know. Your cottage is lovely 😊
Thank you ☺️
Where abouts in Cheshire did you live?
Cheshire East👍
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