Are you ready to rightsize?
There are lots of catchy terms that pop up in real estate, with one of the more recent being ‘rightsizing’.
This snappy little catchphrase can be found everywhere from apartment marketing to lifestyle locations, family friendly developments and more, but it begs the question, what exactly is rightsizing and is it ‘right’ for you?
Here, we take a look at the trend, including how it’s different to upsizing or downsizing and what you need to consider if you’re thinking it might be the next real estate move for you.
What is rightsizing?
Rightsizing is all about securing a property that suits your needs in terms of size, location and amenities.
While downsizing often conjures images of retirement or empty nesters, and upsizing is often associated with family expansion, rightsizing can happen at any stage of life or at any age, and could involve upsizing or downsizing.
Floorplan, facilities and local amenities
In many ways rightsizing is all about convenience. It’s about finding a property that works for you in terms of space, layout, and location.
But it’s not just about the property on its own, amenities and facilities often also play a role in the rightsizing rhetoric.
Floorplan
Unlike downsizing where the whole idea is about moving somewhere smaller, rightsizing involves finding a floorplan that suits your needs.
For a retiring couple or professionals, that floorplan might include a large master suite, office and guest bedroom, while for a rightsizing family, their living situation might require four bedrooms, a media room, study, and multiple living areas.
Meanwhile, you might find that ideal floorplan in an apartment, duplex or freestanding home, and the actual floorspace might be larger or smaller than your previous property.
Facilities
The concept of rightsizing also involves having the facilities you need, which are managed in a way that suits you.
So, a family might like a swimming pool on their own land, while a professional couple might prefer to live in a complex where they have access to a pool, but don’t necessarily maintain it themselves.
Local amenities
Available nearby amenities tend to play a role in every property purchasing decision, and this is definitely the case with rightsizing.
It’s about finding a property in an area that suits your needs, whether that offers proximity to schools, medical facilities, parks and sporting facilities, or retail precincts.
Benefits
There are numerous benefits to rightsizing, as it involves matching a property with your current needs.
In addition to this, rightsizing can also have advantages for the wider community at a time when the housing crisis is having ripple effects across the nation.
The reality is many Australian properties are underutilised, with the average household size consistently decreasing over the past 25 years.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in 1988, Australia’s average household size was 2.9 people, but in 2023 that had shrunk to just below 2.5.
In the interim, Australian dwelling sizes remain among the largest in the world, currently averaging 242sq m.
In theory, rightsizing frees up suitable housing stock, allowing Australians to better utilise the property they live in and ensuring more people have a property that meets their needs.
Meanwhile, rightsizing can also free up your individual capital, particularly if it involves moving from a larger residence to a smaller or more affordable one.
How we can help
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