There are quite a few advantages in owning smaller properties for senior Hawaii homeowners, which shouldn’t come to any surprise. Many find much less space is desirable during their golden years when kids are out of the house. Cleaning and maintaining less home equates to less overall work and lowers expenses, some rather dramatically, in addition to less stress on your knees, back and everywhere else. The decision on how you sell your larger Hawaii home needs to include all of the potential costs that accompany each type of sales method. Understanding these expenses can help you to make the best choice for your individual situation. Should you find yourself at this senior stage of life, read on to learn these 5 things seniors should know about downsizing their homes in Hawaii.
Inconvenient
Especially during your later golden years, when you’re ready to begin downsizing your home in Hawaii, the thought of a traditional listing may seem too complicated to take on by yourself. You may not be as tech-savvy as the younger generations, but online is where much of the home selling process is done, at least the marketing component of the sale. The other option for listing means paying significant commissions and fees (no small amount in Hawaii) so that someone else can handle all of the legal paperwork, marketing, and showing appointments on your behalf. In either event, the thought of a bevy of strangers touring your home and personal possessions is disquieting at best, especially during the Covid pandemic. And let’s face it, keeping everything in your home in tiptop shape 24/7 can take its toll — it’s “work”.
Clean Out
Cleaning out a house from top to bottom can be both physically and emotionally draining when seniors are downsizing their homes in Hawaii, especially if they have lived there for a long time. We’ve bought homes from people who have owned the house for three generations — as you could guess, it’s not just the memories that add up, but the piles of boxes in the garage as well. One of the reasons you may be selling is the fact that your home is already too much for you to maintain, and you wouldn’t be alone if you thought so. If you’re not able to do the work yourself, it is likely you will need to hire someone to help you which can be costly, depending on how large your home is and how many things you own. It can take days or weeks to go through everything, deciding what you want to keep and what you’re willing to step away from. We’ve helped cover this cost and labor in the past when we’ve bought homes in Hawaii from people going through this challenge — we aim to help where we can.
Expensive Repairs
Inspections and appraisals are a necessary part of the traditional home selling process, often leading many sellers to spend tens of thousands of dollars when they are instead ready to begin downsizing their homes in Hawaii. Sometimes in order to pass an inspection, you’ll be asked to pay for repairs you didn’t even know were needed. Depending on your property and what your goals are, you may need to spend money to upgrade or at least freshen up the property to help potential buyers see what’s possible — don’t expect them all to walk through a dated home and visualize their own future; many buyers just don’t have that imaginative knack. New cabinets, flooring, paint, etc. can go a long way but can also be a hit to the wallet. At the very least, you’ll want to professionally clean and ideally stage the property, yet another expense. For that matter, these tasks should be completed before even listing the home for sale and knowing if you’ll have a buyer at all. As time passes, your bills only continue to rise as more and more of your potential profits slip away.
Another Option
Consider a direct sale to Oahu Home Buyers, which can be a much better and hassle-free option for you! We take the time to listen to your individual, unique situation and understand your goals for now and into the future. At Oahu Home Buyers we are happy to help you with this decision, and if listing with an agent is a better option for you, we’ll tell you so. Should you choose to work with Oahu Home Buyers you can just pack what you want to keep when you are downsizing, by selling your home in Hawaii directly, without any more showings to worry about. You can also save all the time and costs involved with cleaning and staging when you sell directly to us. In many cases you can just leave behind any items you would rather not take along to your new residence and we’ll handle everything. You can leave the monthly payments behind, too. Working with Oahu Home Buyers means eliminating most of the normal fees associated with traditional closings. The price Oahu Home Buyers offers is the price you get. Send us a message or call Oahu Home Buyers today at (808) 333-3677 to learn just how quickly we can help you start saving money!