Moving to a smaller house or a senior living community marks a big change. It’s an opportunity to discover new friendships and hobbies and focus on what truly matters to you without the hassle of maintaining a large home. This transition also means downsizing by letting go of items, which will seem overwhelming at first, and we understand that. With planning and organization, it gets easier and perhaps even rewarding as you liberate yourself from what you no longer need and downsize to a larger life.
Whether you’re moving to a senior living community or just looking to declutter, simplify and organize your process with Cordia’s favorite tips for helping seniors downsize.
5 Easy Steps to Downsize and Declutter
In a broad sense, you probably already know how to move into a smaller house or apartment. The hardest part is where to begin the downsizing process and make it more manageable. Use these senior downsizing tips as a framework:
1. Create a Plan
Grab a notebook and write a loose plan with your downsizing goals and timeline. For now, focus on documenting all the information rather than organizing it perfectly. Include important dates, such as your move-in date and days when family and friends will be available to help you. Break tasks into smaller, manageable steps. Write down the order in which you’ll organize specific rooms or item categories like clothing or utensils.
Once your preliminary plan is written down, transfer it to a dated planner or calendar so you can take it one day at a time.
2. Sort Your Items
It’s time to start with the first room or item category! We recommend going through smaller items first, such as those in a spice cupboard or toiletry cabinet, to ease yourself into the process:
Sort items into four piles:
- Keep
- Donate
- Gift to Family and Friends
- Trash or Recycle
Making these piles assigns a purpose to everything, which can make it easier to let go of sentimental and good-condition items that you no longer need.
Read More: Senior Living Planning: When to Start
3. Digitize Important Documents and Photos
Old paperwork is heavy and takes up a surprising amount of space! But sorting it is simple because you only need to make two piles:
- Keep / Digitize
- Discard
From the Keep pile, scan or take photos of important documents, printed photos, and memorabilia to preserve important information and memories. Save everything on a computer or cloud storage folder. After digitizing, decide what can be shredded and recycled, and what should be kept in paper format. Move the “shred and recycle” items to the Discard pile.
Shred and recycle everything from the Discard pile. Then celebrate your progress – one of the hardest steps is behind you!
4. Sell or Donate Unwanted Items
Your Donate pile is full of items in good condition that you don’t need but aren’t quite sure what to do with. Give everything a new home by hosting a garage sale, listing items for sale on trusted websites, and donating to local organizations. Many organizations will even pick up larger items, like old couches and mattresses.
5. Pack Strategically
As your Keep pile grows, take breaks from decluttering to pack up your moving boxes. Packing in short bursts will make your move feel less laborious, and it will clear out space to continue organizing. Put similar items in the same boxes, and label the boxes with the room they belong in. For example, put shoes in a box labeled “bedroom.” On moving day this system will help everyone, including professional movers.
What to Cut: Downsizing Checklist for Seniors
We know it can be hard to get rid of belongings you’ve had for years. When moving to senior living or downsizing in general, these are the items you will likely not need to keep:
- From spatulas to hairbrushes, you likely only need one.
- Items you haven’t used in over a year.
- Home maintenance tools. Your new senior living community will handle that for you. At Cordia, we also have a Wood Shop for members who like to tinker.
- Large exercise equipment. Instead, use the great equipment at your new community, like Cordia’s Fitness Center.
- Guest linens and towels.
- Books. We suggest keeping your favorites and unreads; donate the rest to your local library. At Cordia in Traverse City, you can enjoy the many book options in our library and join our book club!
- Broken or outdated gadgets like phones, watches, and cords.
Why Downsize to a Senior Living Community?
From reducing maintenance to simplifying your life, there are many reasons to downsize and move into a senior living community. A smaller space means less cleaning, lower utility costs, and fewer belongings to manage. A senior living community like Cordia is a wonderful place to meet like-minded friends and discover new activities through a full program schedule. While your living space may be smaller, your community grows!
Look forward to a fresh start in a comfortable and manageable living space. Learn more about life at Cordia when you call (231) 995-5266 or schedule a visit.