Downsizing presents many opportunities. Reducing expenses, responsibilities, and environmental impact are just some potential benefits. With planning and effort, anyone can shape a life that gives enjoyment and mitigates the challenges brought about by current living arrangements. Whether it is due to an empty nest, retirement, moving cross-country or changing health, most people will need to re-evaluate their living arrangements at some point. For many, this occurs some time after age 50, but not necessaarily.
For those choosing to move, the type, style, surroundings, and maybe even the climate of a new home are open for discussion. In most cases, however, the new space will be smaller, and decluttering is part of the process. Even those who decide to remodel and age in place can gain new appreciation for their existing space through decluttering.
In the book, Re-Creating Home: Downsizing and De-Cluttering After 50 by Fran Scoville and Holley Ulbrich, the authors break the process into five manageable stages. Each stage corresponds to sections of the book: commitment, decluttering, choosing, transitioning, and settling in. “All five of these stages are about making and implementing decisions—decisions about staying put or relocating, decisions about dealing with clutter, decisions about where you will move and what kind of home you will have.”
Within those sections, each chapter ends with a homework assignment to keep the reader’s decision-making process moving along. One section deals with getting rid of stuff, from family heirlooms to hazardous waste. The authors explore in some detail choosing what to keep, what to sell, what to give to family members, and what to donate, as well as how to recycle and dispose of the remainder.
At just 152 pages, this book doesn’t clutter your time. A quick read from beginning to end, it gives you a feel for the subject and provides an excellent overview. For anyone approaching this stage of life or making a move that requires downsizing, it is an excellent workbook to make the most of the process.
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