Not all baby boomers are downsizing.

That might sound funny coming from me, the Downsizing Designer, but what is happening is that baby boomers are trying to figure out what the “right size” house is for them at this stage of their lives.

After all, lives change, people change, and lifestyles change.

Once the kids move out of the house, your life and lifestyle changes.

You suddenly have more time and freedom.

You start to ask yourself:

If you really need all of the space in your big home.
If you want to spend your weekends taking care of the big yard.
If it’s time to start doing some of the things you put off i.e., travel, golf, time with grandkids and etc.

And yet, you’re also pulled in another direction…

What about when the kids come home for the holidays?

Won’t they need to have their own room again?

Perhaps you do need a guestroom or two for when the kids come home or when you have overnight guests, but you start to ask, “Do you really need four bedrooms or could you make do with two or three?”

These are just a few of the questions baby boomers start asking themselves when they become empty-nesters. It’s a transition time in their lives.

Maybe you don’t need to downsize. Maybe you just need to “right size” … to find a type of house that works best for you now at this stage of your life.

So the question becomes: How do you know what the “right size” home is?

Many of you who follow me know that a few years ago, I downsized from a very large home to my tiny jewel box apartment in Philadelphia.

While I thoroughly enjoyed that experience of living in a small apartment in the city, after a few years I realized that as much as I love entertaining, I was missing:

A dedicated guestroom for my overnight guests
A real dining room
A much smaller walkable community near the water

Once I decided I need a little more space for my lifestyle, I created a checklist of all the things I was asking myself to discern what I wanted, didn’t want in my new home.

The result of this assessment tool was amazing!

I’m now living in the perfect “right size” home in Historic New Castle Delaware.

Because this assessment tool was so helpful to me, I created a free printable PDF that you can easily download and use yourself if you are in the process of looking for the “right size” home.