Do you know what your ‘ideal house’ looks like? When we’re young, our dream property is usually gigantic, with swimming pools and cinema rooms and a bowling alley. But once we get older, your idea of a ‘dream house’ might change – and sometimes, bigger isn’t always better.
Yes, there are undoubtedly advantages of moving to a bigger house. But there are drawbacks too. It is therefore important to put considerable thought into your decision to upsize before jumping into it too soon.
In the blog below, we’ve gone through the advantages and disadvantages of moving to a bigger house, and whether it’s the right choice for you.
Advantages of moving to a bigger house
A bigger house usually means more space, especially if the number of people living there has not increased since your last property. Hopefully, mum and dad should be able to move into a bigger room – and the children will have more space to play around in, too. If you are moving to a house which has a garden (when you haven’t had one previously) then this will undoubtedly be hugely favoured by any children in the family who want to run around. If you have any pets, then they will probably enjoy the additional garden space, too.
The extra space can also make it easier for you to keep a guest room for friends who visit, or to create an office for anyone who works from home in the family. Bigger houses make it easier for you to have ‘personal space’ too – for example, an art studio or a warehouse.
In most cases, bigger houses tend to sell for more money on the market, and even with cash house buyers. For example, if your larger property has a garage to store your car, then this will increase its value. While the property will therefore be a larger investment when you first buy it, you should be able to sell it for a larger sum further down the line.
Disadvantages of moving to a bigger house
Bigger houses usually come with higher costs. For example, with more rooms being lit up at night time, your electricity bills may increase. When you turn the heating on during the winter months, your bill will also probably be more expensive, because there are more radiators being turned on.
Maintenance of a larger property is typically more challenging. When there are more rooms for you to look after, this requires more time spent cleaning, dusting and sweeping. If you choose to hire someone to do this work for you, the cost of doing so will increase, because there are more rooms to be maintained. It is easy to ‘take your eye off the ball’ and allow mould, dust or dirt to creep in to a larger property.
Thirdly, as mentioned in the section above, larger properties typically require a bigger investment when you first buy it. Not only will your deposit probably need to be larger, but your monthly mortgage payments may be higher, too. Furthermore, if your house value is significantly over £250,000, then there will probably be more stamp duty payments when the time arrives to sell.
Should I move to a bigger house?
Now we’ve looked at the advantages and drawbacks, let’s look at whether moving to a bigger house is right for you.
If you anticipate that your family size will grow in the future, then moving to a bigger house is a smart move. Perhaps you and your partner intend to have more children, or maybe grandparents are moving in to live with you. When the number of people living in a property increases, without there being more space, people can quickly feel cramped and claustrophobic. You can avoid this by upsizing.
On the other hand, you may be able to increase space in your property without moving. Loft conversions or extensions can make your existing house bigger, and enable you to accommodate extra people, without the need to uproot everyone from the current home. If you are fond of your friends in the local area, or if your children are within walking distance of their school, then this may be a preferable alternative.
You should make sure that your family situation warrants a larger house, which you are able to afford, if you decide to upsize. If your property is ‘too big’ then you will have unused rooms which aren’t being utilised, and it may therefore have been possible for you to buy a smaller property which still would’ve been sufficient.
If you are keen to upsize your property, you should make sure that you are financially prepared. For example, you may wish to have cash reserves saved just in case you fall on any difficult times – e.g. someone in the house being made redundant – or you may want to put down a larger deposit so your monthly payments are reduced.
Finally, you may want to consider is it a good time to sell your current house. If you are not going to get a good deal for your current property, then this may negatively impact your ability to upsize.
