Things To Consider If You Want A Bigger House

Sometimes I look around our house and wonder how we accumulated so much stuff. I went from a bedroom at my parents, to a shared two bedroom flat, to my own two bedroom flat, to a detached three bedroom house. And somehow the house is already full. Sometimes I look around and think how we need extra room, but it’s just the two of us and kittens so that seems a bit silly. But I’m sure so many of look around our house and wish we had a bigger house and more space. But do you really need one?

Think about why you want a bigger space

Moving house, especially if you’re buying, is both expensive and stressful so really think about why you need a bigger house. You might be working from home more and need a home office, y0u may have stopped going to the gym and need space to work out at home, or perhaps your future situation is going to change with a new baby on the way or an elderly relative coming to live with you.

It might even be that the past 18 months has made you evaluate what you want. And you may want more of a garden to spend time outside, or a bigger house so your kids can have their own rooms.

Declutter and clear out your home

It might just be that you want a bigger house as like us you have too much stuff. Don’t wait for the new year, or Springtime to have a proper clear out.  Decluttering, reorganising where things are stored and moving around furniture may leave you with more space than when you started. And don’t stop there look at the furniture itself. Maybe you have a spare room for guests but you don’t have people around very often and you could do with the space to make a home office, or a gym. Get rid of the bed taking up most of the space and get a sofa bed. Then you can use the room for another purpose while still having somewhere for the occasional guest.

You may even find as well just freshening places up and giving it a paint will make you love and appreciate your current space more.

Can you work with what you’ve got?

If decluttering and reorganising your home doesn’t solve your issue think bigger. If you have a garage could you convert that into another room, or do you have space in the garden for an outdoor room? I’ve seen a lot of people make garden offices and gyms to keep them separate from the house and not take up room inside.

If you really like where you live but you just need a physically bigger house look into whether you can have an extension or loft conversion. This might be a lot of money to spend, but it could still work out similar to the cost of moving and then spending more on a bigger home. Especially if you love your current home and it’s location. If you need extra money to make your current home bigger you might be able to remortgage to be able to afford it.

Can you afford a bigger house?

If all of these options aren’t feasible or you really do want to move you need to think practically. The housing market is at a high point at the moment which may be good for selling, but it might make buying tougher. You need to consider all the costs that come with buying and selling including stamp duty, estate agent fees, any mortgage fees, moving costs and so much more. And then you need to consider how much extra a bigger house will cost you. If you’re moving area this might not be a problem, but if you’re staying close by you may be spending £100K+ on a bigger property.

Think about how much extra you may need to borrow for a mortgage, and how much extra your mortgage and accompanying bills may be in a bigger house. If you are thinking about this then I’d suggest going to see a mortgage advisor to work out your best options.

 Do you think you need a bigger house?

Pin It