ALTERNATIVE HOMES

Ask for recommendations from friends and family or other reliable tradespeople that you’ve already used. Look for builders with experience locally and check building firm reviews and ratings online.

Shortlist your favourites and talk to them in person, asking plenty of questions about your project. Don’t rush into anything, especially handing over money, unless you’re completely confident in an individual company and have checked them out thoroughly.

Remember that a new extension, conservatory or orangerie will also need furnishing so ensure you’ve budgeted for everything.

This is not just about paying bills, getting more for your money or having a financial plan. It is also about taking a good look at where you live and deciding if this is the best place for you.

Lockdown may have even forced you to assess if the amount of space and lifestyle you have is enough for you. So you may be looking to upgrade your property to something bigger, either by building and altering your current home or moving to a larger property.

Whatever you’re doing next, it’s important to have a realistic plan about, not just money, but also the details of your new life – like the furniture you will want, décor and daily lifestyle needs.

As we get older and children become independent, many people look to downsize and cut their bills, streamlining their way of living to something simpler and cheaper.

Or, you may prefer to upgrade your lifestyle, perhaps moving from a house to a swish apartment. The move may mean you need to seriously assess everything you own because there simply won’t be room for all of it.

Arm yourself with plenty of information whatever you plan to do. If you’re BUILDING onto an existing property, you may need a surveyor as well as a builder.

If you are looking to downsize – and around 55,000 households a year do - it’s definitely worth doing your homework beforehand.

One body of research concluded that 64 is the best age to downsize as people are still mentally agile enough to deal with the house sale process and benefit most from getting rid of unused space. But it’s never too late to take good decisions to improve your lifestyle.

You may have family and friends nearby currently in a support network that can be really important as we get older so there are important questions to ask.

Does your new area have good transport system to ensure you can still get to see them and get about?

Are there good facilities like local GPs and clinics. Can you continue your hobbies and is it pet-friendly if you have a pet to take with you?

What sort of property are you considering? Is it a house, an apartment, sheltered housing, a retirement development or a park home?

Age UK have very helpful information on downsizing and also about the kinds of retirement properties to suit individuals. Go to ageco.co.uk for information.

They also suggest that if you have decided to downsize after careful consideration, put your property on the market then organise and declutter - but do give yourself lots of time for all this.

If you measure up in your new place beforehand and make a floor plan you may be able to fit in your FURNITURE

Charities like homeless organisation Emmaus have branches selling furniture all over the country as have The British Heart Foundation and the Salvation Army. Go to http://emmaus. org.uk https://bhf.org.uk or https://www.salvationarmy.org.uk. Your local hospice may also have a shop specifically selling furniture so check it out.

Charities may not be able to take all your items but they are usually able to collect those they can.

It’s quite likely, though, that you may have to get rid of some – especially larger furniture that simply won’t fit into your new existence.

You could sell them on ebay or give them to a local charity or organisation like Freecycle which finds homes for furniture and other items.

It’s a good idea to DE-CLUTTER as soon as you start thinking about moving generally. Improving and refining your present property this way can help with a quick sale by making it more attractive to potential buyers.

If the task seems overwhelming, just try 10 minutes a day for a while to make inroads into it. This is sensible and stops you being exhausted and disheartened.