Downsizing - people’s experience of moving from a house to bungalow

We moved from a house to a bungalow 20 years ago.

I love it, but then I was brought up living in a bungalow.

We sleep with our top bedroom window (a small one) open at night, our bedroom overlooks the back garden, it’s never worried me having it open.

As we age, it’s easier having things on one level. And don’t worry about ‘bungalow legs’. Just keep walking and using steps and stairs where possible, e.g. use stairs instead of escalators when shopping.

Wishing you all the best in your new bungalow, if you decide to go for it.

We have done it this year. We moved from a large detached house to a smaller bungalow with far less space. We had been in our house for almost 40 years and all the rooms were really large.

We needed to move due to husbands ill health but we didn’t want to leave our area because of family, friend, doctors, church etc. We were very lucky that we found a suitable property very quickly and sold ours within a week. It all went so very smoothly overall.

However, it was up there as one of the most stressful things I have ever done. Downsizing isn’t for wimps and you have to be ruthless about what you can fit into your new place and what you cant. I lost countless hours of sleep fretting about it.

But ,we got there and life now is so much easier. It takes us just an hour to clean the whole place rather than over 3/4 hours, we are warmer as the rooms are smaller and I know that should anything happen to my DH, then I will be able to manage this bungalow on my own. There was no way I could have afforded to live in our big house and maintain it on my own. We also feel happy sleeping with the windows open as we live on a very quiet road and our garden is secure.

We have no regrets at all doing this so I wish you the best of luck if you decide to go ahead.

We did this too. A more drastic downsize than the one you describe. Once we were realistic about what would fit and indeed which items we really didn’t need or want we’ve been and are comfortable. Some furniture was replaced to be more suited to smaller rooms.

Window-wise we had wooden venetian blinds fitted to the bedrooms, the installer added hooks to fix them to the window ledge at the bottom. Not totally burglar proof of course but we sleep easily with windows wide open knowing any attempt at entry would make enough noise to wake us. The blinds also keep the overly friendly local cats out! We’re very happy living in an easily cared for bungalow with a manageable garden to keep me happy.

I am thinking of doing this our House is too big, a family needs to live here. But the though of sorting and packing up fills me with dread.
Having sorted my Late Mums flat was bad enough and she had been "decanted" from my parents old house only a few years before.
All I can say is best of luck.

When I downsize and I looked on it as a fresh start and used a bit of the money to buy new furniture. With smaller rooms the old stuff would have been all wrong. I’ve seen quite a lot of friends bungalows and flats that feel cramped and dark because they’ve taken their big house furniture with them.

One of my friends rented a storage unit for a year, just took what was essential and then worked out over the year what else he would like/ need in his new place. I thought that was a really good idea for people like him that find it hard to get rid of stuff.

Actually though, after a year, the storage unit was nearly empty and the bungalow was just like the place bed left, bursting at the seams🤣🤣🙄

I can only quote the experience of my parents, who moved to a bungalow in their mid 60s - not because they particularly wanted a bungalow, but because it was all they could find in their chosen area.

After about 3 years they decided they didn’t much like the area after all, and moved again, to a house. And were somewhat shocked to find that the lack of stairs had really affected their fitness to cope with them. Of course their fitness did eventually return, but only after quite some time. My Dm was still well able to manage stairs when she moved to a care home at nearly 89, only because of dementia.

My elder sister recently said stairs are much more of an effort now, a few years after moving to a bungalow, but that was a very necessary move, because of her dh’s health. In general she’s an extremely fit person for her age.

We moved to a bungalow 18 months ago. We have been very lucky finding one with a very large living room and main bedroom. It was hard deciding which furniture and belongings to keep and I still struggle with space but I'm so glad we moved. We have a rear facing bedroom with small windows which we have open, I thought I would find it hard to relax being on 'ground level' but I am quite happy now.

I moved from our 4 bed family home of 40 years to a 2 bed bungalow a few months ago and I love it. But I certainly underestimated the length of time needed for the clear out and parting with possessions I would no longer need or be able to accommodate.

I dithered about downsizing for 2 years but foolishly didn’t make a start on the sorting and clear out till I decided to put my house on the market. Then I had 3 months to get on with it.

I live alone and it was a mammoth undertaking . My AC helped as much as possible but due to distance and working hours I did most of it on my own. I was on first name terms with the staff at the local dump by the time I’d finished. Likewise the local charity shops.

But I’m very happily settled into my 2 bed bungalow. The second room is spacious enough for bunk beds and a single bed so plenty of room for visiting family.

My main advice is even if you haven’t fully decided on the move to start your sorting and clearing out now. I found that part really hard but eventually I became more ruthless . I had a ridiculous amount of “I’ll hold onto that in case it comes in handy” stuff. But in the end it was very satisfying.,

Good luck with whatever you decide. And start filling bags for the dump and charity shop now while you’re thinking about it 😀

We are moving from a large Victorian semi with four bedrooms and two receptions to a bungalow. I am presently caring for my DH after he suffered a stroke so is really stressful but the family are trying to help.
We are boxing up and bagging up stuff to get rid of to local charities. Luckily the couple buying our house want some of our furniture so we will only take what we need and if they don’t want all that us left we will give it to charity or free cycle.
Is so much to do but I have no regrets. I cannot manage a big house and caring for my DH and he will find it so much easier to get around when is all in one level. Also we will be closer to family, but are not depending on this, the bungalow is lovely in a location we have always wanted to live in near the South Downs, so if family moved away we would still love to live in the bungalow, which is near to all the facilities we need in a small town.

I moved to a bungalow when I was 46 because I'd always liked them and moved to a place where they are affordable so grabbed at the chance. So easy to maintain, decorate and keep clean, and usually nice sized gardens.
I've since done up 3 more as cheaper ones usually need updating [new kitchen, bathroom, decoration, flooring, garden tidy up. They are quick to sell on and always a market for ones in good order. I'm probably now in my last one, which I love, and am now 76.

They are so practical to live in, no traipsing up and down stairs to a toilet or bathroom, or to clean them or to put clothes away etc. In winter heating doesn't disappear upstairs [have a well insulated loft].

On hot nights I open small top openers in rooms and keep the door open so air moves through, no problem.

30 years of living in bungalows and I do not have 'bungalow legs' believe me...but I'm active, always doing gardening, decorating, woodwork etc. use stairs if I'm out anywhere/visiting places and walk as much as I can. Maybe that's why.

I moved from a 4 bed bungalow to a 3 bed apartment three years ago, soon after the death of my husband. The bedrooms in the bungalow were very big by today’s standards, as were the living areas. The apartment has much smaller rooms. I love it and wish I had done it sooner. I am near the shops and the seafront so that’s great for shopping and walks. Although the bungalow was lovely, and the garden very pretty, I don’t miss either of them. I am very happy here and, being on one level and not big, it is easy for me to keep clean, which is essential as I get older. I have a great view too!

Babs03

We are moving from a large Victorian semi with four bedrooms and two receptions to a bungalow. I am presently caring for my DH after he suffered a stroke so is really stressful but the family are trying to help.
We are boxing up and bagging up stuff to get rid of to local charities. Luckily the couple buying our house want some of our furniture so we will only take what we need and if they don’t want all that us left we will give it to charity or free cycle.
Is so much to do but I have no regrets. I cannot manage a big house and caring for my DH and he will find it so much easier to get around when is all in one level. Also we will be closer to family, but are not depending on this, the bungalow is lovely in a location we have always wanted to live in near the South Downs, so if family moved away we would still love to live in the bungalow, which is near to all the facilities we need in a small town.

Sounds perfect, Babs03. May you and your husband have many happy times there.
Moving from a large property to my lovely flat was the best thing I ever did, property-wise.

I've slept rough in the open air (no tent) all over the world. DH and I met in a mountaineering club and rough-camped all year round . Although we no longer camp, (80 next year) we both still believe that the best most natural place to sleep in is cold open air. So at home, we never heat the bedroom and the window is open all night all year round. On the ground floor for the last 25 years, no problems whatever .

The windows here are tilt and turn, with a built in limiter, which means that with the limiter engaged it only opens < 3 inches at the top (inward) and bottom (outward). Nobody outside can reach the limiter control to dis-engage it, so completely unable either to climb in, reach in, or force the window open. Perfectly secure. Rain can't get in either.

In high winds or very low temps I latch it just an inch open..
Its very rarely closed right up except in extreme gales (windspeed over 80 ) or very hard freeze (> -15) .

We're never cold because bed is a sanctuary, dressed for total comfort. Winter duvet 15 tog. Summer duvet it a very light wool one I bought in Australia. Winter linen is brushed cotton, summer is smooth cotton. Pillows are 100% goose down, pillowcases are are pure linen all year round. In winter an electric underblanket is turned on half an hour before bed; and off before we get in to toasty bed.

I've long been convinced that sleeping in cold fresh air is a cornerstone of good health. Our babies (all summer born) spent part of every day sleeping in the pram outdoors in the garden .

Re tilt and turn windows, a double glazing salesman once did a really hard sell on these - for a start they were cheaper - and he kept telling us that they were ‘very popular on the Continent’ - as if that was going to make us think they must be better.

TBH I must have windows that OPEN properly, whether casement or sash - we have both in this house.

For that reason I could never move to a ground floor flat, where I couldn't have a window properly open at night, especially in summer.

We moved to a two bedroom flat. I know it’s not the same but one floor and smaller rooms.
I found downsizing a liberating experience. Got rid of so much stuff, and let’s face it, it is just stuff.
Great that everything is on one level, no pile on the bottom stair ready to go up at some point, no rushing back upstairs when I’ve left my phone up there. No lugging the suitcase up and down when we go away. No having to carry the vacuum cleaner and other cleaning products up or down. No worrying about going up a ladder for window cleaning or gutter cleaning.
So many advantages.
We are on the first floor so less concern about open windows although newer windows have good security latches to allow narrow opening.
We can choose to use the stairs while we are able but have the luxury of a lift for later years if necessary.
Good luck with your move.

…and it’s easier to go and lie on the bed rather than the sofa if you fancy forty winks.

I think a window ledge full of plants would be a challenge to any hopeful burglars planning a night time sortie.

I had to move with my two children into a ground floor maisonette for three years before getting this little house, many years ago. I was already having problems with my mobility and the two flights of stairs I had had to climb in the old place had been getting difficult, but I got some very funny looks from neighbours as I would step up and down my front door step for several minutes at a time, to make sure I didn't totally lose the ability.

My daughters would like me to move, not for downsizing (couldn't get much smaller than here), but because the neighbourhood is getting dodgy. It was bad enough doing the move to here, 30 years ago. I really don't even like to think about moving now, especially with the added problems of selling and buying a property, which I didn't have to contend with previously.

A possibility for your windows would be the 'grills' fitted over them...often used in hot countries and more attractive than they sound!
It's what my parents had for their downstairs apartment. They were very happy with the security they offered and their downsizing.
Hope it goes well.

Thanks Crosstitchfan 🌹🙏🏾

Spiky cacti Aely 🌵

I made the transition 8 years ago from large old house with big rooms to modest bungalow with smaller rooms and one notable effect has been that I have become much tidier!

It doesn't take much clutter to make smallish rooms look like a tip so clutter is banished! I don't mean everything is always show-house pristine; things I need are kept handy but those amorphous, miscellaneous piles of Stuff that seem to flock like starlings on side tables and on worktops are a thing of the past.

I love the convenience of hopping out of bed and walking half a dozen paces to the kitchen to make my morning tea then taking it right back to bed. No more negotiating long passageways and steep stairs with a steaming mug..

Bedroom windows have only top openings and I have no worries about keeping them open at night - I doubt if an underfed 3 year old could squeeze through the space.

As someone else has said, it's easier to keep warm because the heat is no longer disappearing up the stairs - the loft is well insulated so the warm air stays on one level and I stay snug.

We made the move because my husband could no longer cope with stairs and, even though he died 5+ years ago, I have no wish to revert to multi-storey living.

I downsized to a bungalow 2 years ago and like you was concerned about open windows but they had a security attachments to allow opening but not so much that someone could open them. You can also get online things to secure open windows. It's great hoovering on one level and no lugging the vacuum cleaner up stairs. I thought I'd miss having an upstairs but not at all. There are so many positives to bungalow living even if it does mean I can no longer justify having a window cleaner

We moved to our bungalow when my husband gave up his ‘proper job’. He was going to do carpentry so we needed a bit of space around us so he could make a noise!
I lived in flats for most of my life before marriage so was very happy with one level. I think one utilises the space more than in a house and I particularly liked this one because the bedroom doors are down a hallway so separate from the living areas.
As others have said there are various ways of securing windows so have never been worried about burglars in the night.(or day)
I will have to downsize again if I am on my own because I couldn’t cope with the garden and I don’t need anything this big. My mind is ready for it when it comes.
The lack of stairs isn’t a problem as I play a bit of tennis and do lots of walking, other sports or classes are available.

I moved from a large 4 bed detached to a smaller 4 bed detached and I find that the smaller bedrooms are acceptable, but the smaller public rooms are awful. Having lived in flats of all sizes and locations wouldn't consider a bungalow unless it was big due to the noise being very easily transferred from room to room. I'd need sound proofed walls.