Rusty and I are officially empty nesters.
It's funny. You spend years wishing the house would stay clean for five minutes.
Then it does.
And sometimes you'd gladly take a little of the mess back.
Being 44 and entering this season has also changed how I think about a question clients ask me:
“Should we downsize?”
My answer is usually:
Maybe—but don't start with the house. Start with the life you want.
You may not need to move
Maybe you love your house.
Your church is close.
Your friends are close.
The payment works.
And you want bedrooms available when the kids come home.
Great.
There is no rule saying becoming an empty nester means sticking a For Sale sign in the yard.
But your priorities may have changed
Rusty and I love family, but we also love traveling.
I love Disney, musicals and Rangers games.
We're active in our church and businesses.
So I'm starting to ask different questions about home:
How much do we want to maintain?
Would we rather spend money on the house or experiences?
Do we need all this space?
Where do we want family to gather?
What do we want the next 10 years to look like?
Those are better questions than simply asking how many bedrooms we need.
North Fort Worth gives us options
You might want less maintenance near Keller.
More room around Haslet.
Something newer around Northlake or Justin.
Or you might realize you already live exactly where you belong.
Sometimes the right real estate decision is moving. Sometimes it's staying.
That's why I enjoy talking with empty nesters about this so much.
I'm not just advising them.
I'm living it too.
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