TLDR; Seeking opinions or ideas on the home I currently reside in. Everything seems fine, but I get the nagging feeling I am missing an option in my family’s current high value, lower cost home.
Six years ago my wife and I purchased the home we currently live in. The market in my area has been on a tear for over a decade. Our house is large, but not unmanageable, and no space goes unused, except a guest bedroom (I use it’s bathroom). It is 3100 square feet for 2 adults, 2 boys, 1 dog, and the slim but real possibility of an in-law moving in at some point.
The Mustachian position is clearly that we have too much space, and I do understand that viewpoint and know that we could do with much less. But the reality on the ground is much more complicated.
Friends of ours who moved into town, who also have two boys, live in a much smaller home that is a townhouse. They paid slightly more than what we paid for our house, not 3 years later. Essentially, we are in a large, detached home, that is only 11 years old, for less than the current price of an older townhouse.
To add to the complexity, our house is also very energy efficient. I was shocked when we got our first bills, as I knew the house had an Energy Star rating, but the reality of what that meant turned out to be that our home costs much less to run than a standard home ½ the size.
The taxes aren’t terrible for the region I live in, but they are clearly tied to the present value of the house. Further afield, the tax rates are often higher where the tax base of large businesses isn't present to carry a large portion of a town’s revenue needs. Taxable value is not assessed at full market rate around here, thankfully. For perspective, the current price of the home equates to about a 40-50% gain.
This is all to say that I wonder if I am trapped in this house, which I do love, if only because it is now so valuable, and it isn’t onerous to maintain. I have done ample research on the general concept of cashing out and relocating. The problem is that even moving a further 45-60 minutes away from the large city my suburb is tied to, we would still be spending 100-110% of the purchase price of our home to live in a place that will not be as new or well laid out. Downsizing would essentially mean putting 110% of the purchase price of this home back into real estate, just to have less space, be far from an urban centre, and have a respectable wad of cash to add to the pile.
My hope is that someone out there has been in a similar situation and may have some perspective to share. If I have missed sharing any details that will help, please let me know.