When we’re buying a home, we tend to focus on the things we can see right away.

The kitchen.
The bathrooms.
The backyard.
The neighbourhood.
The size of the living room.

But some of the things we need most in a home aren’t always obvious when we’re standing there for the first time.

They’re the things we only realize we need after our lives change.

Here are a few things I think we often underestimate.

1. Space for growing teenagers

When kids are little, having one shared family living space can feel ideal.

You want to see them. You want to be together. You want to know what they’re up to.

But then they grow.

And suddenly, that sweet little family room that once felt perfectly adequate becomes a place where everyone is competing for space, privacy and, occasionally, the Wi-Fi.

Teenagers need somewhere to go.

They need a place where they can do homework, hang out with friends, play video games, watch TV, listen to music or simply close a door and have some privacy.

It’s not something most of us think about when we’re buying a home with young children. We’re thinking about bedrooms, schools and whether there’s enough room for all the toys.

But kids get bigger.

Their stuff gets bigger.

Their friends get bigger.

And their need for independence gets bigger too.

So when you’re looking at a home, don’t just think about how your family lives today.

Think about how you’ll want your family to live five or ten years from now.

2. The rising costs of life

This is another one we can underestimate.

Life gets expensive.

Groceries, insurance, property taxes, utilities, maintenance, travel, helping kids, retirement... the list goes on.

So when you’re buying a home, I think it’s worth looking beyond the purchase price and asking:

Can this home help us manage the costs of our life?

A basement suite can be incredibly valuable for that reason.

It could provide rental income today. Or it could be something you create down the road when you need additional income.

And there’s another layer to this that I really like.

That same space can change with your family.

When the kids are teenagers, it might give them a little more independence.

Later, it could provide a place for an aging parent as they downsize.

Or perhaps an adult child who needs somewhere to land for a while.

Or maybe it simply becomes a flexible space that gives you options as your life changes.

And those options are valuable.

Especially because creating them later can be expensive.

Depending on the home and the scope of the work, building a basement suite today can easily become a significant renovation investment. So if you’re buying a home that already has a suite, or one that has the layout and infrastructure to create one relatively easily, that flexibility can be worth a lot.

We often look at a home and ask:

“Do we need this space right now?”

I think a better question is:

“Could we need this space later?”

Because the best homes aren’t necessarily the ones that are perfect for the life you have today.

They’re the ones that give you some flexibility for the life you haven't planned yet.

3. A beautiful outdoor space

This is a funny one because I think most of us fall in love with the giant yard when our kids are young.

And I completely understand why.

You picture the kids running around. There’s a trampoline. Maybe a play structure. A soccer net. Friends coming over. Summer barbecues.

When your kids are little, you really can need all that space.

But then life changes.

The kids get older.

They have sports, friends, school, jobs and activities. You have a career. Everyone is busy.

And before you know it, you're driving around like ships in the night, dropping one kid off at basketball while the other is headed somewhere completely different.

And that giant yard that once felt so important?

You might not actually be using it that much.

But you're still maintaining it.

You're still mowing it, watering it, pruning it, cleaning it and paying to maintain it.

And the older we get, the more we may start to realize that the cost of a large yard isn't just financial.

It's time and energy.

So while a huge backyard can be incredibly valuable during one stage of life, it doesn't necessarily mean it's going to be valuable to you forever.

Sometimes a smaller, beautiful outdoor space that you actually use can be worth far more than a giant yard that has become another item on your maintenance list.

And this becomes even more important as we get older.

One of the things I hear so often from people who are thinking about downsizing is:

“I'm tired of maintaining everything.”

The house.

The garden.

The gutters.

The lawn.

The endless list.

So when you're buying a home, I think it's worth asking yourself not just:

“Do we love this yard?”

but:

“How are we actually going to use this yard?”

And perhaps even more importantly:

“How will we feel about maintaining it ten or twenty years from now?”

There isn't a right or wrong answer.

For some families, a huge yard will be exactly what they need for many years.

For others, a smaller yard, a beautiful patio or a low-maintenance outdoor space may ultimately give them more of what they really want: time to enjoy their home instead of constantly maintaining it.

It's about finding the balance between the life you're living now and the life you're moving toward.

Because our homes don't stay the same as our lives change.

And sometimes, the things we think we absolutely need today become the very things we're grateful to let go of later. 

Shelley Hird
Downsizing Specialist and North Shore Realtor®
www.shelleyhird.com

4 Things Buyers Often Miss When Viewing A Home For The First Time

One of the things I actually love about a slower real estate market is that buyers have something they haven’t always had in a hot market:

Time.

Time to think.
Time to ask questions.
And most importantly, time to go back and see a home again before making a decision.

Because here’s the thing about an open house…
You walk through the door and everything looks great.

The house is clean. The furniture is beautifully arranged. The lights are on. Maybe there are flowers on the counter and music playing in the background.

You’re excited.

And when you’re excited, it’s very easy to see what you love about a home and miss some of the simple things that could affect how much you actually enjoy living there every day.

So if you’re looking at homes right now, take advantage of the slower market.

Go back.

Here are a few things I would look at the second or third time around.

1. The direction of the sun

This is one of the easiest things to overlook at an open house.

Where does the sun come up? Where does it set? Which rooms get morning light? Which ones get afternoon sun?

It can make a huge difference to the temperature of your home, the amount of natural light you get, glare and reflections, and even how you use your outdoor space.

If you’re hoping to grow vegetables, for example, you’ll want to know how much direct sunlight that garden actually gets.

A home can feel completely different at 11 a.m. on a sunny Sunday than it does at 4 p.m. on a hot summer afternoon.

Go back at a different time of day if you can.

2. The imperfections

At an open house, everything is designed to look its best.

And that's the point.

But once you've fallen a little bit in love with the house, it's time to slow down and look a little closer.

Are those just cosmetic imperfections, or could they be signs of something bigger?

Are there cracks? Water marks? Areas that have been freshly painted? Doors that don't close properly? Floors that feel uneven?

Of course, you'll have your home inspection if you make an offer, but there are also things that simply come down to:

Can I live with this?

When we bought our home, we came back three times before making an offer.

And it took three visits for us to realize that the front of the house was painted a completely different colour than the other three sides.

We had been so focused on everything we loved about the house that we hadn't noticed it.
The front of the house was brown and the sides were white… this was not a small difference. We still laugh about it today.

But it’s also a great reminder that sometimes you simply need to see a home more than once.

3. The layout

A layout can look fantastic when you're walking through an open house.

Open concept has been incredibly popular for years, and there are lots of reasons why.

But don't just ask yourself, “Does this look good?”

Ask yourself:

“How will we actually live here?”

Where will the kids hang out?

Where will you work?

Is there enough separation and privacy when you need it?

How does the kitchen connect to the outdoor space?

Can you easily get from the garage to the kitchen with groceries?

Does the flow make sense for your family?

These are the things you don't necessarily think about when you're walking through a house with 20 other people.

But they're the things you'll notice every single day once you live there.

4. The practicality

This is a big one.

When we walk into a home that has been beautifully decluttered and staged, it's very easy to underestimate how much storage we actually need.

Everything looks so clean and calm.

There isn't a jacket hanging over the chair. There aren't 14 pairs of shoes by the front door. The kitchen counters are completely clear. The pantry looks beautifully organized.

It can almost feel like you're walking into a magazine.

And it's okay to think, “I could live like this.”

But very few people actually live like they're living in a magazine.

So be honest with yourself about how your family really lives.

If you need a garage, you need a garage.

If you need a big pantry, you need a big pantry.

If you have a lot of coats, sports equipment, luggage, tools, Christmas decorations or whatever else your family has accumulated over the years, you need somewhere to put it.

Look at the closet space.

Look at the kitchen cabinetry.

Look at the pantry.

Look at the mudroom.

Look at the garage.

And don't just look at whether there is some storage. Ask yourself whether there is enough storage for the way you actually live.

Because storage is one of those things you can very easily underestimate when you're walking through a beautifully staged home.

And once you move in, it's not something you can easily fix.

That beautiful, uncluttered home you fell in love with may have looked that way because everything that didn't fit was temporarily removed.

So take a really honest look at your own life.

Don't buy the lifestyle you wish you had. Buy the home that supports the lifestyle you actually live.

That's what that second or third visit is really about.

Stop looking at the house as a beautiful property and start imagining it as your home.

A slower market gives you the opportunity to do exactly that.

So if you've found a house you really like, don't feel pressured to make a decision simply because you loved it at the open house.

Go back.

Look again.

Come at a different time of day.

Open the closets. Stand in the backyard. Sit in the living room. Think about where you'll put your furniture. Imagine a rainy Tuesday morning instead of a sunny Sunday afternoon.

Because sometimes the things that make a home look amazing aren't the things that make it the right home for you.

And in a slower market, you have the luxury of taking a little more time to figure that out.

Shelley Hird
North Shore and Downsizing Specialist 
www.shelleyhird.com

The Financial and Emotional Cost of Staying Put

There is something incredibly comforting about staying put.

You know your neighbours. You know the house. You know which floorboard squeaks and exactly where the afternoon sun comes through the kitchen window.

Maybe you've raised your children there. Maybe you've celebrated 30 Christmases in that same dining room. Maybe your home has been the one constant through some of the biggest chapters of your life.

And if you've owned a home on the North Shore for a long time, there's another very good reason to stay:

Your home may be worth a lot more than you ever imagined it would be.

For many homeowners, the family home has been an extraordinary investment.

So when someone suggests selling it and moving somewhere smaller, the obvious question is:

"Why would I do that?"

It's a fair question.

And I'm not here to tell you that you should.

But I do think there's another question worth asking:

What is it actually costing you to stay?

Not just financially.

But in time, energy, maintenance, flexibility and opportunity.

And when you look at the next 10 or 20 years rather than the last 20, the answer can be surprisingly different.

Your Home Can Be Your Greatest Asset... and Still Cost Money to Own

Let's take a hypothetical example that is fairly close to the price point many North Vancouver homeowners are familiar with.

Imagine you own a detached home worth $2.2 million.

You've lived there for many years. Your mortgage is paid off. You've built substantial equity.

On paper, you have a very valuable asset.

But the house doesn't just sit there appreciating.

It needs things.

The roof eventually needs replacing. The furnace doesn't last forever. Windows age. Decks need attention.

The driveway needs work. The garden grows whether you're in the mood to garden or not.

And then there are the less obvious costs:

Property taxes.

Insurance.

Utilities.

Landscaping.

Cleaning.

And the occasional plumber or electrician who seems to charge $200 simply for the call out fee.

The point is that owning a home has a carrying cost, even when there is no mortgage.

What Might 20 Years of Homeownership Actually Look Like?

This is where I want to be very clear.

The numbers below are an illustration, not a prediction.

I'm not suggesting that a North Vancouver homeowner will spend exactly this amount every year. Some years will be much less. Some years will be considerably more.

The purpose is simply to take a longer view.

For our $2.2 million detached home, let's assume approximately $40,000 per year in total property-related expenses:

A note about the renovation reserve

This is perhaps the most important number to explain.

The $10,000 annual renovation reserve isn't money you necessarily spend every year.

Instead, think of it as setting aside an average amount each year for the bigger projects that eventually come along.

Maybe the kitchen needs updating. The bathrooms need renovating. The roof needs replacing.

The windows are reaching the end of their useful life. The deck needs rebuilding.

Or perhaps you simply want to make improvements to keep the home comfortable and competitive over the years.

You might spend almost nothing one year and $50,000 the next.

The idea of the reserve is simply to spread those larger, less frequent expenses across a longer period of time.

So, in this illustration, $40,000 × 20 years = $800,000.

That's a significant number.

But it's also important to remember what it represents:

20 years of living in and enjoying a $2.2 million home.

It's not money "lost."

It's the cost of owning, maintaining and enjoying the home.

And that's an important distinction.

What If You Chose a Smaller Home?

Now let's look at another illustration.

Imagine the homeowner sells the $2.2 million detached home and purchases a $1.2 million condo or townhouse.

That leaves approximately $1 million of gross equity to invest, before selling costs, legal fees, moving expenses, taxes and other transaction costs.

Again, this isn't a recommendation.

It's simply another possible scenario.

The annual property-related costs might look something like this:

Again, these are simply reasonable assumptions for the purpose of comparison.

Strata fees can vary significantly between buildings, and they can increase over time. Condo owners can also face special assessments and other expenses that aren't captured in this simplified example.

But under these assumptions, the difference is interesting:

Detached home:

$800,000 over 20 years

Smaller property:

$400,000 over 20 years

That's a difference of approximately:

$400,000 over 20 years

Or about $20,000 per year on average.

Would every homeowner experience this difference?

Absolutely not.

That's not the point.

The point is to ask:

What does the cost of maintaining my particular home look like over the next 20 years?

And Then There's the $1 Million Question

Let's say the homeowner has $1 million left over after purchasing the smaller property.

What if they invested it?

Again, this is an illustration, not a prediction or investment recommendation.

If that $1 million earned an average annual return of:

4%

After 20 years:

Approximately $2.19 million

5%

After 20 years:

Approximately $2.65 million

6%

After 20 years:

Approximately $3.21 million

That's the power of compound growth.

But it's also important to remember that investments fluctuate. Returns aren't guaranteed, and taxes, fees and the type of investment would all affect the actual outcome.

The point isn't that the homeowner will have $2.65 million in 20 years.

It's that $1 million of equity has options when it isn't tied up in a house.

And that's an interesting thing to think about.

But What About the House Going Up in Value?

This is where the conversation gets really interesting.

If you've owned a North Vancouver home for 20 or 30 years, you've probably experienced significant appreciation.

And perhaps your first instinct is:

"But my house will continue to go up."

It might.

Historically, real estate has been an important source of wealth creation for many Canadian homeowners.

But will the next 20 years look like the last 20?

Honestly, I don't know.

And neither does anyone else.

We can make projections, but nobody can tell us with certainty what a North Vancouver detached home will be worth in 2046.

So let's look at three simple illustrations.

If the $2.2 million home appreciated at an average of:

2% per year

After 20 years:

Approximately $3.27 million

3% per year

After 20 years:

Approximately $3.97 million

4% per year

After 20 years:

Approximately $4.82 million

That's a pretty wide range.

And it illustrates why I think it's dangerous to assume that the future will simply repeat the past.

We're Entering a Very Different Demographic Era

There's another reason I think this conversation is worth having.

Canada is getting older.

Statistics Canada estimates that people aged 65 and older represented 19.5% of Canada's population in 2025.

Depending on the projection scenario, that share could rise to between 22.6% and 32.5% by 2075.

The population aged 85 and older is also expected to grow rapidly, particularly between 2031 and 2050.

That's a remarkable demographic shift.

And it matters because housing needs change as we age.

The home that was perfect when you were 42 may not necessarily be the home that works best when you're 72.

That doesn't mean you need to move.

It simply means it's worth thinking about.

Most Older Canadians Own Their Homes

Statistics Canada data from the 2021 Census showed that homeownership rates remain high among older Canadians.

Approximately 75.6% of Canadians aged 65 to 69 owned their homes, as did 74.8% of those aged 70 to 74. Among Canadians aged 75 to 84, the rate was 72.5%.

That's a tremendous amount of Canadian household wealth tied up in housing.

And for many people, that's exactly where they want it.

There's nothing wrong with that.

But it does raise an interesting question:

How much of your wealth do you actually want tied up in your home?

Your Life Is Changing Too

Here's the thing we sometimes forget when we talk about real estate.

Your house may be appreciating.

But your life is changing too.

Twenty years ago, perhaps you had teenagers running through the house.

You needed four bedrooms.

You needed a big kitchen.

You needed a yard.

You needed a garage.

You needed storage for hockey equipment, bikes, camping gear, toys and approximately 47 pairs of shoes.

Now?

Maybe two people live there.

Maybe three rooms rarely get used.

Maybe the basement has become a very expensive storage locker.

Maybe the yard you once loved has become a job.

Maybe the stairs aren't your favourite thing anymore.

None of this means there's anything wrong with your house.

It simply means your needs may have changed.

Your Next Chapter May Look Different

This is one of the reasons I love the idea of a Next Chapter.

It doesn't have to mean selling your house.

It doesn't have to mean moving into a condo.

And it certainly doesn't mean giving away everything you've accumulated over a lifetime.

It simply means taking a moment to think about what you want the next stage of your life to look like.

Maybe you want more travel and less maintenance.

Maybe you want to be closer to your children.

Maybe you want to spend your money differently.

Maybe you want a garden, a workshop, a condo with a view, or simply a home where everything you need is on one floor.

Or maybe you love your home exactly as it is and can't imagine living anywhere else.

That's okay too.

The point is that you get to design your next chapter.

And sometimes, taking a fresh look at your home, your equity and the cost of maintaining it is simply part of figuring out what that chapter could look like.

The Questions I'm Asking Myself

And here's where this becomes personal for me.

I'm not just writing this as a downsizing specialist.

I'm an empty nester in the making.

In four years, my son will likely be heading off to whatever comes next for him, and I find myself already thinking about what our home, our finances and our lifestyle might look like at that point.

And honestly?

I don't have the answers.

I love my home.

I love where we live.

I love having space to host our family and friends.

There are plenty of reasons I could see myself staying exactly where I am.

But I'm also asking myself some questions.

Do I really want to maintain this much house when it's just the two of us?

How much of our home will we actually use?

Would I rather spend some of that equity on experiences, travel, family and the things we enjoy while we're healthy and active enough to do them?

What will I want my life to look like at 55? At 65? At 75?

And perhaps the biggest question:

Am I designing my home around the life I've already lived, or the life I want to live next?

I don't know yet what the answer will be.

And I think that's okay.

I'm four years away from this particular transition, but I'm already thinking about it.

Not because I'm ready to sell my house tomorrow.

But because I'd rather have the conversation with myself before I have to make a decision.

In my years of experience helping clients downsize, I think that's one of the greatest advantages I have seen -  thinking about your next chapter early.

You get to design it.

Rather than waiting until a health issue, a major repair, a financial change or some other life event forces you to make decisions quickly, you have the luxury of asking:

What do I actually want?

The Part You Can't Put on a Spreadsheet

As interesting as the numbers are, they only tell part of the story.

You can't put a dollar value on the comfort of waking up in the home you've loved for decades.

You can't quantify family memories.

You can't calculate the feeling of belonging to a neighbourhood you've helped build a life in.

You also can't easily put a number on freedom.

The freedom to travel without worrying about the garden.

The freedom to spend a Saturday doing something other than home maintenance.

The freedom of having fewer rooms to clean.

Or the freedom of staying exactly where you are because you genuinely love it.

These things matter.

And for some people, they matter more than the financial calculations.

There Isn't a Right Answer

This is probably the most important part.

If you love your home, can comfortably afford the costs, enjoy maintaining it and want to stay there for the next 20 years...

Stay.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

On the other hand, if you find yourself spending more and more money maintaining a house you barely use...

Or you're travelling more and spending less time at home...

Or you're beginning to resent the yard...

Or you're sitting on millions of dollars of equity but don't feel particularly wealthy...

Or you're starting to think about how you'd like your life to look at 70, 75 or 80...

Maybe it's worth running the numbers.

Not because you have to move.

Just because you deserve to understand your options.

So... What Happens If You Never Downsize?

Maybe nothing.

Maybe you stay in your home for another 20 years, watch it appreciate, maintain it, enjoy it and eventually pass it on to your children.

That may be exactly what you want.

Or maybe, somewhere along the way, you realize that your home is no longer supporting the life you want to live.

And maybe you make a change.

Neither outcome is a failure.

The important thing is that the decision is intentional rather than accidental.

Because your home is not just an investment.

It's the backdrop to your life.

And as that life changes, it's worth asking whether your home is still supporting the way you want to live.

I'm asking myself those questions already.

I have four years until I'm an empty nester, and I have no idea yet what my answer will be.

But I do know this:

I want to design my next chapter around how I want to live, rather than simply continuing to live the way I always have.

Maybe that's the real conversation we're having when we talk about downsizing.

Not:

"How much house can I afford?"

Not:

"How much will my house be worth?"

But simply:

"What do I want the next chapter of my life to look like?"

And then...

Does my home help me get there?

The financial examples in this article are hypothetical illustrations only. They are not predictions, investment advice, tax advice or real estate advice. The figures do not account for selling commissions, legal fees, property transfer tax, moving costs, investment fees, taxes, inflation, strata special assessments or future changes in property taxes, insurance, utilities or strata fees. Actual costs, property appreciation and investment returns will vary considerably.

Shelley Hird
Downsizing and Senior’s Real Estate Specialist with Oakwyn Realty Ltd, North Vancouver
www.shelleyhird.com