Most people need less than they think

Ask someone how big their next home should be and they usually describe the one they already have. Then you walk through it and find rooms nobody has used since the kids left.

Right-sizing is not downgrading

A well-planned smaller home makes room for what you actually use and removes what you do not. You still get somewhere for the grandkids to sleep. You stop heating four rooms nobody walks into.

Smaller is easier to build well

A compact footprint means the money goes into the shell, the glazing and the detailing rather than into extra floor area. It is also less to clean, less to maintain and less to heat for the next twenty years.