Rightsizing

We sold our house and are moving. Moving from 3,700 sq ft to about 1,600 sq ft. My mom asked, “How can you be downsizing? You are only in your 40’s!” I told her that my goal is to be in assisted living by the time I’m 55. Truth is, I don’t think of it as downsizing…it’s “rightsizing”. What set this in motion? Read on…

My wife Caroline took a job in Chicago last October, and we have an apartment in Chicago’s West Loop. Decorating and spending time together in this little apartment (about 750 sq ft) has made us realize that less truly can be more. It is “freeing”.

With Caroline here in Omaha less than half of the time, and given that I have joint custody of my 2 sons (one a freshman in college, the other a high school sophomore), I found myself living in more house than I needed about half of the time. Time to make a change. This condo will allow for easier “two city living”.

No doubt, this move is bitter sweet. We have loved our home on 91st Avenue.

The last time I blogged with consistency, was when we started our master suite addition. We have lived on 91st Ave for almost 8 years. I have had a house in District 66 for 18 years. Alas, life and priorities change. Recognizing these changes and adapting to them has been challenging, thrilling, difficult, exciting…all in all, more life!

Prior to living in District 66, I lived in Midtown. I moved to Omaha in 1997, and my first apartment was at the Columbian Schoolhouse Apartments at 37th and Jones. In a way, this is a “full circle” situation. We purchase a condo at Tudor Arms at 39th & Farnam.

Tudor Arms was built as luxury apartments in 1931. In the 80’s, the apartments were converted to condos. As with all of the Blackstone District, the building is undergoing a transformation.

In the last couple of years, I have helped 3 clients buy units in Tudor Arms, the largest of which was about 1,000 sq ft. Caroline and I loved the building but that size seemed a bit drastic. Little did I know that 2 of the units in the building are 2 story.

We now own a 1,620 sq ft, 2 story condo. The main floor has a living room, dining room, kitchen, laundry & powder room. Second level has a master bedroom with attached 3/4 bath, 2 other bedrooms and a nice sized full bath.

Here are a few “before” pictures: