Kings Gate · Downsizing
Downsizing in Kings Gate
Move to less house on your timeline, with the sale and the next home planned together.
Downsizing in Kings Gate, in either direction
Downsizing in Kings Gate can go two ways. Some owners are ready to sell a larger Kings Gate home, perhaps one with a pool or multiple living areas, and move to something smaller. Others want to stay in the neighborhood's central, mature setting and move into one of its more modest homes. Both are good plans when the sale and the purchase are timed together.
Kings Gate's location helps either way. Kingsgate Center, restaurants, medical services and Loop 289 stay close, so less house doesn't mean a longer drive to the places you go most.
Before we plan, we'll talk about the next chapter. What do you want less of? What can't you give up?
How Shelby Cotton helps you downsize
I'm Shelby Cotton, a REALTOR® with eXp Realty, LLC in Lubbock. When you downsize, the sale, the next home and the timeline are one decision, and I plan them together.
For the smaller home, my background in architecture and design helps you choose well. I'll look at the steps at each entry, whether you can live on one level, how the rear-entry garage connects to the kitchen and how much the lot and trees will ask of you. In an older home, I'll also check the roof and systems, because downsizing should lower your upkeep.
For the home you're selling, we'll decide together what preparation pays, price it with evidence and launch it with professional media, a property website, paid social media ads, agent email, neighbor mailers and open houses.
Your downsizing plan, step by step
- Picture the next chapter. Where you want to be and what the next home needs to do.
- Know your numbers. What your current home is likely to sell for, and what you'll net.
- Choose the order. Buy first or sell first, so you're neither rushed out nor paying for two homes too long.
- Prepare and sell. Targeted repairs, sorting and staging, then a planned launch. See the launch plan.
- Find the smaller home. Judged for access, layout, storage and the condition of its systems.
- Close and move. Both closings lined up at the title company.
The citywide approach is on downsizing in Lubbock.
Selling a larger Kings Gate home
Larger Kings Gate homes, with extra living areas, basements or pools, appeal to move-up buyers looking for exactly that space. Your listing should show it clearly, and your records should answer their questions about age and systems.
Resist the urge to remodel before selling. Buyers expect some updating in a 1980s home and often want to choose finishes themselves. Fix what an inspector will find, freshen paint and lighting, trim trees back from the roof and let the rooms show their size.
If you have a pool, have its equipment serviced and the records ready. To the right buyer it's a feature, and a well-kept one earns its place in the price.
Choosing the smaller home
Tour with your real routine in mind. Count the steps from the car to the kitchen. Check whether the main bedroom, bathroom and laundry are on one level. Open the closets, because storage is what people miss most after leaving a larger home.
If walkable streets appeal, compare downsizing to Vintage Township. If newer construction and lower upkeep matter most, look at downsizing in Uptown West. Staying in Kings Gate keeps your routes and routines, and we'll weigh all three against what you'd give up.
Sorting a larger household
Leaving a larger Kings Gate home, especially one with extra living areas or a basement, often means deciding what happens to years of belongings. Start with the next home's floor plan. Once you know which rooms you're moving into, it becomes much clearer which pieces fit and which don't.
Work one room at a time, and settle early what goes to family, what's sold, what's donated and what comes along. Basements, garages and second living areas tend to hold the most, so give them extra time.
The sorting helps your sale too. Rooms with less in them photograph larger and brighter, and buyers see the space instead of the stuff. If you'd like help finding people to assist with sorting or moving, ask me.
Talk through your plans
Start with what your home is worth or tell me about your plans. You can also call (806) 630-0455. The Kings Gate guide covers the neighborhood. Move wisely.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I downsize and stay in Kings Gate?
Yes, when the right smaller home comes up. Kings Gate homes vary widely in size, and staying keeps your routes and routines.
Should I remodel my larger Kings Gate home before selling?
Usually not. Fix what an inspector will find and freshen what buyers see first. Many buyers want to choose finishes themselves.
What should I check on a smaller older home?
Steps at each entry, whether you can live on one level, storage, and the age of the roof and systems.
Kings Gate
What downsizing looks like in Kings Gate
Mature trees, larger lots and a location that has become more central as Lubbock has grown.
- The homes
- Predominantly traditional brick homes from the late 1970s through the 1990s, most from the 1980s. Floor plans vary considerably. Many have rear-entry garages, substantial living areas and mature landscaping, and larger properties may have pools, basements or multiple living areas.
- Why people choose it
- Move-up buyers, relocating buyers who want mature surroundings, buyers wanting larger rooms and lots and mature trees, buyers who don't want to live on Lubbock's outer edge, and buyers comfortable evaluating an older home property by property.
- Schools people ask about
- Lubbock ISD. Buyers ask about Honey Elementary, Evans Middle School and Monterey High School. Verify by address with Lubbock ISD. It is sometimes confused with neighborhoods farther south in Lubbock-Cooper ISD.
- Getting around
- Southwest Lubbock between Quaker and Memphis Avenues, roughly 82nd to 98th Street. Locals say "around 82nd and Quaker, south toward 98th." Loop 289 is a short drive.
- Nearby
- Kingsgate Center at 82nd and Quaker, Charles A. Guy Park, and neighboring Lakeridge and Raintree. Shopping, restaurants and medical services all around.
- The trade-off
- Not cookie-cutter: homes differ in size, condition, lot, garage, pool, basement and renovation. Buyers compare them with smaller, newer homes farther south or west, so sellers have to show the value of location, lot, trees and construction, not only price per square foot.
The method
How I do it in Kings Gate
Downsizing: keep exploring
Ready to make your move with Shelby Cotton?