I’m Retired and Regret Selling My House in 2024 — Here’s Why
Written by
Tobi Opeyemi Amure
Edited by
Zuri Anderson
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For many retirees, selling a home seems like a smart financial move. But for Linda J., a 68-year-old retired teacher from Colorado, selling her Denver home in early 2024 turned out to be one of her biggest regrets.
Linda shared her story in a YouTube comment on a video titled “Was It A Huge Mistake Selling Our House.” She wrote, “My home wasn’t just an asset — it was my life.”
Her raw, unfiltered experience reveals the risks of trading stability for short-term gains.
The $750,000 Mistake
Linda sold her Denver home in early 2024 for $750,000, convinced it would simplify her life and boost her retirement savings. At the time, it made sense: Denver’s housing market was booming, and friends urged her to “cash in while prices are high.” But the reality was messier than she imagined.
“I didn’t account for capital gains taxes or moving expenses, which ate into the profits I thought I’d have,” Linda wrote.
The sale left her with far less money than expected. Worse, her new downtown apartment came with a $2,200 monthly rent bill — a cost that gnawed at her savings faster than she’d ever anticipated.
What seemed like a path to freedom quickly became a financial trap.
Rent Reality Check
Linda’s downtown Denver apartment promised convenience — shops, restaurants and cultural attractions right outside her door. But the excitement faded fast. Her $2,200 monthly rent devoured her budget, and Denver’s rental market kept climbing.
According to Zillow’s 2024 data, average rents in the city rose 7% year-over-year, compounding her stress.
“I worry about rising rents and losing the stability I had when I owned my home outright,” Linda shared.
Gone was the predictability of a paid-off mortgage. Instead, she faced lease renewals, potential rent hikes and the nagging fear of being priced out of her own life.
When Home Isn’t Just a House
For Linda, the biggest surprise wasn’t financial — it was emotional.
“I didn’t realize how much I’d miss it — the memories, my neighbors, and my garden,” she wrote.
Her home wasn’t just a house. It was the place where she’d raised her children, hosted holiday gatherings and spent countless mornings sipping coffee in her sunlit kitchen.
The garden shed tended for many years, now someone else’s project. The neighbors, who’d become like family, now waving to a new owner. Psychologists call this “place attachment” — the deep, often invisible bond between people and their homes. For Linda, selling meant severing ties to the life she’d built.
“It’s like losing a part of yourself,” she wrote.
A Market That Moved on Without Her
The cruelest twist came when Denver’s housing market surged after Linda’s sale.
“My old house is already worth more than I sold it for,” she admitted.
Data from the Denver Metro Association of Realtors backs her up: The city’s median home price jumped 8.9% in 2024, leaving her former property’s value climbing while she watched from the sidelines.
That sting of “what if” lingers. If she’d held on just a few more months, she could’ve sold for tens of thousands more. But timing the market, as Linda learned, is a gamble few retirees win.
‘My Home Was My Life’
Linda’s story, shared in a fleeting YouTube comment, isn’t just about money or market trends. It’s about the invisible threads that tie us to the places we call home — the gardens we plant, the neighbors who become family and the quiet pride of ownership.
“If I could do it over again, I’d never have sold,” she wrote. “My home wasn’t just an asset — it was my life.”
For retirees considering a similar move, Linda’s experience is a cautionary tale. Selling might unlock short-term cash, but it can also erase the stability, community and identity that took decades to build.
Once that’s gone, there’s no going back.
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