Would you move to a bigger house if you could just to have a better listening room ?

for better or worse, i might be the poster boy for this question.

i would do it, did do it, and glad i did it.

in 2003 after seriously considering adding a dedicated listening room to my previous home, which had a very nice sounding but small den where i had my system, i did move to a larger home with a barn mostly for HiFi purposes to build an ultimate room.

https://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue16/lavigneroom.htm

so guilty as charged.

now 20 years later it’s been a great ride.

OTOH such a large commitment is not for everyone. you get so far down the hole it starts to run your life. you need a wife/partner who understands you and can support that. and in my case my kids had not provided me any grandkids to dote on so my extra time was mine to use. and i just retired (likely delayed a few years by my audio habit) and had my 50th Wedding anniversary this past year. so life is good.

but careful what you ask for.

No - the room is exactly what I need and I am too old for a bigger house.

the only alternative to the @mikelavigne sound barn is divorce 😂

If I presented a plan like this to my wife, she'd say, yes but not across the property but across the country

to me moving to build a dedicated ultimate HiFi room, is like buying a boat, which i did multiple times when the kids were young. except that my investment in that home and the sunk cost of building that room in 2004, which was finishing an 1800 sq.ft. barn, has added lots of appreciated value to my home. likely greater than all the rest of my HiFi purchases since.

of course, the alternative would have been to buy neither the larger home or boat, but to invest it. which can have many results. but that’s a different road to go down. we all have to figure out the whole nest egg question for ourselves. i’ve never touched my retirement plan for hifi.....yet. :-)

hard to project these things. but R.E. investment has an upside. OTOH Boats not so much. there are certainly collectables that appreciate. but as far as something you can actually use, a boat is a reasonable compare. and i absolutely get a huge use and great pleasure from my room.

a summer home is probably better yet, but in my case with my 6 day a week job, neither a boat or summer home was a real world choice for me. everyone has to decide what makes them happy. my wife and i are home bodies, and i traveled enough with my job that that type stuff does not have much interest from me or my wife. so this fits us well.

So, to answer my own question, no I would not move just for that but would take it into consideration. Had to pass that Vermont opportunity - too far away and too expensive to build a proper house there.