So I am counting down the days till we list. We have 12 more days until photos of our place. We have 18 days until we list, then 25 more days until the open house and then hopefully it's sold by 27 days from now May 5th. I am praying we list, we have showings, then open house and all offers/bids come in on May 4th. One week of being "show" ready in our house and living like crazy people then we are done.
Some expenses we are spending on getting the house ready is a storage unit at $70/month with 1st month free. We painted the interior and have to get the exterior painted. Now the interior if we had decided 6 months ago we were going to sell this spring we could have done it ourselves. But deciding 6 weeks before listing we were going to sell probably wasn't the more financially efficient thing to do. Of course all the painting the = eating out because we were avoiding the painters and fumes all day. Plus we had to send the dog to daycare so he wouldn't be in the way.
I'm feeling rather indulgent because the week before we list I got the two kids into camp for 4 days all day 8-6. Pricy but $160/day for 2 kids and I have a chance to clean up as a last push. Right now I feel a lot of guilt letting the kids watch too much tv and not making as many playdates or activities like we normally do.
But I feel like as of April 28th we'll be free. No more playing in our house for that week but we won't be as busy. We've been up most night until 1 am packing and cleaning and up again at 6 am getting ready for school and the day.
Counting down the days
April 10th, 2015 at 02:41 pm
April 10th, 2015 at 02:44 pm 1428677097
April 10th, 2015 at 03:55 pm 1428681340
It's smart to have a back-up plan, at least on paper. While selling house and downsizing to condo was different, we treated 'House for Sale' period as though were were living in a Show Home while we treated day-to-day practicalities as though we 4 were camping in an RV. It's important to eat-down existing food supplies. Meals can be one container simple, like Crockpot or casserole. We learned lasagna in a crockpot was delicious lol. We took some meals to a nearby park that had picnic tables and play equipment.
Just like camping, outfits were assembled right from dryer into plastic bags and stacked in bureau drawers, except for DH's more business garb . The clothes left in closets were merely for display; out of season garments were boxed ready to move. Kids had selected their absolute favorite toys which all had to fit into bins which slid easily under their beds. They could make play disappear in less than 15 minutes. Guest towels hung on rods in the various bathrooms but the towels in actual use were hung on the back of bathroom doors when the realtor told me potential buyers don't shut doors! It helps to have a simple routine in place so that each segment of the day goes without a hitch.
I was trying to imagine how you were working job search into the mix.
April 10th, 2015 at 07:58 pm 1428695903
April 10th, 2015 at 09:48 pm 1428702527
April 11th, 2015 at 02:45 am 1428720327
April 11th, 2015 at 04:36 am 1428726964
Our target market is people just starting to have children, this is a starter home. Or for families with 2 children around ages 5 and 7 moving in for school district.
We are not using a stager but our realtor is coming Sunday to give use tips and strategically plan our house. She will tell us what furniture to keep and sell. We have already done a lot of purging but we need to know what needs to go and stay still.
My plan is to get it staged by photos but finish painting after the trim. I also need to scrub my stupid neighbors stairs.
April 11th, 2015 at 12:02 pm 1428753771
Do you have or can you borrow someone's Power Washer? It makes tasks like that complete in less time and effort than what's involved in hooking your hose to the machine.
April 11th, 2015 at 01:30 pm 1428759002