Drum Roll Please
Finally. Since we made the decision to sell our home way back in the spring, we have been slowly preparing. SLOWLY being the operative word apparently! I joked that if we didn't start right away, it would be August rather than April when we would be prepared to list our house! Good thing we started right away!!
I think it may be God's plan that the process has been a slow one. I feel much more confident about the idea now, and I think that may largely be in part to the drawn out process. Preparing to sell a house has been overwhelming. Knowing where to start, how much to do, what we can live with and without. Repairing and updating all the things that have been good enough for us to live with for the years that we've been here, but suddenly would turn a potential buyer off.
From this:
To this:
In the last year, we have put on a new, 50-year, weather-resistant roof, the hole in the backyard surrounded by rock has been transformed into a nice firepit/patio type space, flower beds have been landscaped, two bathrooms remodeled, walls patched and painted, outdated, mismatched and broken light fixtures replaced, curtains hung, appliances replaced, doors repaired, and most importantly, clutter removed!
Before:
After:
It may not seem like much of a change, but every fixture was swapped out for new, the vanity tops changed, the wall colors freshened up, and the floor ripped out and tiled. Oh...and I learned the hard and messy way not to tighten the toilet tank to the bowl too hard, so this bathroom has a new toilet too!!
As if God was asking us if we were sure about this decision, Tim's busy season didn't really come to an end this spring, but continued well into the summer months and is just starting to slow down a bit. Between his schedule and baseball schedules, the majority of these projects were a one-man (or woman in this case) adventure with persistant pleas for an occasional extra set of hands (mostly to help fix something that didn't go smoothly). The whole process has been taxing and exhausting physically, mentally and financially. Tim has been great about every bit of it. For the record, I much prefer to do projects with him than by myself with him having to come in to fix something I couldn't get done properly. I think he would agree! :) HOWEVER...I am quite handy with power tools and have become quite proficient at laying tile too.
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| Even the "sand box" got the face lift that we've been wanting to do for years! |
I'm not sure that I will ever want to sell another home...at least not until I don't have to use it as my place of business--read: until my children are grown and out of the house. It may be next to impossible to stay on top of my job as a stay-at-home mom, AND present a magazine layout home. No...not next to impossible...impossible!!! We're close though. Not magazine layout close, but "15-minutes-to-showing-our-house" close. If only there was a way to politely request that no one would open closets or look under beds!
So...without further adeau...we are now ready to officially list our house! Today. That is what I am doing...all the "for-sale-by-owner"stuff to start with. We're going to give it a try. The market is not in a great place right now for us to sell our home for what it was worth just three years ago, so this is how we'll start to find a potential buyer.
But first...we paused to celebrate Independence day with friends. I know...probably a crazy thing to do when anticipating listing our house the very next day, but it was a needed and welcome pause.
It was a wonderful evening full of friends, entertainment, loud fireworks, great food...just what we needed! The kids would agree...it is both scary and fun to recognize their increasing independence. That was very evident as they all ran around lighting off fireworks. I think every corner of our yard had some sort of firework going. I'm not sure though who had more fun...the dads or the kids! Men are merely boys when it comes to things like this!
So, with all the after-math contained, we're ready. BIG, DEEP BREATH...
Prayers, referrals, and more prayers are quite welcome!!!
