Well, if I have said it once I have said it a million times, we think we want to move this spring. Spring is quickly approaching (or at least we hope so), so we are getting our home ready for potentially putting it on the market. The homes in our neighborhood have vastly declined in value, however. There are only a few homes being marketed now and were put on the market in November. I realize that home values in the winter are less than during the spring (or at least the agents tell you - low ball your house so it will sell since there are less buyers during the winter). Anyway, here is the plan.
1. Clear out/Clean up: This is where we are at now. We, and by we I am mostly saying I, are cleaning every closet, cupboard and drawer. This is fun! I so like to get rid of unnecessary clutter, organize and make things look pretty. Now, if only they can stay that way! That is how I know I did a good job...if it lasts. We will soon be taking done many of our big toys and putting them into storage (the play house, the baby center, the kitchen, and the slide). Chris thinks it should all be out except the train table. The toys under the steps in the storage room will stay, so the kids can play with "something!" Chris can not help much with anything as he is working lots of overtime between now and May 1. This just ads another challence to an already overwhelming challenge!
2. Deep clean. After I get the entire house organized, I will need to go through and deep clean. By that I mean vacuum, dust, clean the windows, blinds, ceilings, fans, bathrooms, etc, etc. Oh, this will be fun, too. Especially with 3 kids trying really hard to not keep things clean.
3. Have 2 agents come out and look at the house. Why 2? We do not know these people, although they are recommended. We would like to have a couple opinions on what changes, if any, should be done to our home. They will also be giving us their opinion on a selling price. Chris and I also have what we want to sell our home for. We will see how close they are.
4. Have an open house with family and friends. This is my idea because I love to be tortured I guess. I thought...1) It gets the word out that our home is for sale, 2) Family & Friends will hopefully write on cards and tell us what we need to do or what they would not like about the home (like YUCK - that is awful! or you may want to clean your ceiling fans better...who knows! All valuable information in my opinion!).
4. Chris will build a splash sales page and build a website (hopefully with a virtual walk through of our home). I will be in charge of getting the sales page out to post wherever I can.
5. Put our home on the market FOR SALE BY OWNER. Yes, we know...YOU WILL NEVER SELL IT THAT WAY! Everyone is saying that. But, what do we have to lose? Oh yeah, $6 % of our selling price of our home if we use an agent. I told Chris, I will work REALLY HARD for him to sell it without an agent...try me! I already have some ideas up my sleeve on how to market it. I knew my MBA would come in handy some day (well, maybe). We will give this a go for 6 to 8 weeks, then reevaluate.
6. If late March to late April comes without much interest shown (if not sooner), we may market it with an agent. It all depends upon what the agent wants us to market our house for. Right now, if we marketed it for what they are listed for in our neighborhood and got exactly what we ask (and what is the likelihood of that happening??!!), after the agent's fees and commissions, we would almost end up with a wash to what we paid for our home nearly 9 years ago!! So, the finished basement, 10 big mature trees (not to mention all the shrubs) and professional landscaping, new air conditioner/furnace, new stainmaster carpeting throughout, plantation shutters, freshly painted interior and exterior, new roof, fenced in backyard, etc, etc, would all be completely lost and a wasted investment. If this is the case, we will probably not list our home and just stay put until the market changes, unfortunately.
We are ready to move. We like our home, but need a little more room. We live in a great area, practically within walking distance of a number of places (Target, Walmart, HyVee, a couple places to get an oil changed, school, walking trail, park and sprinkle park). These will all be considerations of any potential new home. We will not be bidding on any home until our home sells. We may look, however, but will not bid (at least that is what we are saying now). We have a few homes that we like online now...but the homes on the market change weekly. The location of our home, however good, is not good for Chris who has commuted the 45 minute or more drive to Bellevue for over a decade now! Now especially, when he is working from 6AM to 5 PM, then driving home during rush hour after that long of a day! Yeah, that can be hard on a person.
So, we will see what the future holds. For now, I best get going as I have a big mess started in the kitchen...I have started to clean the cupboards! Oh, this better be worth it!
2 comments:
You LIKE cleaning out closets???? Want to come over ;) I dread this job!!! I have many closets and drawers that are in desperate need to cleaning out! You crack me up!
I like it when they are all done! They look so nice and makes life so much easier when everything has its place and is in it! However, I can do without the late nights and quiet times without any quiet. I am looking forward to the cleaning part because I just want to be done with the organizing! Now, if we decide not to sell our house, it is all organized and clean for spring & I can check that off my to do list.
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