My faith that things will ALWAYS work out is probably non-existent. I’m a realist and sometimes a pessimist. I expect for things to not go as planned and then I’m pleasantly surprised when they do. It’s been a while since I’ve blogged and it has been a wild ride during that time. I’ve wanted to write about it but I was afraid of jinxing things until everything was fully set in stone. Although things did not go as planned on the journey, in the end I got EXACTLY what I was looking for. Maybe there’s something to this patience and faith thing…..
Yesterday the contract on my current house was closed. If you remember, I started the process back in February. I wasn’t 100% sure I wanted to sell and move. I wasn’t sure I wanted to give up everything I had put into my home and the memories that were made here. If you missed out on that whole saga, you can read about the dilemma, here.
In February, my realtor hired a stager to go through my house and provide an unbiased opinion of the things I could do to improve the appearance of my home. It was difficult to hear some of the things she had to say. I wasn’t unbiased and I was emotional about changing things. I was one of those home owners you see on HGTV that think their S**t don’t stink. Some of the main items were to take down the collage wall, paint the powder room a neutral color instead of teal, paint the office a neutral color and remove the stripes, paint the vanity a neutral color in the master bath, removing the license plates from the stairwell, and take up the rug in the living room. There were other things such as having nice white new towels in all of the bathrooms, cleaning out all of the closets, etc. But some of those things felt like fluff to me. I completed some of the big items on the list, taking down the collage wall, painting the vanity, taking down the license plates, and taking up the area rug in the living room. The rest I decided not to do. I felt like paint is an easy thing to fix and that it was only 2 rooms in the entire house that didn’t have neutral paint. I think it’s unrealistic for buyers to think that they won’t have to paint when they move to a house. Looking back there were times when I wished I had painted those rooms, because it was more difficult to sell my house than anticipated.
My realtor also used HouseLens to photograph my home for the listing. HouseLens is an awesome company based out of Nashville. They higher local photographers in each area. Photographers determine their own schedule and take pictures of houses. The photos are uploaded to HouseLens and they do all the editing. The photos for my house turned out great. It really pays off to have professional photos done. Here are some shots of the house.
After getting photos done, I was “eligible” to start going to look at homes. My house was ready to put on the market when I found something. The plan was to immediately list my house after I found a new one. Houses move crazy fast in the Triangle market and I didn’t want to temporarily move if I couldn’t find a house before mine sold. I fell in love with the 5th house that I looked at. It was a 1960s ranch that had been fully renovated. It was gorgeous. I put in an offer for this house, but didn’t get it due to the contract stipulation that it was contingent on my current house selling. In my price range I am competing against first time home buyers who don’t have to sell a place in order to fund their next. A contingent offer is more “risky” than an offer that isn’t contingent. Shortly after losing out on that house, I decided I needed to put my house on the market and sell it before finding a new one. I really didn’t want to do this, but it seemed like it was the only option.
The good news was that I had an offer within the first week of listing my house. BUT, it was the most crazy offer you could put together….it requested $7500 in closing costs, a home warranty, FHA lending, and to “retain all furniture as a gift to the buyer.” I wonder if they wanted me to leave the contents of my pantry and fridge as well? Needless to say it was not worth negotiating with this offer.
I had almost 15 showings within the first week, but hardly anyone was leaving feedback. It was a difficult and frustrating to not understand what could be improved and why no one seemed truly interested in the property. After some discussion with my realtor, and research, I had some answers. The city I live in is a very diverse community where a large segment of the population places a lot of value on Vastu Shastra. This is similar to Feng Shui. Unfortunately my front door faces southwest, which is the least ideal direction. There is nothing I can do about my front door to change this. I was really upset when I found this out. How the heck was I going to sell my house!?
The only thing I could think of what to buy a statue of St. Joseph and bury him in my yard. I know this sounds crazy, but there’s a kit you can buy on Amazon with instructions and prayer. If you are in need of your own St. Joseph here is the link. I’m not Catholic, but I felt like it couldn’t hurt. I didn’t have any time to waste so I paid for same day delivery. I buried the statue upside down (as instructed) and read the provide prayer. The best part about this experience was reading the customer questions on the Amazon listing, one person admitted to accidentally breaking the head off on his statue and inquired if this was a bad sign………um I would say it’s a bad sign if it were me……..yikes!
The next week I had a buyer interested in my house. It was the best offer I could imagine because it was an investor that would allow me to rent back my place for 3 months until I found a new one. It was a great relief to get an offer and not have to move twice. So right now I am officially no longer a home owner. The clock is ticking and I am on the hunt for a new place. I would like to say that I am a little less nervous and anxious. But to be honest, I haven’t felt this stressed about life since I studied for the CPA exam. Believe me, that period of 9 months of studying and test taking was the most stressful time I’ve ever experienced. I have to hope, though, that I wouldn’t be in the situation I am if that perfect place wasn’t going to be out there in 90 days……maybe lol
