Things are moving along very quickly. Contractors started work fixing up the place last week (Monday) and may be finished by the end of this coming week. If we can get all our junk cleaned out fast, we can possibly have the house on the market in about 2 weeks! Of course, the place is in a total state of chaos -- since we didn't finish (or in some rooms, start) cleaning things out, they are just moving things (contents of drawers, cabinets, closets) into any other room that has an inch of space! I'm so disoriented but I know there's a light at the end of the tunnel (and a huge dumpster in the driveway that already needs emptying!)
Surprisingly, getting rid of stuff hasn't been that difficult so far. We just have to picture where in the RV the item will go. Most items is "nowhere - won't fit" so out it goes. Things that have sentimental value only, we're taking pictures of and will have our memories when they play on our digital frame.
Originally I wanted to clean out one room at a time and get it fixed up at my own pace, but losing my job and not having enough $ in the bank to pay the mortgage for more than another month or 2 forced us into ramping up the plans. We were very fortunate that a relative lend us a few $ to get the repairs done all at once, and will accept payment when we sell the house.
So... here's to getting on the market real soon, and having a really quick sale. Hope to be on the road by the spring! Will keep you posted!
SnowGypsy said
06:47 AM Jan 5, 2014
Cheryl: Glad things are moving quickly and hopefully you're on a roll that will roll you through the sale and onto the road quickly. I had heard in the fall that they were expecting the real estate market to pick up so let's hope that information is on the mark.
Camper Chronicles said
07:01 AM Jan 5, 2014
That's awesome Cheryl...good for you guys!!! Sometimes it's all about the forward motion :)
2riker2go said
07:04 AM Jan 5, 2014
Sounds like things are progressing nicely Cheryl! That's great!
We went through the same thing with piles for awhile. Moved them around from room to room. lol But eventually they got smaller and the space got bigger.
Hope your house sale goes smoothly and quickly!!
Lucky Mike said
08:49 AM Jan 5, 2014
Hope it all falls into place Cheryl!!!!
Keep going it will all come together !!!!!!
Dance Chick said
10:21 AM Jan 5, 2014
Cheryl,
I hope you're able to sell your house quickly and for a price that will set you up nicely to move forward.
I just wanted to make a comment that I agree with your approach to have the place move in ready. We sold our condo last year for asking price to the 2nd person who looked at it - listed on a Tuesday and sold two days later on Thursday. Yes, we had to spend some money making sure there were no issues whatsoever and that it was updated, but I'm convinced that is why it sold so fast and for our price. If the house is priced well for the current market, and there are no glaring deficiencies, then a potential buyer has no logical reason to low ball. Notice I said logical reason as there are people out there who don't want to pay for anything. There's not much we can do about them. But, you're doing your absolute best to facilitate a quick sale, and that's all you can do.
Good luck. Here's hoping that this time next month there's a SOLD sign in your front yard.
Gayle
jrzygrl64 said
11:04 AM Jan 5, 2014
Cheryl,
Sounds like things are moving forward nicely for you! I still have so much to do around here, mostly smaller stuff, like touch up paint, etc. The biggest hurdle will be all the purging, which I have started but then the holidays came along, I got stalled on that and so now I have to get back into it. I hope your house sells quickly for you once you list, and I hope mine sells quickly once we list! And - for good prices!
Good luck with all your construction and forward momentum! Keep us updated!
Kelly
MarkS said
11:16 AM Jan 5, 2014
Cheryl, congrats on moving forward and hope that your progress is unhindered. (Read: personal foul, nose rubbing penalty, 15 yards). I have to admit that although I really want to join you in the wild blue yonder, I am not looking forward to eliminating all the stuff. That is an incredible amount of work. It sounds like you have your arms wrapped around it pretty well. I hope your progress is smooth and without problems.
Bill and Jodee said
03:08 PM Jan 5, 2014
Onward and upward Cheryl! It may be chaotic and hard work but I can "hear" the enthusiasm in your "voice"! Keep up the positive movement and we'll be hearing about your first trip out the driveway in no time.
I know Mike has a happy dance with your name on it just waiting to bust a move!!
Jodee
The Restless Youngs said
03:18 PM Jan 5, 2014
Best of luck...and maybe everything being in a total state of chaos will make it easier to purge!! Here's hoping for a fast selling of your house!!
NurseJudy said
01:02 PM Jan 6, 2014
Good luck with the sale Cheryl. I hope everything continues to move along smoothly for you. I am a firm believer in the one door closes and another opens theory of life. Embrace the adventure!
WestWardHo said
05:24 PM Jan 6, 2014
Cheryl,
Great news. That will be a huge load off your mind. May it sell quickly and your other plans move forward smoothly!
Sherry
cherylbrv said
07:02 AM Mar 12, 2014
Now we have a date! House gets listed next Thursday - March 20th, with an open house on March 30th. Realtor feels very confident about getting an offer on that day. From her mouth to God's ears!!!
el Rojo and Pam said
07:09 AM Mar 12, 2014
Great news Cheryl! Keep up posted.
Jo and Ben said
09:01 AM Mar 12, 2014
Very exciting! Good luck with selling the house, we will send along some of our quick-sale mojo :)
Alie and Jims Carrilite said
09:45 AM Mar 12, 2014
Great news. If the realtor likes it, it will sell quick.
LandL Partners said
03:54 PM Mar 19, 2014
Good luck on a fast sell!!
cherylbrv said
06:12 PM Mar 30, 2014
Looking back at all my posts and my blog, which started in Feb. 2011 when we made the decision to F/T, it's really amazing how far we've come. I can't believe we've reached this day!
Had the open house today. Already have 2 offers and that's only on the first day of showing!
Cindi said
06:41 PM Mar 30, 2014
Way to go, Cheryl. All your hard work getting ready to list is paying off!!
jrzygrl64 said
06:50 PM Mar 30, 2014
OMG - HOW AWESOME IS THAT! So happy for you!
We better get this place listed before all the fast sell mojo has run out!
Kelly
DRV said
08:13 PM Mar 30, 2014
Congrats to being sooo close to your dream. Two offers means the house will sell. Only question is how high it will sell for.
el Rojo and Pam said
09:29 AM Mar 31, 2014
WHOO>>>>>HOOO!!!!
mylittledogs said
09:56 AM Mar 31, 2014
That sounds great, good luck. Ours goes on the market next week. An having a big yard sale saturday.
Kenny & frances
Lucky Mike said
09:57 AM Mar 31, 2014
Can you hold off for a day or two?........
I need to go out and get fitted for a new pair of Dancing shoes!!!!
cherylbrv said
11:01 AM Mar 31, 2014
I've also managed to get one of my cats adopted and have another family very interested in the other 2.
On another note (nothing ever runs smoothly), we have lakes all over our property. Discovered our neighbor installed a drain pipe leading from his house directly under the fence into our backyard!!! So with the heavy rains yesterday and his drainage, some potential buyers were turned away because of the flooding on the property, which was never there before! We're dealing with that issue which hopefully will be easily remedied. Meanwhile we put a cap on the end of the pipe. Maybe it'll back up into his house!!!
bigboomer said
11:45 AM Mar 31, 2014
Very Cool! Wishing you much luck with those offers so that you can leave that ball and chain state, NJ, like we did 2 years ago!
Cannot wait to see Mike's Lucky Dance Video!
Camper Chronicles said
02:23 PM Mar 31, 2014
cherylbrv wrote:
Meanwhile we put a cap on the end of the pipe. Maybe it'll back up into his house!!!
You go girl!!!!
Jo and Ben said
06:24 PM Mar 31, 2014
Congrats on getting the house on the market and 2 offers already! What kind of neighbor would install a drain pipe and drain it right onto your property!?! Sheesh.
Terry and Jo said
06:47 PM Mar 31, 2014
When we had a house built back in '96, the neighbor we had insisted to the builder that he wanted a retaining wall between our lot and his. He didn't want drainage coming off of our property onto his, and this was just normal runoff on the surface of the ground. The builder asked if we wanted wood or concrete for the retaining wall, so we chose concrete.
However, karma being what it was, the installation of the retaining wall then made the water from his own property to stand right at the side door of his garage. He ended up having to put concrete all along that side of his house.
This same neighbor complained that we bought the corner lot for our house because they were using it for their badminton and volleyball games before we did so. I think that is what got to him more than anything.
Terry
tigercx1 said
07:05 PM Mar 31, 2014
Another plus to RVing, if you don't like or have problems with a neighbor, just move your house to a new location.
Mark
cherylbrv said
07:24 PM Mar 31, 2014
tigercx1 wrote:
Another plus to RVing, if you don't like or have problems with a neighbor, just move your house to a new location.
Mark
Exactly! Can't wait!
NWescapee said
07:46 PM Mar 31, 2014
Congrats!! Let the bidding war begin, that was actually kind of a fun process to go through, more than one person actually wanted our old house. It made us realize all the hard work was worth it when we more than recouped all our investment to get it ready to go on the market.
cherylbrv said
07:49 PM Mar 31, 2014
Actually, it all kind of fell through. The first folks changed their minds because they felt the taxes were too high, and the second ones decided it wasn't really the house they wanted.
We did, however, get a third offer and they even put down a deposit. However, it was for $30K less than our asking price!!! Extremely insulting! We're willing, at least at this point, to go down 10K, but we already started the pricing as low as possible - a bit below the going rate - for a quick sale. We're not looking for top dollar, but rather a quick sale, but there IS a limit to how low we can afford to go.
Of course, anything is better than foreclosure, but it's only the 2nd day of showing the house, so we have a little bit of time to play with. At least another week or 2 to see how things go.
Jo and Ben said
08:07 PM Mar 31, 2014
Three offers in the first two days of showing is a good sign! Hang in there, the right offer will come soon :)
LandL Partners said
08:18 PM Mar 31, 2014
Hang in there, all your hard work will pay off!
Terry and Jo said
08:21 PM Apr 1, 2014
Cheryl,
When we sold a 5-acre place with a nice house and a big metal shed, we were offered a price that was about $50,000 below our asking price. We "countered" by offering to drop our price by $2000 and throw in a Craftsman lawn tractor. They took it.
So, give them a counter-offer and see if they will still be interested. You never will know until you try.
Terry
TRAILERKING said
10:19 PM Apr 1, 2014
Terry and Jo wrote:
Cheryl,
When we sold a 5-acre place with a nice house and a big metal shed, we were offered a price that was about $50,000 below our asking price. We "countered" by offering to drop our price by $2000 and throw in a Craftsman lawn tractor. They took it.
So, give them a counter-offer and see if they will still be interested. You never will know until you try.
Terry
.....................but what if she doesn't have a Craftsman tractor??
cherylbrv said
05:50 AM Apr 2, 2014
We're throwing in the lawn mower, snow blower and a water cooler (I know, nowhere close to the tractor)! My realtor did remind me how despite all the work we did, it was only very basic cosmetic repairs - mostly to hide the ugly and give a good, clean first impression when walking in. Upon further inspection, there is still plenty of work to be done, like replacing the windows and patio door, replacing the front brick steps, repaving the driveway, and grading the backyard so it doesn't keep flooding when it rains. It was also pointed out that the gutters need to be replaced and the fascia board below the gutters is rotted (we're handling that this week).
Bottom line is that we should take the money and run! The longer the house is on the market, the harder it will be to sell, and again, our goal was a quick sale, not getting top dollar. Quick sale not only because we want to get on with our new lives already, but because since neither of us have a steady, reliable income, I don't know how much longer we'll be able to pay the mortgage. We've been very lucky so far, but we can't rely on miracles. "A bird in the hand...."
We did make a counter offer, so we'll see what they come back with.
Alie and Jims Carrilite said
06:31 AM Apr 2, 2014
You gotta believe that it will sell. Keep picking along on the small stuff that needs to be done. It might also be time to sit down with the bank and say OK, its listed, we're still improving it, we've had offers that leave won't pay off the note, can you help us?
A thought, if you listed the house at a higher price, it would give you room to come down for repairs the buyers want, or have your relator list it "As is".
cherylbrv said
06:36 AM Apr 2, 2014
Alie and Jims Carrilite wrote:
You gotta believe that it will sell. Keep picking along on the small stuff that needs to be done. It might also be time to sit down with the bank and say OK, its listed, we're still improving it, we've had offers that leave won't pay off the note, can you help us? A thought, if you listed the house at a higher price, it would give you room to come down for repairs the buyers want, or have your relator list it "As is".
Thank you for the suggestion. Fortunately, the offer is still way above what we need to pay off the mortgage and some other debts. The areas we'd need to compromise on is how much we can put in our nest egg - for the first few years of living on the road plus emergency funds, as well as the budget for the rig we can buy.
WendysPhotos said
12:03 PM Apr 2, 2014
Congratulation Cheryl!!! Hopefully it will close fast and you can get going.
I am still procrastinating, because we need to place 3 more cats and 2 more horses. It is very hard for me. They are our family, but we will not let it hold us back from our dreams. I just want it to be the right home for them.
Wendy
cherylbrv said
06:31 PM Apr 5, 2014
I think I sold my house!!!!!
Got an offer today that was actually pretty decent, although we asked for a little bit more and they accepted! So ready to proceed to the next step!
Realistically preparing for more hiccups and obstacles -- most likely in the inspector finding more things wrong with the house -- but hopefully nothing that can't be resolved or sending them running.
I shouldn't be so negative. This is exciting news, right?
jrzygrl64 said
06:38 PM Apr 5, 2014
You go girl! I am so excited for you! We listed last night - send some of that quick sale mojo to your friend in PA!
Hope it all works out for you!
Kelly
Alie and Jims Carrilite said
06:40 AM Apr 6, 2014
Keep it positive! Congrats, now just go with the flow and everything will work out the way it should.
WestWardHo said
08:18 AM Apr 6, 2014
Cheryl,
That's awesome news. Inspections can be scary on older houses but you do know the potential issues so hopefully nothing surprises the inspector or you. "Get 're done" and get on the road. You're so close now and have been working so hard to start your dream.
Sherry
Jo and Ben said
08:34 AM Apr 6, 2014
Awesome new Cheryl. Keeping fingers crossed for a good inspection!
Camper Chronicles said
11:15 AM Apr 6, 2014
That's so amazing ...so happy for you!!!
The Restless Youngs said
04:56 PM Apr 6, 2014
Congrats!!
cherylbrv said
06:01 PM Apr 6, 2014
So we signed the contract today, and then get a call from the realtor that another offer came in at about $5K more!!!
Not sure if we're going to consider it, though. The current buyers are renters so there's no other property to sell. If it's not the same situation, than let's keep the bird in hand!
bjoyce said
07:29 PM Apr 6, 2014
Your current buyers not needing to sell to buy is a very big plus. Twice we were in that situation and twice we bumped another offer where the buyers needed to sell to buy. The first time we had no house to sell, the second time it was a risk we had to take to get the house. Luckily it worked out.
Things are moving along very quickly. Contractors started work fixing up the place last week (Monday) and may be finished by the end of this coming week. If we can get all our junk cleaned out fast, we can possibly have the house on the market in about 2 weeks! Of course, the place is in a total state of chaos -- since we didn't finish (or in some rooms, start) cleaning things out, they are just moving things (contents of drawers, cabinets, closets) into any other room that has an inch of space! I'm so disoriented but I know there's a light at the end of the tunnel (and a huge dumpster in the driveway that already needs emptying!)
Surprisingly, getting rid of stuff hasn't been that difficult so far. We just have to picture where in the RV the item will go. Most items is "nowhere - won't fit" so out it goes. Things that have sentimental value only, we're taking pictures of and will have our memories when they play on our digital frame.
Originally I wanted to clean out one room at a time and get it fixed up at my own pace, but losing my job and not having enough $ in the bank to pay the mortgage for more than another month or 2 forced us into ramping up the plans. We were very fortunate that a relative lend us a few $ to get the repairs done all at once, and will accept payment when we sell the house.
So... here's to getting on the market real soon, and having a really quick sale. Hope to be on the road by the spring! Will keep you posted!
We went through the same thing with piles for awhile. Moved them around from room to room. lol But eventually they got smaller and the space got bigger.
Hope your house sale goes smoothly and quickly!!
Keep going it will all come together !!!!!!
I hope you're able to sell your house quickly and for a price that will set you up nicely to move forward.
I just wanted to make a comment that I agree with your approach to have the place move in ready. We sold our condo last year for asking price to the 2nd person who looked at it - listed on a Tuesday and sold two days later on Thursday. Yes, we had to spend some money making sure there were no issues whatsoever and that it was updated, but I'm convinced that is why it sold so fast and for our price. If the house is priced well for the current market, and there are no glaring deficiencies, then a potential buyer has no logical reason to low ball. Notice I said logical reason as there are people out there who don't want to pay for anything. There's not much we can do about them. But, you're doing your absolute best to facilitate a quick sale, and that's all you can do.
Good luck. Here's hoping that this time next month there's a SOLD sign in your front yard.
Gayle
Cheryl,
Sounds like things are moving forward nicely for you! I still have so much to do around here, mostly smaller stuff, like touch up paint, etc. The biggest hurdle will be all the purging, which I have started but then the holidays came along, I got stalled on that and so now I have to get back into it. I hope your house sells quickly for you once you list, and I hope mine sells quickly once we list! And - for good prices!
Good luck with all your construction and forward momentum! Keep us updated!
Kelly
I know Mike has a happy dance with your name on it just waiting to bust a move!!
Jodee
Great news. That will be a huge load off your mind. May it sell quickly and your other plans move forward smoothly!
Sherry
Had the open house today. Already have 2 offers and that's only on the first day of showing!
We better get this place listed before all the fast sell mojo has run out!
Kelly
Congrats to being sooo close to your dream. Two offers means the house will sell. Only question is how high it will sell for.
Kenny & frances
I need to go out and get fitted for a new pair of Dancing shoes!!!!
On another note (nothing ever runs smoothly), we have lakes all over our property. Discovered our neighbor installed a drain pipe leading from his house directly under the fence into our backyard!!! So with the heavy rains yesterday and his drainage, some potential buyers were turned away because of the flooding on the property, which was never there before! We're dealing with that issue which hopefully will be easily remedied. Meanwhile we put a cap on the end of the pipe. Maybe it'll back up into his house!!!
Very Cool! Wishing you much luck with those offers so that you can leave that ball and chain state, NJ, like we did 2 years ago!
Cannot wait to see Mike's Lucky Dance Video!
You go girl!!!!
When we had a house built back in '96, the neighbor we had insisted to the builder that he wanted a retaining wall between our lot and his. He didn't want drainage coming off of our property onto his, and this was just normal runoff on the surface of the ground. The builder asked if we wanted wood or concrete for the retaining wall, so we chose concrete.
However, karma being what it was, the installation of the retaining wall then made the water from his own property to stand right at the side door of his garage. He ended up having to put concrete all along that side of his house.
This same neighbor complained that we bought the corner lot for our house because they were using it for their badminton and volleyball games before we did so. I think that is what got to him more than anything.
Terry
Mark
Exactly! Can't wait!
Congrats!! Let the bidding war begin, that was actually kind of a fun process to go through, more than one person actually wanted our old house.
It made us realize all the hard work was worth it when we more than recouped all our investment to get it ready to go on the market.
We did, however, get a third offer and they even put down a deposit. However, it was for $30K less than our asking price!!! Extremely insulting! We're willing, at least at this point, to go down 10K, but we already started the pricing as low as possible - a bit below the going rate - for a quick sale. We're not looking for top dollar, but rather a quick sale, but there IS a limit to how low we can afford to go.
Of course, anything is better than foreclosure, but it's only the 2nd day of showing the house, so we have a little bit of time to play with. At least another week or 2 to see how things go.
Cheryl,
When we sold a 5-acre place with a nice house and a big metal shed, we were offered a price that was about $50,000 below our asking price. We "countered" by offering to drop our price by $2000 and throw in a Craftsman lawn tractor. They took it.
So, give them a counter-offer and see if they will still be interested. You never will know until you try.
Terry
.....................but what if she doesn't have a Craftsman tractor??
Bottom line is that we should take the money and run! The longer the house is on the market, the harder it will be to sell, and again, our goal was a quick sale, not getting top dollar. Quick sale not only because we want to get on with our new lives already, but because since neither of us have a steady, reliable income, I don't know how much longer we'll be able to pay the mortgage. We've been very lucky so far, but we can't rely on miracles. "A bird in the hand...."
We did make a counter offer, so we'll see what they come back with.
A thought, if you listed the house at a higher price, it would give you room to come down for repairs the buyers want, or have your relator list it "As is".
Thank you for the suggestion. Fortunately, the offer is still way above what we need to pay off the mortgage and some other debts. The areas we'd need to compromise on is how much we can put in our nest egg - for the first few years of living on the road plus emergency funds, as well as the budget for the rig we can buy.
I am still procrastinating, because we need to place 3 more cats and 2 more horses. It is very hard for me. They are our family, but we will not let it hold us back from our dreams. I just want it to be the right home for them.
Wendy
Got an offer today that was actually pretty decent, although we asked for a little bit more and they accepted! So ready to proceed to the next step!
Realistically preparing for more hiccups and obstacles -- most likely in the inspector finding more things wrong with the house -- but hopefully nothing that can't be resolved or sending them running.
I shouldn't be so negative. This is exciting news, right?
Hope it all works out for you!
Kelly
That's awesome news. Inspections can be scary on older houses but you do know the potential issues so hopefully nothing surprises the inspector or you. "Get 're done" and get on the road. You're so close now and have been working so hard to start your dream.
Sherry
Not sure if we're going to consider it, though. The current buyers are renters so there's no other property to sell. If it's not the same situation, than let's keep the bird in hand!