Selling our home and looking for a new one

Looks like we've out grown our townhouse. Looking to buy something larger. This is going to be sad and exciting at the same time.

Share your real estate experiences in this thread.

Buy now because it gets harder as kids get into school and start making friends. Its hard to tear them away when they form bonds. It's much easier for them to adjust when they are younger.

Good luck in your search!!

Sunshine wrote:Buy now because it gets harder as kids get into school and start making friends. Its hard to tear them away when they form bonds. It's much easier for them to adjust when they are younger.

Good luck in your search!!

Pam, if it works out the way we want - we won't be moving far. Kristen will be staying in the same daycare for the final year even if it's slightly inconvenient for us. However there is an excellent chance we don't even go over 5 miles from our current house.

The maximum distance away from here would be 15 miles at most, and that is only if a perfect property turns up.

This would be a fucking great time, if possible, to buy a new home while leasing your townhome until the housing market prices return to normal. This way, you'll be buying in a down market without selling your townhome at a deflated value. If you could do this you'd be setup to be buying low and selling high later (or at least higher).

Saint John wrote:This would be a fucking great time, if possible, to buy a new home while leasing your townhome until the housing market prices return to normal. This way, you'll be buying in a down market without selling your townhome at a deflated value. If you could do this you'd be setup to be buying low and selling high later (or at least higher).

That's something I could pull off, it would just limit how much I could spend on the new home figuring 20% down. If I sell my current house I have all kinds of equity in it to afford a larger more expensive home.

Ed wrote:

Saint John wrote:This would be a fucking great time, if possible, to buy a new home while leasing your townhome until the housing market prices return to normal. This way, you'll be buying in a down market without selling your townhome at a deflated value. If you could do this you'd be setup to be buying low and selling high later (or at least higher).

That's something I could pull off, it would just limit how much I could spend on the new home figuring 20% down. If I sell my current house I have all kinds of equity in it to afford a larger more expensive home.

Gotcha. Kind of a Catch 22.

The hardest part is going to be keeping our home in "show" condition while still living in it. We have some work to do.

Ed wrote:The hardest part is going to be keeping our home in "show" condition while still living in it. We have some work to do.

I asked a friend who worked in real estate for years, specialising in getting homes that had passed in at auction the first time get sold the second time, if she had any tips. This is what she suggested:

Keep the house clean, but if you've got kids and it's a place that will appeal to the young family type, leave a few toys lying around. Building blocks and lego, in a small space and not underfoot is best, apparently.

Ditto in a workspace like the study and kitchen - make sure it is scrupulously clean, but keep it just a little bit untidy, so it looks like you actually use the space.

The old trick of baking bread or a cake is absolutely true, but it's also very well known, so people pick up that you are trying it. The best way is to have an open house, bake a cake and then have the cake nicely presented in slices for viewers to have a piece. Not only do you get the 'home smell' effect, but people also feel like the house is welcoming and a good social space.

Brewing coffee. Does the same trick as bread and cake, but is less obvious, especially if you have a mug or two, the sugar, spoons, etc, set out near the coffee pot so it looks like you've been disturbed while making yourself a cup. Again, makes it look like a home rather than a show house.

Get anything you don't want people to see out of the house. Be it porn, old clothes, the bits of the computer you've been planning to rebuild, whatever, get it out of the house. Whatever you do, don't lock anything. People will want to look everywhere, and a locked door, even if it's just a cupboard that isn't built in, says 'something to hide' which translates in people's subconscious minds to 'something is wrong with this place that you aren't telling us.'

Bathrooms can make or break, aparently. Get rid of all the clutter, all the old bottles, make up, bits and pieces. Only keep what is essential for day to day use. New toothbrush, new toothpaste (slightly squeezed so it looks new but used), new razor, etc. If you have to hide a plastic bag full of bathroom gumph, do it. And make sure the sink is rinsed really well after you shave; bristles in the sink and hair in the drain are a huge no-no. The other thing is to clean the bath room two days before the showing, so there is absolutely no smell of cleaning product - gives the impression that the bathroom is really easy to keep clean. For showing - toilet lid down always.

Ornaments and displays - this is the stuff that tells people what sort of home you have. Unfortunately, if it doesn't match up with the viewer's personality, they may walk away even though the building itself is perfect for them. People need to be able to see themselves in the house; if your personality is stamped too hard, they can't do that. So if you collect stuff that is over the top in any way (e.g. really macho, really feminine, ultra-geeky, sports obsessed, whatever) tone it right down for viewing days. She said there had been quite a few times where she packed up all the owner's displays, did a run to a second hand store, spent $100 on conservative nic-nacs and sold the house right up with a good profit when it hadn't even made half the asking price at the first auction.

If the house is cluttered or cramped, put as much stuff as you can in storage without making the house look unlived in. Number one requirement of people in houses they are looking for - a sense of roominess and space. Number two is storage space. Both get blown if the house looks cramped.

Hope some of that is useful. Good luck with it all - hope you get the price you are asking for.

SilverBlack wrote:
Get anything you don't want people to see out of the house. Be it porn ...

Ed's fucked.

SilverBlack wrote: For showing - toilet lid down always.

That's dumb. People usually want to flush the toilet to check the plumbing, water pressure, leaks, etc., and the last thing they want to do is pick up your fucking toilet seat! Leave that motherfucker (the lid) up ... like it should be. Get some nice light blue Tidy Bowl in there and you're all set.

SilverBlack wrote:So if you collect stuff that is over the top in any way ...

Ehwmatt, I think your cock hair collection falls under this category.

SilverBlack wrote:
Get anything you don't want people to see out of the house. Be it porn ...

Ed's fucked.

Yep - pretty much!

Some good advice already in this thread too. The bathroom is going to be a major problem. My beard is so heavy that I shave in the shower. Keeping that clean is going to suck ass.

Ed wrote:

SilverBlack wrote:
Get anything you don't want people to see out of the house. Be it porn ...

Ed's fucked.

Yep - pretty much!

Some good advice already in this thread too. The bathroom is going to be a major problem. My beard is so heavy that I shave in the shower. Keeping that clean is going to suck ass.

You got a mirror in there? I tried to do that for a while, I'd always hack the fuck out of myself because I couldn't tell how much shaving cream I was putting on. I just shower first THEN shave. Seems to work best.

Ehwmatt wrote:

Ed wrote:

SilverBlack wrote:
Get anything you don't want people to see out of the house. Be it porn ...

Ed's fucked.

Yep - pretty much!

Some good advice already in this thread too. The bathroom is going to be a major problem. My beard is so heavy that I shave in the shower. Keeping that clean is going to suck ass.

You got a mirror in there? I tried to do that for a while, I'd always hack the fuck out of myself because I couldn't tell how much shaving cream I was putting on. I just shower first THEN shave. Seems to work best.

Yeah, I have a mirror that attaches to the shower head. Absolutely essential appliance. I do that, buy the most expensive blades and get a close shave that lasts maybe until lunchtime.

Ed wrote:

Ehwmatt wrote:

Ed wrote:

SilverBlack wrote:
Get anything you don't want people to see out of the house. Be it porn ...

Ed's fucked.

Yep - pretty much!

Some good advice already in this thread too. The bathroom is going to be a major problem. My beard is so heavy that I shave in the shower. Keeping that clean is going to suck ass.

You got a mirror in there? I tried to do that for a while, I'd always hack the fuck out of myself because I couldn't tell how much shaving cream I was putting on. I just shower first THEN shave. Seems to work best.

Yeah, I have a mirror that attaches to the shower head. Absolutely essential appliance. I do that, buy the most expensive blades and get a close shave that lasts maybe until lunchtime.

I'm gonna go shopping for one of those old fashioned safety razors this weekend. I just don't get a good shave with the two, three, or five blade razors. They either don't shave close enough and/or hack the fuck out of my skin. I don't grow a heavy beard at all, but I hate getting shitty stubble by 2 PM after a 6:30 AM shave, especially on the upper lip area. I tend to look like a Mexican by nighttime if I shave in the early AM on account of my fuckin stache stubble

Stubble's sexy.

natalie wrote:Stubble's sexy.

My beard's too patchy to try and rock the celeb scruff look convincingly. I shave every day. I actually know a lot of women who much prefer the clean-shaven face. I think you're in the minority, Nat, regardless of the popular sentiment that women love scruff... at least among the women I know. I think I've even read some of the women here saying they hate it.

I prefer the "rough" look so all the other girls can have the clean shaven guys, I'll take the real men with the stubble.

My best advice is to make sure you understand the value of a good home inspector/inspection. I kinda got screwed on this deal. The inspector wrote that my house had a "structurally sound kitchen floor" but I had to have the entire house jacked up while the runners underneath the house were replaced and it's STILL not done. I'm going to have to tear it up from the inside as well. Due diligence. Since I had questions about the floor, it was my responsibility to investigate further. The inspector had a clause on the inspection form stating that his liability would only cover the cost of the inspection. Paying for the repairs is coming out of my pocket.

Saint Joseph wrote:My best advice is to make sure you understand the value of a good home inspector/inspection. I kinda got screwed on this deal. The inspector wrote that my house had a "structurally sound kitchen floor" but I had to have the entire house jacked up while the runners underneath the house were replaced and it's STILL not done. I'm going to have to tear it up from the inside as well. Due diligence. Since I had questions about the floor, it was my responsibility to investigate further. The inspector had a clause on the inspection form stating that his liability would only cover the cost of the inspection. Paying for the repairs is coming out of my pocket.

Great advice and I do get that!