The next two and a half months will be busy and stressful and I don’t expect to have a lot of time for quilting so it will probably be kind of boring around here. A month or so ago Keith started talking about “testing” the real estate market in Tampa by putting the townhouse up for sale by owner … that led to a lot more discussion and this week we made some decisions.
We are going to go ahead and put the house up for sale in a couple weeks but we don’t have to sell…..
We are not downsizing but because we bought the Big Canoe house furnished, we’ll end up keeping some furniture from both houses. We’re going to move the furniture we plan to keep and my longarm and stash to Big Canoe sometime late June – I won’t have a definite date until I meet with the movers.
So, if we don’t get an offer we like on the Tampa house, it will remain our primary residence and we’ll continue to go back and forth spending time in both places. The Tampa house will just be a little more sparsely furnished which isn’t a bad thing! I will still have a sewing room set up but the longarm and stash will get settled in at Big Canoe and I’ll just do piecing in FL. Kind of the reverse of what I’ve been doing the last year since we bought the Big Canoe house.
If we do get an offer we like and sell the Tampa house, the excess furniture will be donated and we will become full time residents at Big Canoe..
I’m a big fan of having a plan so this all works for me. I’ll go through the decluttering, discarding, donating, organizing, packing, and moving process regardless of whether we sell the house or not. After all, we knew that eventually we’d go through the moving process again at some point and as Keith has said, might as well do it before we get old!
I’ve coordinated many moves for us in the last 32 years (this will be move #14) so I’ve got the process down pat but the biggest stressor for me will be trying to sell the house while we’re still living in it and while I’m packing. We could wait to put it on the market but spring and summer are prime moving seasons so we want to take advantage of people looking to buy… wish me luck!
Ugh! So THAT was the stressful time you were talking about. Best of luck with the packing, decluttering, etc, Mary! We may be doing some of that before long. Double ugh!!
Good luck Mary! I don’t envy you yet I do envy you. Best of luck in selling.
Best of luck with your potential sale and moving things. It’s a big job to organize but this certainly should help you to better settle into your Big Canoe home. Big Canoe looks to be a very suitable place that you both enjoy. We’ve done a few FISBOs successfully and would not shy away from another. I’d rather deal with the owner than work through a realtor when purchasing as well.
Best of luck with this potential move. You both obviously love Big Canoe, so whenever it happens, it will be a happy move. If the market is anything like it is around here, your townhome will sell so fast it will make your head spin. Dave mentioned doing the same thing about a year ago, but then changed his mind. I think he was afraid it would sell fast and then we would need to decide where to go. LOL
I have heard that the house market in our area is moving fast, very fast. I’m still remodeling our new house and hope to move in sometime in June. I’m thinking of fixing up a few things and get it up for sale. I think you will find your place will sell fast too. Good luck.
Houses are selling fast in Wyoming and for higher than listed prices. I hope you have a smooth moving process.
I don’t envy you the move or the decluttering but I love when a plan comes together. Good luck!
Good luck Mary. I couldn’t even think about making all of that happen. Wow!
You have us beat by 2 moves. We have moved 12 times in 38 yrs. We have been in our current home for 7 yrs which is a long time for us but it is a perfect size for 2 people in their mid 70’s. Although we have been looking, always looking. I think you will be very happy at Big Canoe. It seems perfect for you both in a lot of ways. But I do not envy you having to go through the process. But it does give you a chance to toss things that should be tossed. Good luck and I hope everything goes smoothly. If things are selling as fast there as they are here in the Seattle area, you will be moving soon.
I f the market there is like the market here is said to be, May will be a big month!
If the real estate market there is anything like here you will have it sold in about 15 minutes for way over asking. We have a friend looking for a house in Charlottesville. He bid 40k over asking for a house and was still outbid!
Houses here are on the market for only a week before selling. Here’s wishing a good sale and smooth move!
I certainly will miss your quilty posts, but hope you will share with us your methods of decluttering, organizing, etc.
I, for one, could use some tips and inspiration.
I would also like to hear your thoughts on the FSBO experience as time goes by.
Best wishes as you move forward. I hope the process goes smoothly whatever the pace.
One. day. at. a. time. You’ve got this!
Good morning, Mary! Good luck with the whole process. I suspect you will sell quickly as houses here barely get listed and they’re sold. I hope you get a great offer! Before long it will all be behind you and maybe there won’t be a 15th move. {{Hugs}} ~smile~ Roseanne
Good luck with your move and preparing for it. Hopefully it will sell quickly. Houses in the Black Hills of SD are selling so fast that people can’t find a new place to move once they sell. There are only 43 houses on the market. We knew a couple who couldn’t sell their house at 150,000 after a year, so they increased the price to 300,000 and it sold in a day with multiple offers above the new asking price. It’s a crazy housing market right now.
Good luck on selling your townhouse. Houses here are selling quickly too. My niece had her house for sale and received three offers within 2 days of listing it. On the flip side, the houses they’ve bid on have gone for $15,000-25,000 over the asking price, and they’ve been outbid every time.
I’ll be watching closely how you manage this, as we’re considering downsizing and moving ourselves. But in our case, we’ve been here for 26 years, and I have little experience with moving. We’re thinking of moving to another province, too, so I’d really have to limit what we’d take. Realistically, I think it will have to be next summer, though, so I’ll appreciate any thoughts you share on the process. Good luck with it all!
I absolutely cannot imaging moving at this stage in our life though I’ve been thinking that it really should be in the back of our minds… Downsizing sounds impossible, finding funds to purchase or rent somewhere else isn’t viable either so it is just more economic to stay where we are… But I hate to think of the job that will be left to our kids someday… We’ve lived here 30 years…