Thursday, June 25, 2009

we're screwed on the stainless steel front, though

Oh my goodness, we are REALLY doing this. The house is almost (as long as I don't sleep between now and Sunday) done. The exterior is painted. I finished the basement. I did a small remodel of the downstairs bathroom. I'm almost done painting allllll the trim in the whole house. We redid the ceiling in the living room (with blueboard and plaster) and except for the repainting of the ceiling trim, it is finished. We are decluttering like crazy people. We have rearranged shelves and moved furniture around and taken tons of stuff out. The kids have been thoroughly neglected and watched enough television to last them the year. By God, we have granite countertops, which as you know from watching HGTV, are the cornerstone of a good house.

The papers are signed, we've agreed on a price, and the open house is on Sunday. Now all we can do is wait and see and furiously paint and clean while we're waiting and seeing. If the right offer comes in at the right price, then I guess we're moving.

I still have serious reservations about the whole thing because I really really really love my house. It is so cute and homey and lovely and perfect for us, but the truth is that we are cramped and my parents and inlaws have to sleep on a blowup mattress in the living room when they visit. Josh complains constantly about having the kids toys all over our living room all the time, and I'm tired of having no space to put anything anywhere. Still, though, I'm torn about moving and my one hope is that when we find our next house I won't be so sad.

I have a couple of questions, though.

1. What do you do with valuables during an open house? I am locking up my (very small amount of) jewelry in my nightstand, but what about our laptops and cameras, for example? Am I supposed to take all those things with me?

2. Do I hide the existence of the dogs? Hide their bed and bowls and all that?

3. What about the laundry room? Do I need to have the laundry hampers totally empty of laundry?

4. Do people really look in kitchen cabinets? For now, I'm using the cabinets to hide all the junk I need to get off of the countertops. If someone opens the cabinets, I'm screwed!!!

5. Do I really need to mulch all the flower beds? Wah! I'm too tired!

6. Lastly, would you buy this house? Look! So cute!!!














10 comments:

Anonymous said...

It looks so great, amiga. I hope it flies off the market! xxoo

stacy said...

NO reason to hide dog stuff. I would put laptops and cameras n such away under a bed or in a closet.
The house looks great!
Laundry in the hampers is fine and in the clothes baskets.
People expect junk in the cabinets, but most people who are serious will look in them, so as long as they are not boobie trapped and the shit falls out you will be fine!
I think your house is amazing and will sell without any trouble!

Jennifer said...

Looks great! I would totally buy it!

a/k/a Nadine said...

Your house is lovely. I would definitely be interested. I wouldn't open the cabinets or mind if there was laundry in the hamper.

Summer said...

Very cute house! Actually, from the exterior it looks almost exactly like the last rental house I had, which we loved enough to make some inquiries about whether or not the owners were interested in selling. I had that same shade of red on the dining room walls at one point, too.

I am in awe of what you've managed to get done. It looks fabulous!

chris said...

The house looks beautiful!

People will look in the cabinets, but as long as it looks neat and stuff isn't falling on people it is fine!

As far as laundry? I wouldn't leave it sitting out in an open basket if that's what you mean. If it is in a closed hamper, by all means leave it.

Anonymous said...

Advice from a realtor with tons of experience:
1. Take your portable valuables with your or hide them in the attic since hardly anyone ever looks up there.

2. DEFINITELY hide the existence of dogs. People with allergies are particularly sensitive to the issue. You want buyers to instantly see themselves living there. "Out of site out of mind."

3. No laundry in the laundry room. I've actually had sellers scurry out of the house with a laundry basket moments before an open house. Again - you want people to forget that someone else lives there and start picturing themselves in that perfect, clean house.

4. People do look in cabinets, but as long as they are just messy rather than an avalanche waiting to happen you should be fine. Clutter signals not enough storage space to a buyer.

5. Don't worry about the flower beds as long as they are nice looking and not overgrown with weeds.

6. The house is adorable! Good luck!

Karen said...

We moved a ton when I was a kid and my parents used to put their valuables in the trunk of one of the cars in the garage while people looked at the house. It's a good hiding place and people definitely won't be looking in there.

Rev Dr Mom said...

I love your house--it looks great. I can see why you're sad about leaving it.

I have never understood why it should matter if you have laundry in the laundry room, or why people should care what's inside your kitchen cabinets. Seriously. The whole staging thing is getting extreme.

Good luck!

Meika said...

HOW ARE YOU DOING THIS WITH THE CHILDREN???? REALLY!!! HOW??? Would you like to give a seminar? Because I would like to come. Actually, I would love to come to Boston on any thread of an excuse, but I could apparently much use your seminar. Our children are the same age, for crying out loud, and I don't even - gah, never mind, I won't list what I don't even!

But. To your point. Your house is beautiful and I would buy it in a heartbeat. It looks amazing; you have done fantastic work.