And we're off

I had forgotten how tiring prepping and maintaining a house for sale truly is. Monday was a very busy day, as I spent much of the day cleaning and hiding things away. I won't go into a litany of all that was accomplished, just a couple of highlights.

My bedroom was vacuumed and I pulled out the new bedding I'd purchased a year or so ago. (I figure the new stuff will have less cat hair than the current bedding). 

I went downstairs and tidied up the craft room, packing away some material and patterns. I found a box that will fit some of my larger pieces of wall art and photos so I started packing those too. The containers and boxes are neatly stacked and I hope the potential buyers can envision their own use for this room; an office, a playroom for the kids, or even a home theater. 

By early evening, I was exhausted so I picked up Burger King for dinner. Once fed and watered, I went out to water the back lawn, and did some dead-heading as well. Bedtime came early, and I was happy to fall into a freshly made bed.

Tuesday started bright and early, though much less busy. I started the laundry, had my chat with D, and ran out to get a few groceries. Once home, I got those unpacked and put away and had the laundry nearly complete when the realtor arrived at 11 a.m. We did a quick tour of the house; he had looked over the photos from 2019 before he arrived so I highlighted the changes that have been made since then.

We sat out in the sun room for nearly an hour and discussed current comparable listings, as well as properties that have sold in the last 6 months or so. There are currently only 12 properties that have the front facing two-car garage and are similar or larger in size than mine. I nearly fainted when I saw some of the asking prices - well, beyond what I would have thought. We settled on a list price above what I would have thought, and lower than his suggestion. I'm hopeful this will bring in more potential buyers. When he left, he asked me to send him a list of the work that had been accomplished since 2020 and an estimate of the costs. His final comment to me was, "don't do anything else, everything is perfect." 

I spent the afternoon responding to his texts and e-mails, reviewing the documents I signed on Wednesday, and finding potential properties for my son on the real estate website. We'd found one he really liked but once my realtor had looked into it, it was a no go. The property has been on the market for 1800 days (that's right, not 96 as the current listing suggests) - it's been on the market since 2019! The property has a concrete block basement, so our best guess is the basement is crumbling and the house would have to be raised and a new basement poured. No thank you!  I've since found six or eight properties that might fit the bill and we'll see the first one on Saturday at their open house, as our open house is also scheduled that day.

Tuesday was also an exciting day for Eli, but not in a good way. He's had a sore in his mouth for a couple of weeks. D had taken him to the dentist in their town, but Eli was having none of it, so they ended up at the ER where antibiotics were prescribed. The doctor didn't think it was an abscess. However, the antibiotics didn't clear it up and by Monday, he was a very sad little boy. She found a dentist in the next town over (the one in her town advised they would not see Eli again), and by mid-afternoon he was minus one tooth and the abscess was drained. They gave him nitrous oxide to keep him calm, though he did need to be held during the procedure. I spoke with her after they arrived home - Eli was in the background and as happy as could be, while D sounded worn out. 

Wednesday, I was up early again, and back at the cleaning. While my son is pretty good about keeping his room tidy, he never makes his bed.Since the photographer was expected later in the morning, that was first on my list. I also got the floors washed throughout the basement. 

Meanwhile, it was pouring rain! We need it, but my realtor wasn't as happy. He said he might hold off on the exterior photos until the next day.  However when he and the photographer arrived at 11 a.m. to take the photos for the listing, they decided to go ahead. 

I headed off to stitch and chat after lunch, and got the e-mail to sign the final paperwork - it's all done digitally now. Shortly after I arrived home, I got an e-mail with the photos. I'm happy with all of them, with the exception of the garage photos with my very dirty car. You can tell what I've been neglecting! I responded to the realtor and said, I ought to have moved the car out of the garage for the photos. Oh well, I doubt those photos will make or break a sale. (As it turned out, he agreed and those photos aren't part of the listing).

The realtor contacted me late this morning to let me know the listing was live for the realtors, and would be available later in the day for the public. You can see it here. Less than 90 minutes later, he let me know there were two requests for showings today. As he said, "hot start!"

So rather than wait until Saturday to post this, I'll do so now. I hope to be back then with good news! Wish me luck.