The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind. My parents, Patrick, the kids & I have been working like crazy on last minute fix-ups to get the house ready to put on the market. There are still many other things to do...but, I am keeping the cost down to, well- the bare minimum. However, I am surprised at the amount of things we have been able to do with just elbow grease, a few screws, parts we already have, and less than $100.
Here's what we have been doing:
*Deck railing and staining were done during the summer.
*The carpet Sierra gave me as a Christmas present last year has finally been installed and looks beautiful. My dad, Patrick, & I did all the prep work. We pulled out the old carpet & pad, and then spent hours pulling out all the staples, sweeping and hauling the old stuff out. It took a full day. Then carpet man came in and laid down the new short shag in record time.
*Floors scrubbed.
*Carpets cleaned.
*Blinds cleaned.
*Fridge and Oven scrubbed. Only a small fire ensued the first attempt at using our self-cleaning oven. That was scary- everyone was running around, and we couldn't get it to turn off or get the door opened. But finally the right button was pushed and the fire went out before the door was even opened. Yikes. Decided to pursue the Oven Foam Cleaning route after that.
*Kids rooms took a couple of days (YES- they were that bad!). We cleaned out under the beds, the closets, and reorganized everything. Took extra furniture, clothes & toys out, and then rearranged the furniture. Let me tell you, that alone, was worth the effort. I told the kids I will be on them like white on rice to keep those rooms spotless.
*Patrick did the super dirty, nasty work. Winterized the swamp cooler, raked the leaves (which blew back the next day), and then we worked together to replace the wax ring on the upstairs toilet. I knew it would be gross- but we weren't prepared for the open sewer smell, and the exceptionally nasty state of the old wax ring. After Patrick scrapped of that nastiness, I scrubbed the bathroom clean- in all the parts that usually don't get touched due to it being such a small space and the toilet takes up most of the room, and then we put it all back together. Pat also fixed the running on the toilet- which has driven me crazy for the better part of a decade. Hallelujah. And all he had to do was...bend the metal arm of the float. Seriously!!! That's it...all these years, and it was that easy.
*Replaced the hinge on one of the kitchen cabinet doors- and then reattached the door. Silly side story-- it literally just fell off the wall a couple of weeks ago. I woke up and was running around outside thinking someone had thrown a rock or something at the house or car. We were not able to find a similar hinge anywhere. Luckily, my cousin Jason was able to weld and hammer it back to usable condition--it works just like, well not new, but it works great!
* Put a pull string light in the girls closet- We have not had a light in that closet since we moved in 11 years ago...and it was only $2.50. Ridiculous. Maybe the girls will actually put their clothes away, now that they can see what they are doing.
* We also are installing a second rod in the closet for Montana to have some extra space to hang her clothes. She has always had the smaller closet, but now the girls are wearing the same size clothes (WEIRD), and can actually "share" things. So sharing a closet is a great idea. Now the little closet can be for coats/sweaters,shoes, movies, odds & ends.
*Put new hardware on the girls stair handrail down to their room. Taking the old hardware out was a bugger as the screws were stripped and as we finally got them out, giant holes appeared as the drywall fell apart. Dad spackled the holes and attached the new hardware in a stud. No more wiggly handrail that would fall off if you touched it wrong! Woot woot!
* New Toilet Seat in the downstairs bathroom.
*Caulking around tub, and caulking around the window in the shower has been chiseled off, and new caulking is going in.
*New shower curtain rings.
*New porch light- No more broken, bronze, monstrosity.
* And lastly--a big wind blew the front door open hard enough that it knocked off the shelf/hooks behind the door, and left big holes in the wall. That will be the last construction project.
*Some touch up paint still needs to happen, new doors would be nice, and I am sure I will think of at least 100 other things we could do. But the bottom line is, we just don't have the money to do it. And it doesn't NEED to be done right away.
I talked with the realtor a couple of times and we discussed price and things that should be done before putting it on the market. A couple of weeks later he came over and I walked him thru the house and gave him the grand tour and discussed all of the improvements we had been working on. I thought he would give me another big list of things to fix and/or update, but he only told me to do 3 things...he wanted the furnace and hot water heater vacuumed off, plumbers tape installed around the water heater to anchor it to the wall (earthquake code), and the ceiling tiles in the bedroom spray painted to cover the water stains (which are old and not recurring). We sat down and went over comps in the area. Homes close to my size are selling for 99,000 to 130,000. Our biggest competition being the short sale homes- because the prices are so low. However, Eric does not want to pursue a short sale. So I set the price at a firm 140,000. It's higher than the going rate, but it's enough to pay of the 1st and 2nd mortgage, pay the realtor, and hopefully give me a couple dollars profit to pay off a couple of bills. I cannot budge on the price. So we may be in for a long haul. Which is fine with me. I would love to stay forever. And hopefully the market will turn, and we could actually sell it for more money later. But if not--oh well. In a matter of minutes, I was signing paperwork, he was taking pictures of the house, and the sign was up in the front yard. It was over before I could wrap my head around it. Here is the listing link http://www.utahrealestate.com/1001467
I wish Eric & I could have come to a different arrangement. I feel like I am doing all the hard work and taking a loss on the home so that he can move on with his life. I am losing the last piece of anything I can call mine- not really, but that's what it feels like. He really wants to buy the home he and his new wife have been renting. I've been late on payments a few times so he is enforcing his right to make me sell, since the mortgages are still in his name. He really wants me to refinance but, that is just not an option right now. I was suppose to have 7 years to be able to make that happen and it's only been a year and a half---but it's just not in the cards. I can see his reasoning, but it still makes me feel bad. It's the home I have raised my kids in. I am finally getting it to the point where it's MY home- the improvements that I have wanted done for so long are finally getting finished, it is looking great- and now it's not going to be mine. It makes me cry. But- life goes on. It will be nice to not have memories of Eric every time I turn around. The house is a lot of work and it's a struggle to make the payments, and I would be in a better financial position if we can sell. It would be nice to make a fresh start. So we will see how things pan out.
ANYHOO- Yesterday was Thanksgiving and we had a beautiful meal with my parents, Grama Dodie, my younger two, Patrick & Dallin. Great food, and so nice to be with family. We have so much to be thankful for. Sierra is in Hawaii with her Dad & his parents--I tell ya, the Jepson way of life is tough--haha. She deserves a vacation, her life is dance---and she rarely can get away to do anything. So I am glad they could carve out some time.
The other kids and I are happily putting up the tree and the other Christmas decorations today! I have been wanting to do this for the past two weeks but I have held back so that people wouldn't think I am a total freak! LOVE the holidays! Such a great time to be with family, cherish memories, embrace traditions, and enjoy life. For us, it's not about the presents (because there will be so few) it's about doing for others, for each other, and following the example of Christ. We love to read Christmas stories, listen to Christmas music, and enjoy being surrounded by Christmas decorations. Merry Christmas everyone!
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