The first major expensive undertaking took place - the holes in the 4 corners of the roof were covered over and the gutter which was hanging off was repaired. $1500. Boy, do I feel totally ripped off. And then I was told that the roof is in very poor shape and is indeed leaking in many places in the attic. It hasn't come thru the ceiling yet because the insulation is absorbing it. We're looking at between $4-8K to replace the roof.
We started to peel off the wallpaper in the entranceway and downstairs to discover the backing was still on the wall and it is a major undertaking, time-wise, to remove it. We will probably end up doing all the painting ourselves. Laying the floor is another $2K deal.
I am feeling incredibly discouraged right now because there is only about $1500 left in the bank, which has to be a cushion for when M doesn't have work and I need to use it to pay bills. Not to mention I have an engagement party and wedding to look forward to sometime in the near future and have no clue where money for that is coming from. But... we can't move on to this next chapter until we sell the house.
For now, we can only pray to win the lottery or find some kind of windfall. Yeah, right. Haha.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Friday, September 7, 2012
Bittersweet day
We found a buyer for the pool! We were close to selling it last spring, but since it didn't look like we'd have the house anywhere near ready to put on the market, we (at M's insistence) decided to keep and enjoy it for one more season. It was very bittersweet - mostly sad - for him because the pool has been his pride & joy and the one thing he really looked forward to every summer; that is, being able lie down and relax on his raft with drink and book or magazine in hand, in the peace, quiet and privacy of his own backyard.
We realized that if we want to pursue our dream, this was going to be one of his major sacrifices, as we would never have the opportunity to do this again once we become full timers (not that we won't be able to go swimming, but we won't have that kind of privacy again). Nevertheless, on what was clearly the last pool day of the season, while we floated together on our individual rafts, holding hands, we talked about this and decided to truly cherish those moments together and try to ingrain them in our minds. Still - it was a difficult emotion to face. But then again, it's one more step closer to the goal, which is very exciting.
On another note, the van is pretty much on it's last limb. We were given the opportunity to buy another one - exact same model but 1 year younger (12 yrs instead of 13) but in much better condition. Since the cost of repairing ours would cost about the same as the purchase price, we decided to go for it and buy something that we know will last us at least another year or 2. The next big purchase vehicle will be the tow for the RV. M does a lot of driving with a fully loaded van of tools, so we didn't have much choice about replacing it now. So there goes some of the $ we had saved for the next phase of fixing up the house. I guess it's ok, as we're making teeny progress on the cleanup project, but that'll keep us busy for a little while.
Our neighbor across the street just put his very pristine, gorgeous house up for sale. That's very exciting news as well because we're pretty sure he'll get close to his asking price for it (he really could have asked for at least 50K more). Although our house is in no way close to his "better homes & gardens" house in appearance, it is identical in structure. I'm certain when they pull comps, they compare size and style, not indoor furnishings, which means if he can sell high, it gives us an excellent baseline when we put ours up on the market. We just have to get it looking clean and tidy.
We realized that if we want to pursue our dream, this was going to be one of his major sacrifices, as we would never have the opportunity to do this again once we become full timers (not that we won't be able to go swimming, but we won't have that kind of privacy again). Nevertheless, on what was clearly the last pool day of the season, while we floated together on our individual rafts, holding hands, we talked about this and decided to truly cherish those moments together and try to ingrain them in our minds. Still - it was a difficult emotion to face. But then again, it's one more step closer to the goal, which is very exciting.
On another note, the van is pretty much on it's last limb. We were given the opportunity to buy another one - exact same model but 1 year younger (12 yrs instead of 13) but in much better condition. Since the cost of repairing ours would cost about the same as the purchase price, we decided to go for it and buy something that we know will last us at least another year or 2. The next big purchase vehicle will be the tow for the RV. M does a lot of driving with a fully loaded van of tools, so we didn't have much choice about replacing it now. So there goes some of the $ we had saved for the next phase of fixing up the house. I guess it's ok, as we're making teeny progress on the cleanup project, but that'll keep us busy for a little while.
Our neighbor across the street just put his very pristine, gorgeous house up for sale. That's very exciting news as well because we're pretty sure he'll get close to his asking price for it (he really could have asked for at least 50K more). Although our house is in no way close to his "better homes & gardens" house in appearance, it is identical in structure. I'm certain when they pull comps, they compare size and style, not indoor furnishings, which means if he can sell high, it gives us an excellent baseline when we put ours up on the market. We just have to get it looking clean and tidy.
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Moving Right Along
Since the last posting, we met with 2 people -- Chris who buys things to resell at flea markets and Craigslist and Jeff who buys old electronics for scrap metal. Chris took a bunch of stuff out and paid us $25, and Jeff took a lot of crap out for $100. Chris offered to either clean out our garage for $500, less the value of whatever he could resell, or for $500, no deductions, would clean out the entire house from top to bottom, including the attic. I was ready to jump at this deal, but M who is a mild hoarder, absolutely refuses. He insists on touching every single thing we own and will thus determine whether we can make more money by selling it ourselves or donating or (horrors!) keeping it. So far, we've had a few arguments over his wanting to keep things like a 10 year old book on how to set up a computer security network and a ream of drab yellow business card paper that he thinks he might use in a year or 2.
So obviously, we are butting heads. But it is all part of the journey and an excellent learning experience. Hopefully we'll look back some day (much longer than needed if we continue to do things his way!) and laugh. Although at the moment, I'd much prefer murder over humor. But the learnings are for him, how to give up a lot of things (his argument about the book: I only kept ONE book out of 2 full boxes! Why that one, I'll never know) and for me: to be more patient and not get so incredibly stressed. To keep reminding myself that this is a process - a journey. We'll get there some day.
So meanwhile, we gave away (via Freecycle) about 4 items and sold 2. Whoopie. I so wish I could get rid of M for a week and hire Chris to come in and get rid of it all. But M is so afraid that either he can get more money for things, or there's something he forgot he had but he really, really needs! Ok, I admit we found a long lost top of the line camping flashlight (which we could buy again for about $25).
On the household side of things, the work is still not done as the contractor had another more pressing job to finish first. I told him there was no rush, as long as it all gets done.
So obviously, we are butting heads. But it is all part of the journey and an excellent learning experience. Hopefully we'll look back some day (much longer than needed if we continue to do things his way!) and laugh. Although at the moment, I'd much prefer murder over humor. But the learnings are for him, how to give up a lot of things (his argument about the book: I only kept ONE book out of 2 full boxes! Why that one, I'll never know) and for me: to be more patient and not get so incredibly stressed. To keep reminding myself that this is a process - a journey. We'll get there some day.
So meanwhile, we gave away (via Freecycle) about 4 items and sold 2. Whoopie. I so wish I could get rid of M for a week and hire Chris to come in and get rid of it all. But M is so afraid that either he can get more money for things, or there's something he forgot he had but he really, really needs! Ok, I admit we found a long lost top of the line camping flashlight (which we could buy again for about $25).
On the household side of things, the work is still not done as the contractor had another more pressing job to finish first. I told him there was no rush, as long as it all gets done.
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