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Be financially ready to put house on market

3K views 23 replies 5 participants last post by  gaja 
#1 ·
Hi guys we finally decided to go ahead and put the house on the market within the next 6-12 months, but in order to do that we need to make sure our finances are in order which means I need to pay off my Visa (10 436.32) and my master card (2 124.64). Then we'll start saving for a down payment for our next house (10 000).

Our plan is to make a payment of 1000-1500$ per month on Visa until it's completely paid off. Then we attack our Master card if there is still a balance on it. Then of course we will be using the 1000-1500 to save up that down payment. Wish me luck!
 
#2 ·
We are also preparing to sell and relocate within that time frame, but have slightly different targets. The main one is to have $17000 to cover moving cost and rent when we are between houses. Hope to reach that before new year.
 
#3 ·
Wow that's a big goal, but I'm sure you can do it. Do you have any plans as to how you're going to reach it? Hope to keep seeing you here so that we could encourage each other.
 
#4 ·
We're doing good so far. We've been following our budget very well and being creative to save money. We called our phone and internet provider and they found us a much better deal which will save us about 40$ per month. I've also been decluttering and selling items that we no longer need.
 
#5 ·
you probably don't want to do what we did, get rid of everything except what we could fit into a van, and rent a furnished condo after we sold the house. Didn't need any special financial preparations, we let the buyers do all that!!
 
#6 ·
Didn't need any special financial preparations, we let the buyers do all that!!
What do you mean by that?

I am getting rid of a lot of stuff that are gathering dust and I feel that when we get our new house I'll want to buy new things to fill it up with.
 
#7 ·
you said you are making financial preparations to sell your house, but I think you meant, to buy your new house. No one cares what your credit score is when all you are doing is SELLING a house.

Most people don't do what we did.

ETA - when we were going to the lawyers office to pass papers, we were supposed to be there at 2PM. Lawyer called that morning, and said, better make it 3PM, the buyers have about 100 pages of documents to sign, no need for you to sit around while that happens. Ah, I remember it well.....

PS - I LOVE your avatar - truer words were never spoken! Nurses too!
 
#10 ·
you said you are making financial preparations to sell your house, but I think you meant, to buy your new house. No one cares what your credit score is when all you are doing is SELLING a house.
You're right, but in case we sell our house quickly I do need to be ready to buy the next one.
 
#9 ·
The realtor just left. We got a long list of projects we have to finish before putting the house on the market, but not as long as we had feared. He really loved the kitchen, and liked the location and space in the house. We should be able to get 200 000 more than we paid for the house seven years ago, maybe more.

To do list (prices are based on DIY, except for the garden):

Ground floor
-Sand and finishing the parquet flooring in the living room, new mouldings ($500)
-Paint the hallway, get new lighting and install doors for the fitted wardrobe ($1000)
-Update the bathroom; paint walls, new cabinets and shower stall. No structural work. ($2000)
-New linoleum on the floors in the kids rooms

1. floor
-Paint the ceiling and walls, new lamps, new linoleum flooring in some rooms ($1000)

Basement ($500)
-New carpet in stair
-Some paint here and there

Garden
-New wooden deck and lawn, painting steps and old deck ($1500)
 
#11 ·
Well that's good news. We should probably get ourselves a realtor too so that he can tell us what we really need to get done.

The first thing we need to get done is install some flooring in the basement which will cost us about 600$
 
#12 ·
we thought about using a realtor, and talked to one, but decided against it. We did list it for the price the realtor suggested. It sold very quickly. When I let the realtor know it was sold, her response was, "Oh, I could have got you more money for it..." - Yeah, and it would have all gone to her commission. Not too bright on her part. They usually pick a high number, then once they have gotten you signed up, pressure you to lower the price for a quick sale.

Second house we have sold without a realtor.

I am of the school of thought that says, sell it as is. Keep the price low and let the buyers make any improvements they want. I have seen too many houses (when looking to buy) where I was told, "Look, all new carpeting.." and I was like, "yeah, wrong colors...." (to myself!)

Anyway, good luck with the sale and with your new home!!
 
#22 ·
I am of the school of thought that says, sell it as is. Keep the price low and let the buyers make any improvements they want. I have seen too many houses (when looking to buy) where I was told, "Look, all new carpeting.." and I was like, "yeah, wrong colors...." (to myself!)
I'm glad to see someone else thinks like we do. I just don't see the point of pouring money into new kitchens and fancy bathrooms to prep a house for sale. To me it's just a gamble that the remodel will appeal to the right buyer, when there are so many other factors involved in a buyer's decision to buy. I've also seen the stats about the return on investment for improvements like that and it doesn't seem worthwhile.

Carpets? We have dogs and cats. We don't want any carpets!

We're not planning to move for at least a few years (very undecided right now on the idea of moving at all), but we're still starting to get ready, just in case. So much stuff to sort and so many DIY projects to finish, it's going to take us a long time.
 
#13 ·
We're not planning on making much improvements ourselves, we need to do the flooring since it's on cement. We also want to repaint the walls to freshen them up. We have a few small things that we can do for cheap. I don't want to spend much money on improvements since we already know we're not going to make much money on the house. We will be going with a realtor since we need to sell the house and it would be way to much work to do it ourselves.
 
#14 ·
We want to move in 6-12 months also. Our goals are to save $5000 by the end of this year. Once we save it we need to start making repairs to the current house. I know we need at least:
1-new air conditioning unit-hoping less than $4000
2-new floors in the kitchen/dining room -$500
3-new carpet in two bedrooms-$300
4-minor repairs-new blinds, paint kitchen, clean walls, etc.

Right now I am working part time and saving as much as possible. I am selling what I can, but so much was given to us over our married life that by the time we have had it for years and had two kids exposed to it, most of the items are ready for trash or are worth so little it isn't worth wasting gas to meet someone (I don't meet for less than $5).
I did list 321 items at a consignment sale this week. It should be at least $150.
 
#15 ·
Made my first large payment on my visa since starting our new budget plan. I'm feeling awesome! I also have been taking on more shifts at work, and made more then expect on this payday therefore I will be able to buy my kids school clothes on Sunday. So far I'm very happy with our new budget plan, a little strict on our food budget but it's manageable.
 
#16 ·
I've been getting lots of call ins at work so my next paycheck should be another great one. I can't wait to make another big dent into my debt. Other then that we have been very good at following our budget. I write down every expense therefore there is no kidding myself. So far I'm pretty proud of our efforts and accomplishments .
 
#17 ·
Today I reworked my budget and our new goals are to pay off Master card by September 12 and pay off Visa by April 1 2015. I'm so happy to see those numbers. That means that in April we can start saving for our down payment and shortly after we will be able to put the house on the market. This is the encouragement I needed to keep me going. I've been accepting every shift available at work and it shows. :mdance:
 
#19 ·
My first month is done and I'm very happy with our progress. We stayed on budget for our groceries, had to fill up the car at only half the cost expected and I've made more money at work then what we need for our budget. :fdance:
 
#21 ·
September always has me depressed, all the big bills of the year come that month. So when the bills for the yard work came on top, I felt the need to work "some" (50 hours) overtime. Will add to the OT-pile more next week, I'm seriously running out of energy. Just looking forward to October.

Got a mail today that I'm on top of the short list for a job in the new town. This makes everything real, and I'm getting cold feet. Is this the correct choice, will the new job be as good as the old, will the kids be happy there, do we really want the hassle of moving? Nice to get the warning, so I can think about it before they call. Will probably get an offer next week.
 
#23 ·
So now that master card is paid off the car decided to give us problems. We have about 1500$ worth of repairs to do. So therefore most of my next two paychecks will be going to the repairs instead of paying down Visa. Oh well shit happens I guess!
 
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#24 ·
It is official - we are moving in January! And as all good planners do, we have changed most of our plans:

-rent, renovate and sell before we buy a new house -> bought a new house this friday and will be moving early January no matter what
-split the family for a few months to make time for renovating -> moving all together to start fresh as a unit
-big renovation to maximise price, optimise sell date -> paint and finish details, ignore the big projects, sell when we are ready

The good part: The new house is half the size, and costs 2-300 000 less than what we expect to get for the old one. I will get a pay rise, and the cost of living are substantially lower than here. So we can afford to sit on both houses for some months.

Nobody does private sales here, so we can't sell without a realtor. But we have had three different ones over, and will compare offers. Have a good feeling for one of them, hope his price is ok.

The renovations are getting along nicely. The garden has been our main focus, and it looks like we might be able to finish it before the snow comes (unless it comes tomorrow, you never know this time of year). The rainy days we have been painting. The kids are really a big help, and I think it will look very bright and nice. When that first room is finished, we will start packing stuff in boxes and put them there. That way we can empty and paint more rooms.

There is a lot left to do, and we will get an appraisal from a renovator tomorrow to see how much it will cost to get someone else to do parts of it.

The new house is half the size of the one we have now, so we have to get rid of half of our stuff. So far two big boxes have been taken to charity, one more is ready to go, and I have invited friends over next week to help me reduce my yarn collection. The kids will keep some of their books, but most are going to our summer house. The same goes for the fine china that I never use. I have already donated 95% of the cook books and half of the other books. Every time I go past the shelves, I pick a few more for the charity box.

Most of our furniture is old, and not in a good way. We have decided to keep only the oldest bed (approaching 200 years), but even that will get a new matress. The comfortable antique chairs will also be brought along, together with the sofa and living room table. But other than that, I think we will either burn the rest of the furniture or give it to charity.
 
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