Showing Off

We are T minus 8 days from leaving our Post Falls house for good. And no, we haven't sold it yet.

It's so cute! Who wouldn't want to live here?!

Since listing it on June 20th, we've had high-traffic weeks and low-traffic weeks. We had three or four showings the first week and got generally good feedback. Most people said it showed nicely and was priced right. We got a couple of comments that they didn't like the neighborhood or chose a different neighborhood. We got one low-ball offer ($80K under the asking price) in that week, countered, and didn't hear back.

We had two more showings going into 4th of July weekend, and things cooled off pretty significantly after that. We had one showing that Friday, July 7th, and then we didn't see another one for over a week. There were a few here and there scheduled but canceled, and it was a little discouraging.

We tried hard to find additional things to touch up. I scrubbed all the showers, Zac shined up the wood floor and the cabinets. I cleaned carpets and Zac touched up some paint. I tidied up the items laying scattered against the walls all over our house (because we have no furniture), took donations to Goodwill to empty out the garage a little better, and deodorized daily. Zac cleaned windows and window tracks and kept the lawn looking perfect.

He's *really* good at windows.

On a positive note, I confirmed that we would not have to pay any U.S. taxes or Danish taxes on the profit from the sale of our home, even if it occurs once we are over there, because it was used as our personal home. Had we rented it out for a year or two and then sold it, we'd be tax-liable. So it's good we decided to sell.

On Tuesday, July 18th, we dropped the price by $9K in hopes of drawing in a few more showings, and that seemed to work nicely. We had two showings the next day, and our realtor, Pam Harmon, invited everyone from her office to walk through the house as well. Fifteen realtors paraded through, getting familiar with the house to be able to better market it to their clients and pointing out anything that might be driving clients away. Fortunately, they all agreed it was a lovely home, it was priced right, and they can't believe it hasn't sold yet. (Though they had to kill two large spiders in the basement and suggested we spray. Zac took care of it the next day.)

We had one or two more showings after that but didn't receive any feedback.

As sellers, we asked that realtors give us a 24-hour notice for showing requests since we are both still working and we have three kids and two pets at home every day. The notice gives us time to figure out what to do with everyone while there are potential buyers in our house, tidy and freshen beforehand, and schedule our other to-do items. It's been very nice, and I always try to be accommodating if a realtor reaches out through Pam asking us to break that rule.

On Saturday, July 22nd, we had a neighborhood gathering in the cul-de-sac. We chatted, drank cocktails, and watched the kids play. Some of the group played basketball or whiffle ball, and we just generally had a nice time.

As the daylight faded, the kids started talking sleepovers.

I figured they could stay at our house because we didn't have any showings scheduled for Sunday, and I told the kids I wouldn't say no to any (reasonable) requests to hang out with friends until we leave. We took in three extra kids for the night and they had a lot of fun. In the morning, Kaden got up and made a big, greasy breakfast scramble for himself, Ty, and Harrison. Khloe got up and made pancakes with sprinkles and powdered sugar and chocolate chips for her and her friends.

The kids made quite a mess, but (almost) everyone enjoyed their breakfast and they were excited to go out boating together for the day with the neighbors. Before taking off, Kaden asked if he could give Ty a haircut, and after confirming permission had been granted to do so, I gave my consent as well. As the kids (minus Harrison) ran in and out of the house finding life jackets and swimwear and whatnot, Kaden assured me he'd finish cleaning up the hair when he got home.

Zac and I were left with a quiet house...and kind of a mess. The kids scrubbed their pans but left syrup-y dishes in the sink. They wiped counters but forgot cutting boards. They cleared placemats but left powdered sugar all over the table. Kaden vacuumed the bulk of the hair trimmings from the floor but left the ones stuck to the sink and counter. Khloe picked the dried pancake batter off the counter but left the melted sprinkles stuck to the burners. Beds were unmade, sleeping bags and candy were scattered on the floor of their rooms, video game set-ups were stationed awkwardly for multi-player gaming...

None of that would've been a big deal, except that I got a text from Pam shortly after the kids left saying that the people who had viewed our home the day prior wanted to come back and spend an hour looking at it again - now! They were choosing between our house and another one they liked. They were hoping they could get in for a second viewing on short notice.

We want to sell our house and like to be accommodating for potential buyers, so for 45 minutes, Zac and I busted our behinds trying to make it look like six kids didn't just film a bunch of weird reality challenges and then exit the set hastily.

We've definitely got the "showing" routine down these days! When the right buyer comes along, we'll be ready.