Believe it can be done. When you believe something can be done, really believe, your mind will find the ways to do it. Believing a solution paves the way to solution.
David Joseph Schwartz
We have all heard the phrase "too much of a good thing, is a bad thing". We'll I'm leaning that way about the three places that we live in. It seems that all I'm ever doing is packing and unpacking. We have our large, two-story house, our small red painted cottage, and our RV that we live in for the winter months while we're in Florida. This is our screened porch at home...
And some of our yard at the cottage...
Let me back up to 2007 when we had our house on the market to sell just when the housing crisis officially began. We got caught up in the mess and long story short we never sold the house. Fast forward to the present day and we find out the value of our house has plummeted because of all the foreclosures around us. Some of these foreclosures are selling for $60,000!! Of course they're in dire straights, but it affects everyone's property values. Mr. Cottage and I would LOVE to just live up at the cottage, but because of septic tanks, wells, etc., the health dept. has denied us from remodeling our cottage. Major BOO HOO! So right now, Mr. Cottage and I are living at our house, will move out to the cottage for the summer, move back to the house in the fall and move down to FL for the winter. Not only am I feeling like a gypsy, but I'm exhausted from all this moving back and forth.
Back in 2007 there was talk that the housing crisis would last about 10 years. I jokingly told Mr. Cottage that we'll probably be moving from our house right into a retirement home. I don't think he was amused by this. The other day I was talking to a woman behind me in line and she said she heard that the housing prices will never get back to where they once were, IN OUR LIFETIME. OUCH!!! She lived in another part of town and she said she's stuck with a much larger house than we have. Being empty nesters, we just don't need a large house any longer.
So there you have my ramblings for today. I hate this limbo feeling and Mr. Cottage has resigned himself to keep on doing what we've been doing. I know we truly are blessed because we have roofs over our heads, when I know so many others have lost their homes and many more are now homeless. BUT, it truly is frustrating for those of us who really want or need to downsize.
Have you been wanting to sell but can't or have been waiting for the market to turn around? I just can't help but feel that we're all in this together.
I know how you feel. In 2006 I was a Realtor and I knew the crash was coming and tried to talk my husband into selling our way to big house on 25 acres. In 2008 he decided it was ok to sell well it was too late. Our house now is worth less than what we have in it. It is a beautiful place to live in but Oy vey keeping up with the gardens and yard is tough. I have resigned myself to finding reluctant teenagers to help with the yard. I think the prices will not come back and when we find a buyer we will have to accept what we get and move on.
ReplyDeleteOh Carol, although I'm not in your position, I can see how frustrating this all is for you. It is a lot to handle, think about and take care of. To bad about not being able to renovate the cottage, because that's the first thing I thought of... that you could move to the cottage. Oh well, things do always work out in the end. Keep those spirits high!
ReplyDeleteWe are fine, but have family members who got caught up. It is a sad situation.
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