Tuesday
Apr192005
On The Market
Tuesday, April 19, 2005 at 11:02AM
This is my 4th time OTM (On The Market--real estate, that is), not counting two houses I bought and sold, but never lived in (back in my real estate investor stage, when I had the time and money...alas, no more...).
As the days and weeks turn into months and changing seasons of cleaning up and clearing out to "show" to best advantage; keeping the house and yard clean for random strangers to drop in, at their convenience, any time, any day of the week; living life, and trying to get out of the house for looky-lous, with the three kids, the old dog, and the busy husband; with Summer Break screaming up on us and no plans for the long summer days, because we are in this funky state of transition in our lives...we don’t know where we’ll be, or when, and we don’t want to commit to anything while we wait.
No matter how many times you’ve been through it, it doesn’t get any easier, this transition between the decision to make a big change, and the ability to move on with your life.
It’s a lot like being pregnant.
In fact, with the average DOM (Days on Market) in Atlanta, anywhere from 120 to 180 days and more, being OTM feels a LOT like being pregnant. How so, you ask? I feel a Top 5 List coming on...
1. It is a MAJOR DECISION, one you can never fully think out or plan ahead. Once you make the decision, to sell your house or to have a baby, so many factors come into play, over which you have no control. Like timing; and privacy; and the miracles of fate and destiny.
2. IGNORANCE -- You know it will change your life, but even if you have been through it before, you can’t imagine how it will turn your entire existence upside-down and change your life forever.
3. ANTICIPATION -- You know it will happen--the house will sell, the baby will come--but you don’t know WHEN. You can be assured it will NOT be on your schedule, when you are "ready." It will either be too soon, too quick, and put everybody into a frenzy, or it will happen beyond that point where you are convinced it will NEVER happen: "I’m going to be pregnant for the rest of my life!" (Which was my experience with all three of my children, all of whom were 10 to 14 days past the due dates; and all three of my previous houses, too: "It will NEVER sell, we’re stuck here!")
4. FEAR -- What if something goes wrong during the wait? Every parent-to-be suffers nightmares and concerns about the health of their baby throughout the pregnancy. All the details (gender, eye and hair color, temperament, etc.) pale in comparison to the arrival of a healthy baby, with a complete set of ten fingers and ten toes. While it’s hard to compare selling a house with the miracle of the birth of a healthy baby, there are certainly nightmares and concerns along the way while OTM. It is important to keep life’s little disasters in perspective, but it felt like a minor tragedy at the time when the kids broke a window in the dining room, the day before Open House. They now live with the constant admonition to be careful, to take it easy on the wood floors and paint: "We’re trying to sell this house, don’t trash it!" Even that's nothing compared to being OTM in Melbourne, Florida years ago on a sunny afternoon when Hurricane Andrew, for a time, was headed directly for us, eventually turning south and devastating Homestead, Florida, south of Miami.
5. CELEBRATION -- Leaving the closing upon the sale of your house is like leaving the hospital with your new bundle of joy (except hopefully the bundle is cash this time!)--overwhelming relief that the wait is over, the deed is done, and it’s finally time to get on with your new life!
I could go on and on with the comparison, taking this analogy way too far: The agonies of false labor; The sympathy and pity of others; The advice of experts, and opinions of everyone else; The mounting frustration and desperation...
But that might be going too far.
I could even talk about how misery loves company, and the 'joy' of going through this experience with our brother- and sister-in-law, who are OTM at the same time in Sacramento, California. Instead of talking about the kids and work, our conversations are now: “How did the Open House go?” “Did you get an offer?” “Is it time for a new agent?”
Approaching six months OTM, going into summer, when we would really like to move and settle in our new neighborhood and get ready for the new school, we are hoping, praying, and doing everything we can think of to prepare for a quick and easy, EARLY delivery--any day now! It’s time.
As the days and weeks turn into months and changing seasons of cleaning up and clearing out to "show" to best advantage; keeping the house and yard clean for random strangers to drop in, at their convenience, any time, any day of the week; living life, and trying to get out of the house for looky-lous, with the three kids, the old dog, and the busy husband; with Summer Break screaming up on us and no plans for the long summer days, because we are in this funky state of transition in our lives...we don’t know where we’ll be, or when, and we don’t want to commit to anything while we wait.
No matter how many times you’ve been through it, it doesn’t get any easier, this transition between the decision to make a big change, and the ability to move on with your life.
It’s a lot like being pregnant.
In fact, with the average DOM (Days on Market) in Atlanta, anywhere from 120 to 180 days and more, being OTM feels a LOT like being pregnant. How so, you ask? I feel a Top 5 List coming on...
The Top 5 Ways Being OTM is like Being Pregnant:
1. It is a MAJOR DECISION, one you can never fully think out or plan ahead. Once you make the decision, to sell your house or to have a baby, so many factors come into play, over which you have no control. Like timing; and privacy; and the miracles of fate and destiny.
2. IGNORANCE -- You know it will change your life, but even if you have been through it before, you can’t imagine how it will turn your entire existence upside-down and change your life forever.
3. ANTICIPATION -- You know it will happen--the house will sell, the baby will come--but you don’t know WHEN. You can be assured it will NOT be on your schedule, when you are "ready." It will either be too soon, too quick, and put everybody into a frenzy, or it will happen beyond that point where you are convinced it will NEVER happen: "I’m going to be pregnant for the rest of my life!" (Which was my experience with all three of my children, all of whom were 10 to 14 days past the due dates; and all three of my previous houses, too: "It will NEVER sell, we’re stuck here!")
4. FEAR -- What if something goes wrong during the wait? Every parent-to-be suffers nightmares and concerns about the health of their baby throughout the pregnancy. All the details (gender, eye and hair color, temperament, etc.) pale in comparison to the arrival of a healthy baby, with a complete set of ten fingers and ten toes. While it’s hard to compare selling a house with the miracle of the birth of a healthy baby, there are certainly nightmares and concerns along the way while OTM. It is important to keep life’s little disasters in perspective, but it felt like a minor tragedy at the time when the kids broke a window in the dining room, the day before Open House. They now live with the constant admonition to be careful, to take it easy on the wood floors and paint: "We’re trying to sell this house, don’t trash it!" Even that's nothing compared to being OTM in Melbourne, Florida years ago on a sunny afternoon when Hurricane Andrew, for a time, was headed directly for us, eventually turning south and devastating Homestead, Florida, south of Miami.
5. CELEBRATION -- Leaving the closing upon the sale of your house is like leaving the hospital with your new bundle of joy (except hopefully the bundle is cash this time!)--overwhelming relief that the wait is over, the deed is done, and it’s finally time to get on with your new life!
I could go on and on with the comparison, taking this analogy way too far: The agonies of false labor; The sympathy and pity of others; The advice of experts, and opinions of everyone else; The mounting frustration and desperation...
But that might be going too far.
I could even talk about how misery loves company, and the 'joy' of going through this experience with our brother- and sister-in-law, who are OTM at the same time in Sacramento, California. Instead of talking about the kids and work, our conversations are now: “How did the Open House go?” “Did you get an offer?” “Is it time for a new agent?”
Approaching six months OTM, going into summer, when we would really like to move and settle in our new neighborhood and get ready for the new school, we are hoping, praying, and doing everything we can think of to prepare for a quick and easy, EARLY delivery--any day now! It’s time.