This spring we decided to put our home on the market. The goal was to list by the end of March and move by summer. By mid-April our home sailed through the option period and we hit a pending status on the sale of our house in no time. It’s a bittersweet moment when you realize that you must pack and move on from the place you’ve called home for the past 15 years. We chose this home to start a family and now we are leaving it behind for another family to continue making memories there.
Regardless of how I feel at the moment, we’re right on schedule according to my two-year plan. We’re now due to close mid-May, but let me tell you that this road we’re on now is a lot easier than the road we were first on when we put the house on the market this year.
Some homeowners think the inspection part of selling your home can be grueling. I disagree. For me, it was the showings!
Showings on your home. No one really prepared me for this. I just simply thought it would be easy, so I didn’t give it a second thought. On the first day, we had 7 showings, all back to back. Some days we had 3-4 showings, but all at diffferent times. It was exhausting trying to get out of the house fast enough and then figure out what to do with 3 kids in tow! At first, it was fun. We went to the park and played for an hour or two. Got ice cream another day. Ran some errands. Bought lunch and dinner EACH time we had to be out of the house. Yeah, all of this got old real quick.
We had 5 days of showings until we accepted an offer on our home. It was indeed a daunting task for me and the kids. But if you’re selling your home, showings are a must! On day 3 I started making a list of a few ideas on what to do when for a few hours while you’ve got the kids with you. Wish I had this list with me from the beginning.
- Mentally prepare. Get yourself mentally ready for the back-to-back and last-minute showings.
- Set the showing schedule. You can tell your realtor what days and hours are best for the showings that will be more accommodating for you and the family.
- Pre-pack those snacks and hit the park. Have a snack bag packed and ready to grab on your way out of the door! Stop at the park for a snack break and let the kids burn off their energy for a bit. Visit different parks in the area.
- Pack crayons, markers, and drawing paper. Have this already packed in your car!
- Library. You can hang out at the library, read a bit, attend any special events going on that day and, of course, check out some books! I suggest looking up your local library’s events schedule online the day before so you have somewhat of a plan in case you need to be out longer than an hour.
- Visit a friend or family member. Ask in advance if it’s ok to take refuge at their place for a bit!
- Movies. Of course, this idea didn’t come to me until the last day of our showings.
- Museums. Depending on the age your children, visit a local museum or the zoo!
If you can survive the showings with the kids, you will survive the sale of your home!
