Monday, September 29, 2014

Mixed emotions

I decided to do a little bit of fall decorating.  We had another Open House yesterday.  As usual we worked hard to make sure everything was in order.  We expected our realtor to be the one hosting.  But someone we didn't know showed up instead.  Now, I did remember him after awhile.  He was a pre-school dad when I was taking Annabelle to school a few years back.  Still a bit of surprise.  So we told him a couple of things then Hubby and I took off in our cars.  All of a sudden I noted that the only open house sign was on the sign in the yard.  Our house isn't off a main road and it's hard to find.  So I went back.  The realtor didn't have any signs, what, well I found one in our garage for him.  He took it to the entrance to our neighborhood.  There should have been one at the nearest cross roads.  Needless to say......AGAIN,  NO ONE SHOWED UP.  Last time it was the advertising.  This time that was still a bit of the problem.  I called them on Thursday as I didn't see a post about it.  Well, there computer was down because the church next door had some construction that ripped those darn computer wires right off of their building.  Hmmmm, don't they have computer access at home.  Then I see a post on FB that the realtor's wife is in Hawaii.....wonder if he is as well.  Yep, 100 days on the market and I have mixed emotions for sure.  We picked the good ole home boy to sell our house thinking he would have more time to market it.  Wrong, another listing mistake.  Well, no more open houses.  We are still under contract for 3 more months.  What to do, what to do??  Hubby thinks we make a major deduction and list at our bottom dollar.  That scares me a bit.  What if there is something that comes up in the home inspection.  What if someone puts in a lower offer.  Is the price the problem.  It is actually very low considering houses in our area are very expensive.  Ours is reasonable, large and in a great location.  Mixed emotions, for real.  So here are a few pictures of my fall decorating.
I decided that the blue mason jars with the pumpkins might be a good contrast for a change.

I have changed this already, somewhat.  I decided to leave the canvas of the grands from this summer.  It didn't come out quite the way I had expected.  There is way too much green going on.  But, it was only a random photo anyway.  I just like how everyone was doing their own thing. 
 
How is this for a hint......Seriously I didn't do this for the open house.  Just a joke. ( Cute little chalkboard tags were on clearance at Pottery Barn)
 
See these little things holding the candles in the jars.  I got those from my Décor Steals gift certificate that I won.  I want to get some coffee beans and candy corn to put in the jars.  I like the look of them even plain.
I forgot one thing that I got at the Country Living Fair.
 
The cute little fence around the chair.  It's supposed to look like barbed wire.  it had a different hat on it that I switched out for the witches' hat.   The fence was  from the bird booth that I showed before.  It has two crows on it and a propped up shovel.  The other thing I bought last year at the fair from a fairy garden booth.  The chair, some leaves, the little bat hanging upside down on the fence.  I added the little water globe.  I thought it looked a bit magical.  I had to shove all the leaves inside.  Oh at the cute little back on the top outside.  It's from Dotty Red from across the pond.  Cute, isn't it.
 
Here is our little kitchen table all decked out with it's Halloween table cloth.  I got this on clearance several years ago from Pottery Barn Kids.  (The only way I can afford anything there)  That's Piper in the background.  Little Izzy has decided she wants to be a couch potato again.  For the first time in a couple of years she is jumping up on the sofa again.  Hope her potty problems don't happen there.
 
 
Another view of the cute tablecloth.  This and the cloche are the only Halloween things so far.
 
I have lots more to tell you but will wait til the next post.  I want to tell you about Mabel's school event.  Also my mind is all a jumble due to my adopted son finding his birth mom.  Not only did he find her he has been with her since Saturday evening.  Someone from her family came and got him (she lives an hour away).  But he has called for a pickup today.  Don't know how I feel about this.  She lives the life that we worked so long to protect him from.  Yes, he is an adult but still child like in decision making and reality. Yep, mixed emotions for sure.  So I will update you on them next post.  Have a great new week. I must go and undecorated the house before the little home
wrecker gets her.
 

15 comments:

NanaDiana said...

Hi Debby- Just got back in town. It sounds to me like you have an inept realtor. I say that because we had a Century 21 office for several years and we worked HARD to sell our listings. Anytime there is an open house the realtor should call you within 24 hours with an update. It is just crazy that a realtor would not have 2 or 3 signs pointing the way to your place.

Have you had ANY feedback from any showings? It may be that price isn't an issue at all. I don't know what it is but there might be something that is putting people off----or maybe you just need to get more people through.

It IS in the MLS service, right? You don't want just an "in-office" listing. And if it IS in MLS ask the listing agent to offer a higher split(Co-broke). That might make the difference between another realtor showing your house and another one. Money talks to many.

I would have real mixed feelings about your son being with his biological mother, too, if she is not a really good person. Let me know how that turns out. xo Diana

Susie said...

Debby, You need to talk with the realtor...he's short changing you. You deserve better treatment when it comes to those open houses. Those are not without work on your part. I have only sold one house and I did it myself. So I have not had a lot of experience. I think Diana can really be of help. Blessings, xoxo,Susie

Julia said...

Oh my, Debby, you have causes to be upset.

I don't think that this realtor is very efficient or trust worthy. Not having appropriate signage to find the place is not very professional of him and he's wasting your valuable time. I hope that you can get better service. I know I would be fuming...

You may not have anything to worry about your adopted son. He might had enough of his biological mom and is returning home back to you. Lets hope for the best.
Hugs,
JB

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

I'm so sorry about the open house. We had our house listed for a long time and it was stressful to say the least. I sure hope things work out for you soon my friend. Try not to get discouraged. Sweet hugs, Diane

Sunflowers With Smiles said...

I just recently sold our home in SC and never had a Open House. My first home that sold when I was first married that had Open Houses never were successful.

I know it is hard not to get discouraged. It will sell!

Brenda Pruitt said...

I know you must be terribly discouraged by the lack of house progress. I hated having houses up for sale. I guess everyone does. Your life really isn't your own because someone could call and ask to see it at any time. Maybe things will look up, or you'll come to some resolution that you're comfortable with.
Brenda

Kimberly said...

Hi Debby - I would maybe change realtors if you can or must you wait the three months. Sometimes I think Open Houses don't work. That is just my opinion. I would also have mixed emotions about my son seeing his birth mom. Let us know if the next post how things have turned out. xxoo p.s. I like your Fall decorating.

Musings from Kim K. said...

I'm praying that your sons reunion was better than anticipated and that he understands the stability that you have provided. I'd be so frustrated with your real estate company. Yikes.

Anonymous said...

oh that little home wrecker is a beauty!! I'm sorry you are having a hard time selling but it seems that is a common them now a days, it will sell, there is someone out there just around the corner, if its meant to be it will happen, you have it decked out so cute for Fall, its lovely,

Winkel's Crazy Ideas said...

I am so sorry to hear about another open house flop, the firm selling your house sounds pretty amateur. If it is any consolation, we have sold three houses over the years and none of them have sold after open house. Can fully understand your mixed feelings concerning your son finding his birth mother. There have been some muddles in our family due to adoptions. Sometimes it is a good thing other times it would have been better if the adopted had let things be. But we are all of an inquisitive nature and want to know. Not easy atall. Perhaps seeing the contrast will make him value what he has with you even more. Warm thoughts from Pam in Norway...and l love your decorating, lovely! xx

Erica of Golden Egg Vintage said...

Hi Debby. My sister is a realtor and she says that very rarely does the sale of a house come as a result of an open house. She says that open houses are usually more beneficial for the realtor than for the seller because they get to hand their card to the few people that show up...So it slowly builds their contacts. Angie says to tell you that the absolute most important thing is how the online pics of your house look. Professional with good lighting. She says there's a website called www.postlets.com. that your realtor would be using to promote your home. And it should also be on CL and Zillow. Plus a few others. Sounds like you might need to make sure he's doing his job and keeping everything going online. Ok those are her two cents! Hope this helps a little. And hope all goes well for your son!
Hugs- Erica

Miss Merry said...

Two of my kids have bought houses in the last two years and another is shopping now. I think open houses are for lookie lous like me and the new generation is looking at the mls. My kids would check it every night like they do their facebook and whatever. I agree with upgrading the pictures! I can't believe some with cluttered counter tops and messy closets. Remove everything and fling it to the other side of the room and flip it back. Get some portable lighting so details show. Hire a professional or find a friend with a great camera and do their own shots. Maybe try one super open house - have brochures from banks about loans and payments, offer snacks or food, balloons to follow the way - have everyone you know promote on facebook and other free media and then no more open houses. It sounds like you need to do the work of others, but hopefully it will all get the place sold. Write your own blurbs. Think about the positives, not just the house but the neighborhood - and thinking about that, my son's house sold by his neighbor! He brought a friend who was looking to purchase over for a look see before my son listed and the guy offered more than the Realtor had appraised. Maybe host a neighbor night and ask them to help pick out their new neighbor! Print up cute flyers they can hand out. GOOOOD LUCK!!!!

Junebug said...

I am signing on the sale of the house tomorrow. I did not have one open house. My agent did have a realtor tour. She invite all the local realtors, had information sheets and of course cookies! The group of realtor left great feed back as to make it more marketable. My agent had a feed back sheet from all the showings. My agent also did a bang up job on comparable houses for sale in my area as to how to price my house. Yes, buyers will always offer lower and you need to counter! Good luck!

Gina said...

I think I would have cause for mixed emotions too if I were you. So many things to be uncertain about. Hang in there! Your fall decorating looks great! I do love the orange with the blue mason jars...those colors go so well together.

Kelly said...

I know how frustrating it can be to play the waiting game for someone to buy your house. I've done that before myself. I even went so far as to bury a St. Francis statue in our backyard because I had heard that works! With the holidays approaching, it unfortunately isn't a great time to sell a house. The traffic dies down. Ours slowed down around the holidays and then we took it off the market and decided to just stay put upgrading instead. That was about 8 years ago! I can only imagine how you must feel about your son finding his birth mom. What are the odds that she lives so close by?!