Operation Woodstock | Photo taken Feb 2008 | Click to enlarge

Hey all, pretty big news!… After 6 long uncertain months (since Feb 2008), 2 different agents (Toni then Angie), and over $100K drop in value (from $360K down to $249K), I finally emailed Angie the Realtor my decision to *NOT* sell the house after all. And guess what? When she called, she was laughing because *THAT* was what she wanted to hear! She couldn’t or didn’t want to tell me that, because she wanted it to come from me, my own decision. Can you believe that? Although she lost a client, she hasn’t lost a friend… or a possible blind date for one of her girl friends, haha. ^_^;

Here’s the email I sent her on Friday (July 25th).

Operation Woodstock | Photo taken Feb 2008 | Click to enlarge

Operation Woodstock | Photo taken Feb 2008 | Click to enlarge

Operation Woodstock | Photo taken Feb 2008 | Click to enlarge

Hey Angie, sorry for being M.I.A. (haha), lots to consider (and write). But mid last week, I think you hit the crucial question:

“Can I ask you why you are moving out of this nice home you have?”

Last weekend, after you and I went over the numbers, that became the biggest question in my mind. If monthly payments wouldn’t really change much, and without much net cash, what was the real point of moving?

Other than lowering payments, I’ve always said that I needed a “change of scenery” or “new environment”. Someplace new and cool (e.g. with a loft or wood floors) and without the smell of the past (divorce? depression?). And that still holds true. So I think the self-debate opened my eyes~ I began to see my house, my neighborhood for the first time again. Nice wide streets. Palm trees. Lawns and greenery. Open floor plans. High ceilings. Not bad at all. Actually pretty nice compared to other neighborhoods of the same price range.

I thought to myself: What if I just need to *remodel*, not relocate, my environment?

And then it hit me. I got excited about ripping out the old carpets and installing new carpeting. Better yet, new wood floors! Wood or tiled bathrooms! I was excited about living here again, and staying. So since the weekend, I’ve talked with a co-worker (and her friend in the flooring business) about how much it would cost to refloor my house. A few days ago, I invited them over and they visited my neighborhood and home to give their opinions and advice. As expected, they liked the area. Plus so many ideas! Not only new flooring, they also suggested opening the space further by tearing down the wall-arch thing, even a minor touchup of the kitchen. And I liked hearing these! They pointed out that with the upgrades, the house would be more appealing when sold. I hadn’t even thought of that: selling with upgrades. So I could enjoy the upgrades for myself and still have the option, if I wanted to, to sell in a few years. Whoa, cool.

If the goal was a change of pace, a change of scenery, I can do that where I am now, without losing the great situation I didn’t realize I already had. My friends agreed. One of them said I was practically *giving away* my house, lol. I guess I needed to face losing these things (at no profit), to realize how much they really meant to me~ Why’d it take me so long?

To that end, I plan to take my house off the market. Next week? By August 1st? Then after a few years, after all of the reflooring and any other remodeling, if I *still* really want to move, conditions should be more favorable. Then I’ll give *you* a call, haha. Sorry for all the trouble, but thank you for asking the right questions.

I really am grateful, visit anytime… What do you think of light oak-or-bamboo laminate floors? The samples look really good! Hehehe.

Jay ^_^

Operation Woodstock | Photo taken July 2008 | Click to enlarge

Before sending the email, I checked out my wood-laminate options by visiting Kathy (the friend in the flooring business) at her flooring-company showroom on Thursday (July 24th). So many options! But finally narrowed them down to 2 or 3 in the light-wood range, unless Kathy finds some more, lol.

Operation Woodstock | Image taken July 2008 | Click to enlarge

Then on Saturday (July 26th), I recorded my floor measurements on a grid, where each grid square represents 2 by 2 feet. As Kathy recommended, I rounded up to the next foot. As the image shows, my plan (so far) is to use the $1.77 wood-lam flooring for most of the house, except the bedroom sections. Then the master bedroom/bath (in red) would split the wood-lam and carpet. I like the idea of having both bathrooms connected to the hallway by wood. So that’s approx 1400 sq-ft for wood-lam, and approx 500 sq-ft for carpet (not including spares for future use). After this phase, the next steps are to check out: (a) my carpeting options, (b) my kitchen cabinet options, and (c) my contractor, builder and/or handyman options, argh. Which seems overwhelming!

But the scariest thing was about a month ago, when Toni was still looking for a new agent to succeed her when she moved. I had received a low-ball offer of $240K. And I was inches, just inches from accepting it. But somehow in my gut and instinct, I wasn’t comfortable. So I told Toni to counter-offer (5% instead of 6% commission). I expected the buyers to accept or propose a second offer. But they declined the condition and dropped the offer. And wow, I am so glad they did. Scary. Scary what I had taken for granted after 9 years. Scary to think what I could’ve lost without thinking!

Well, that’s it for now. Wish me good luck. Yup, I admit it, there are more important things than the purchase of new anime figures, right? At least for the next 7-10 years, haha. ^_^;