No don't worry - I haven't forgotten everything Bill Hicks taught me and finally sold my (worthless) soul to the highest advertising bid - worse than that I'm trying to sell the family house and join the moving chain to pastures new!People always say how hard it is buying or selling a house, and you think, maybe so, but doing it again now mid chain, I can see what they mean but in a totally different way.
Let me explain... Preparing for a viewing is a nightmare. Whether this is just our house, or across the board I don't know, but our house is not a show home, and we're happy with that, but the thought of strangers coming into your house and "judging" makes you feel that you must make it into one...
We start cleaning areas that have never seen a duster, cleaning the tops of cupboards that no one will see, hiding stuff in cupboards or under beds. No joke - before a viewing today I was stuffing a pile of dirty clothes into the bottom of a wardrobe - and found a stack of un-ironed shirts which had been stuffed there before a previous visit!
Even Wilf, my 3 year old son commented that we ere crazy when he spotted the hair dryer in the washing machine. In fact the reason I haven't blogged for so long is because we lost the PC... or something like that.
Anyway, on to the first visit. Ten minutes before the potential buyers are due to arrive hot water starts pouring through the ceiling in the hallway. For those who know me, plumbing disasters aren't anything that new but I wasn't prepared for this. It was right where people walk, and could very audibly be heard plopping!
After switching off the water and wrapping a towel around the guilty pipe, the viewers arrive wander about and leave.
I don't think anything prepares you for the feedback. "It's a bit small" - it's a two bedroom terrace - what did you expect! At least they didn't mention the wet patch.
A couple more viewings and much the same mad cap running about tidying(hiding) stuff away and still nothing. The last but one viewing, a Mr Lawson. His feedback - "The decor all needs updating"
A fair comment some may say, but the guy was in his 70's! I don't need a coffin dodger giving me style tips! People watch a couple of home style programmes on the TV and they all think they're Lawrence Llewelyn Bowen - I'm not sure how much of this I can take - and where's that spanner gone again!
