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I also have a HS junior and absent a reason where I had no other choice, I would never in a million years pull him out of his school when I could wait another year and a half to move.
And no, most kids are not being "home schooled" - that is not the same thing as doing remote/distance learning with classmates who they've already known for years, vs. trying to get to know new kids during a pandemic.
I hear you. I mistakenly used the wrong term (home schooled.) You're right, I should have said "remote learning." Even tho, most remote learning is in isolation, at home.
Why wouldn't you pull your kid out at 11th grade, if necessary? Is there something that magically happens between soph and junior year? (Please, bear with me, it's been decades since I was a soph or Junior.)
Are you thinking of "continuity?" I can certainly see this, in the lower elementary grades. Continuity is practically imperative during this time. It really is.
I mean, it's obvious the OP wants OUT of where she is. The sooner, the better. Why be miserable for 20 months, when you don't have to be?
Did you read the words she wrote.
Now, did you read between the lines?
Yup, the sooner, the better for the OP.
Besides, a million years is a long time, compared to what we can experience in our life time.
To answer one of your questions, the oak cabinets are in good shape. They are 35 years old, so there are some scuff and wear marks. But there are no dings or dents or big gouges in them. I actually periodically treat the scuff marks with Old English oil that has a bit of a tint to it and that hides them. I also periodically use furniture markers to hide the wear marks. I also periodically use furniture markers to hide the wear marks. But I have to keep doing that otherwise the scuff marks reappear. Underneath the sink the pressboard is warped. I think there must have been some kind of leak under the sink at one point. But my brother said he can help me fix that. All I have to do is carefully measure the space and he’ll cut me a piece of plywood to nail down.
I just worry that my kitchen is too dark. The appliances are black, the granite countertop is black, and the hardwood floors are dark. It’s one thing that’s always bothered me about the kitchen. But then again, if I get the wallpaper taken down in the walls painted a nice, light, neutral color maybe that will be enough.
Now for the thing that I just quoted. How exactly can you tell what a realtors volume of sales/purchases is? After I moved here, I asked coworkers for a good buyers agent and I pretty much stuck with her when my now ex-husband and I bought a house, sold that house when we divorced, and I bought my current house. I think that agent is now retired because I cannot reach her at all. So now I will need to hire a new agent at some point. I work in a different place with only a handful of employees. Although one lady sold her house recently because she retired and moved. I kept in touch with her, I can ask her who her agent was (her house sold in one weekend with multiple bids on it).
While I think painted cabinets would work wonders for that kitchen, if you are in a hot seller's market, your home simply being available may be enough. In that case, clean and declutter is sufficient and if if the purchase offer is not exactly the same as a more updated home, it'd probably be off by just a small amount. Why spend more just to recoup a little more. Appraisers may not count the painted cabinets a real upgrade anyway.
I hear you. I mistakenly used the wrong term (home schooled.) You're right, I should have said "remote learning." Even tho, most remote learning is in isolation, at home.
Why wouldn't you pull your kid out at 11th grade, if necessary? Is there something that magically happens between soph and junior year? (Please, bear with me, it's been decades since I was a soph or Junior.)
Are you thinking of "continuity?" I can certainly see this, in the lower elementary grades. Continuity is practically imperative during this time. It really is.
I mean, it's obvious the OP wants OUT of where she is. The sooner, the better. Why be miserable for 20 months, when you don't have to be?
Did you read the words she wrote.
Now, did you read between the lines?
Yup, the sooner, the better for the OP.
Besides, a million years is a long time, compared to what we can experience in our life time.
My son knows all of his classmates because he's been in school with many of them since 6th grade since his HS has a companion middle school.
So even though they are interacting virtually now, they have the benefit of knowing each other. This would be the worst possible time to move to a new school, when there is no opportunity at all to socialize and get to know the other kids.
Academically, it would also be a very bad time to switch. 11th grade is the most crucial year for college applications, since they are applying before they have all of their senior year grades. Being with teachers who know you and know your strengths and weaknesses is a great benefit to kids getting to maximize their potential and also to receive targeted guidance from people who really know them and can help direct them to colleges that should be on their radar.
And the OP has said she wants to move to a rural area - which means that there will be far fewer academic opportunities for her daughter. It's not going to be a move to a comparable school, academically and very likely socially as well.
Being a parent means that sometimes you suck it up and make the decision that is best for your child even if it's not the one that is most personally satisfying. And moving during school years, while sometimes necessary, is not in a child's best interests. While OP may be looking forward to this move, it does not need to happen right now and in the interests of her child, is best to be done on the timetable the OP has already planned.
There are many good, and important, reasons why the needs of the family take priority over the needs and desires of the family teens.
Nonetheless, moving a teen during the latter part of high school can have serious academic, social, and psychological consequences that should be taken into consideration.
I do not want to move now because of where my daughter is in school at this time (junior year as started, she's in 3 AP classes, others honor, and she's very active in band... not that they are doing anything now. But still, the band is a tight-knit group). Like emm74 said, it's really bad to move now for academic, college application, and social reasons. And where I am moving to is near my family, back home. The schools aren't anywhere near as good as the schools where I live now. They don't offer the AP classes or dual enrollment classes.
But I also "can't" move until my daughter is 18 because I am divorced and her father and I have joint custody. He lives in this area. I just can't up and move with her, away from him. And I am not going to move and abandon her either.
It's all good though. It's not even two years away. It gives me time to do these projects and declutter. It also gives work time to update our database (which will make telecommuting even easier... yes, I have permission to continue to telecommute even after the pandemic is over. That will allow me to keep my job after I move! I have two coworkers who live in other states, so it's not like I am a pioneer).
An update, I talked to a local Realtor. I didn't realize it, but one of the Realtors I see on signs around my neighborhood (and who sells a lot of houses here), lives in my neighborhood! So I reached out to her. I only asked her about the cabinets question and I showed her pictures of my kitchen. She said I shouldn't bother with them: replacing or painting. It's not necessary. She suggested a wood restoring product and new hardware that would compliment the countertop just to make the room pop more. So I did that today. It looks nice! I also took out one toilet seat. Ugh, I needed to use a soldering iron (long story, but the plastic nut on the screw was so old that it was gummy and had to be melted off). I might do the other seats tomorrow. I am in a "around the house projects" kind of mood.
Get rid of wallpaper first and foremost. Not sure why you have it in the kitchen? But it needs to go before you show.
Paint the cabinets and consider replacing the granite with quartz. We had some properties in your area we recently sold. No one wants granite except baby boomers. If they are your target, great. Otherwise granite is out. It will be even more out in 2 years. Get rid of it. Caveat is only of ofs honed or leathered. Take a trip to ikea and price out a kitchen with them. Painted oak always looks like painted oak but if you have a dated door style you may want to just replace the whole deal. Unless you're going to appeal to someone who wants a fixer and will renovate.
A house in my neighborhood just went under contract within days most likely above the asking price and it has not been updated since they bought it from the builder in the late 70's.
This right here is what is happening in a lot of hot markets.
I am not sure what the market is going to look like in the future, but right now if you are located in a red hot sellers market you need to remove the wall paper, clean the house, declutter and let it go.
In our area, you could have shag carpet, popcorn ceilings, older cabinets and formica counter tops and buyers are still paying asking or above within days of the property listing. Our inventory on island here is non existent. Once these dated homes are sold you generally see a roll off dumpster in the driveway and the renovations begin.
I am 60 and I have never witnessed anything like this before, this is an even more frenzied market then the one that crashed in 2008.
Get rid of wallpaper first and foremost. Not sure why you have it in the kitchen? But it needs to go before you show.
Paint the cabinets and consider replacing the granite with quartz. We had some properties in your area we recently sold. No one wants granite except baby boomers. If they are your target, great. Otherwise granite is out. It will be even more out in 2 years. Get rid of it. Caveat is only of ofs honed or leathered. Take a trip to ikea and price out a kitchen with them. Painted oak always looks like painted oak but if you have a dated door style you may want to just replace the whole deal. Unless you're going to appeal to someone who wants a fixer and will renovate.
Wallpaper because I want it gone. I can’t wait for that to happen. I finally got a hold of two more companies and will have three quotes. The reason it's in the kitchen is because the house came that way. I think wallpaper used to be very common in kitchens in the 80s and 90s.
I appreciate the idea, but I’m not going to be replacing the kitchen with new cabinets and new countertops. First, it’s out of the budget I’m willing to spend on sprucing up the house. I got quotes on a new kitchen this past winter (New cabinets and countertops in the same footprint will run me $30k-$40k on the low end with most of that cost being labor). I did the math and the ROI would be a net loss of $9k-$12k when I go to sell. I am better off selling my house for less than I am putting in a new kitchen.
I think I’m fine with granite countertops. I just took a look on Zillow at the four houses that sold In my neighborhood in 2020 and in the description, three of them at granite countertops and all sold in days for asking price except one (which only sold for $10k less). The fourth had the original Formica and was under contract in three days for asking price ($524,950). That house also had wallpaper. I'm hoping to sell mine for $525k. The updated houses went for $550k-$580k with the $580 being an end unit and more than just a kitchen upgrade.
My goal with painting was just to lighten up the room and make it look a little nicer and maybe sell faster. Besides, like I said in my post from yesterday, I talk to a real estate agent who specializes in my neighborhood and she pretty much told me that the demand for houses in this neighborhood has been so high for so many years that the kitchen doesn’t really matter. As long as it looks clean and decent, it will sell. She advised me to just polish the cabinets, install new hardware, and when the time comes, remove things like the microwave and toaster over from the counters to give more space.
Last edited by WalkingLiberty1919D; 09-13-2020 at 06:17 AM..
Ok, it sounds like you've answered all your questions, Walking Liberty.
Keep your daughter where she is, you don't want to rock any boat, legal wise.
Who knows, in 20 months you might get another $25,000 for your place!
Thanks! I can only hope. And you gave a lot of great advise too about considering my new home. I am only going to be getting older after all.
Quote:
Originally Posted by JBtwinz
This right here is what is happening in a lot of hot markets.
I am not sure what the market is going to look like in the future, but right now if you are located in a red hot sellers market you need to remove the wall paper, clean the house, declutter and let it go...
This is pretty much what that local real estate agent told me. She even said I didn't need to worry about wallpaper if it's in good shape (but it's not in good shape, it's peeling horribly). Maybe this damp summer just did it in because it seems to be happening all at once. It was only the foyer, near the door that had issues. Suddenly, this weekend, the kitchen is peeling badly in a corner.
If the wallpaper has not been on for years and not vinyl it might be pretty easy to take off after wetting it down a bit. It is messy but it saves a lot of money. I never use those prickly rollers, just spray with warm water from a spray bottle.
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