Photo by cottonbro studio
It’s been 3 weeks since I posted last. I am great at writing about work/life balance and taking care of yourself; I’m not great about living my message. I’ve averaged over 50 hours a week the past few weeks at my day job. It’s always a busy season but recent changes in our city have made it temporarily worse this year. Hopeful that’s going to change though with some recent steps we’ve taken to get us some temporary help.
Big Changes
Big changes coming about on the personal front. My oldest man-child is moving back home in 2 weeks. I’m excited! He’ll be moving back in with me until he gets settled into a new job and then he’ll figure out his next step. The youngest man-child stayed with me for about a year until he was able to buy his own condo and I would be fine if Michael went that route as well.
This means Nick and I have to hustle though and get the rest of his stuff out of my place so big brother has a place for his stuff. Oh, and did I mention that my AC went out the week before last? I was the only one in the office part of this week so no way to schedule a repair but hopefully that will be fixed early this week. Also, hopefully the cost will not be astronomical.
Even Bigger Decision
What’s the decision that I’m pondering? Glad you asked. I’ve really got the fever to get a new place. I love the location of my condo. I’m nestled into my favorite neighborhood surrounded by friends. I could actually walk to work (you know, if I didn’t have a bad foot). My mortgage is very affordable. I have access to a pool. Neighbors in my building are nice. Very close to everything (including the youngest man-child’s new place). Cheap utilities since the place is tiny and I’m on the second floor.
The things I don’t like are my ancient bathrooms. Remember the lovely golden rod tile of the 70’s? I don’t have to remember it, I look at it daily.
The laundry situation is not at all ideal. I have a miniature washer/dryer set that takes up what should be a storage closet in my hall bath. And because the 2-bedroom units of my condos weren’t meant to have a washer and dryer in them, I have to vent it out into a bucket filled with water.
Kitchen is very small. Very limited counter space and even less storage space. The cabinets that I do have are small and shallow.
And lastly, I don’t have my own water heater in my condo. Each building has a water boiler. It’s great that I never run out of hot water. Also, if something were to go wrong with it then our association would pay for it. The drawback is if I have any type of plumbing issue and the water needs to be turned off for a repair then 48 hours advance notice has to be given to our property manager so they can alert the entire building (that will be affected) that the water is going to be shut off for a repair. It’s a hassle.
Pros vs Cons
So, here’s my dilemma…I’d really like a newer, slightly larger place. I could almost definitely sell my place at a decent profit because, despite it’s age, it’s in a very desirable neighborhood. The problem is I wouldn’t be able to get the interest rate I currently have and to get a newer place in the same general vicinity I live in (a non-negotiable), I’m definitely looking at a higher price tag.
Decisions, decisions… I could spend some money and remodel the bathrooms, at least mine since it’s in the worst condition. Changing the laundry situation though won’t be an option. I also can’t easily fix the lack of space in the kitchen or the water boiler so I’m afraid remodeling the bathrooms (which won’t be cheap) isn’t worth the cost because I still won’t be happy in the long run.
I also don’t want to make myself house poor though. I’m at the stage in my life now where I can start traveling more with friends. I want to make sure I have the funds for experiences now.
I can usually solve most things with a good pros and cons list but I feel like I’m stumped on this decision. There are some really good pros on staying put but I feel like the cons are pretty big for what I want also.
Right now I guess I’ll continue to ponder. I’ll pretend like I’m going to sell any day and get the place decluttered and fix some issues that I can fix. Also going to say a little prayer that I either sell my novel (that’s not finished), win the Powerball, or find a nice guy to share expense with that doesn’t mind a slightly dramatic girlfriend who has now been single long enough that she will not be willing to share the remote when HGTV or the Hallmark channel, or any of my cop shows are on. If you know someone like that, please give them my number.
