My husband recently accepted a job offer at another liberal arts college. He'll be teaching English and creative writing. The offer was so fantastic we couldn't turn it down. He has a lower teaching load (3/3 instead of 4/4), a higher salary (37% increase), and tremendous faculty support.
The new town also has a ridiculously low cost of living, with many houses starting in the $40-50K range. We're hoping to buy a cute old house, close to campus, that needs some cosmetic renovations for under $70K. We love our huge historic Arts & Crafts bed & breakfast, but we are dreaming of a cosy little place with a lower utility bill! I'm going to miss our house, though. Built-in cupboards everywhere, an inglenook, pocket doors, a real Harry Potter room under the stairs, walk-in closets original to the house, wood floors, casement windows that swing inward and close with little turn latches, 17 windows in our master bedroom...sigh...
We are hoping to put our house on the market in the next week or so. We'll be working in France again for 6 weeks, so it's still up in the air whether we'll be moving before or after France. Either way it's going to be crazy. I really detest packing. The actual moving part is fine, since we get lots of help from church members on both ends of the move. But packing is a royal pain. I'd love to be able to sell all of our belongings and start fresh.
Sounds like an awesome deal for your husband. Congratulations! It would be hard to leave a house that sounds as nice as yours, though.
ReplyDeleteAre you staying in the same state or making a long-distance move?
We've moving one state over. But it's just as much work moving 2 hours as moving 20, in that you still have to pack everything up and load it into a moving van. Just a bit less driving!
ReplyDeleteWow, sounds like a good move for your family. I hate packing too, not really anything fun about that, except the decluttering part. Do you really LOVE it? If not, let it go.
ReplyDeleteI can not believe the cost of houses where you are moving. Is that even possible? I live in Southern California, where you can't buy a condo for under $200,000. So to imagine anything under $100,000 is amazing.
Congrats!!
ReplyDeleteMoving and packing really aren't too bad as long as you have a solid plan. It's not my favorite activity, but I have to say that a good plan makes packing and unpacking a breeze. Good luck with you move. I love the idea of housing prices being so cheap. Too bad they aren't that good here in KC.
ReplyDeleteOh I am just like you! The antithesis of a pack-rat! I LOVE getting rid of my stuff! I do it everytime we move so there is less to pack. And I too gave away tons of stuff on Freecycle -- it's amazing what kind of JUNK you can list and have people fighting over it!! One person told me, "you know you could be getting some money for some of this" and I didn't care! I just wanted it GONE! Thank YOU for getting it out of here! :) And actually we are moving next month too so I am in a crunch to read several books so I can get rid of them too.
ReplyDeletep.s. Last time we moved it was only 40 minutes away, and this time it is just up the street. You still have to pack but you can be a lot more lazy about it! Leave the hangers on the clothes, throw them in a heap, etc. leave lids off of boxes, throw odds and ends in the car...
ReplyDeleteI loved your house. Please take and post lots of pics before moving chaos starts creeping in! I also trust that with your excellent eyes for houses you'll find a lovely new one.
ReplyDeleteAs for moving, we moved exactly 1 block last November and it was every bit as chaotic as moving out of town might have been. Maybe more so, because we felt like we could always run back down the street again for more stuff, or to do more cleaning later... Kelly's right, organization is the key, and, umm... it's not our forte :)
I have moved 7 times in 5.5 years. I love moving, hate packging:) So good luck to you:)
ReplyDeleteOh, that sounds so wonderful, Rixa. Congratulations! (And gee, I'm so jealous. *I* want to live where I can pick up a fixer that cheap...)
ReplyDeleteI'm jealous! Not only is your husband done with school, he's getting good job offers! That's what...7 years away for us? But, I'm very happy for you! I hope you find a house you absolutely love! (and amen about packing)
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