It’s sold!
I can’t believe it’s been a month since Tom and I, sold our first house and moved back in with my parents. After the initial chaos and stress of packing up and moving our whole lives into storage, we are now taking the time to reflect on the move whilst being thoroughly spoilt rotten at my parent’s house.
I wanted to share my thoughts on the last few months, the highs and lows of selling my first house and living with my parents again. Plus some lessons I’ve learnt along the way if you’re thinking of selling your first home too.
Don’t take it personally
It’s really difficult not to take selling your first house personally. Because ‘buying your first home’ is built up to be such a significant life stage, it can be hard to let go of that time in your life.
When we first decided to put our home up for sale there were plenty of ‘but why?’s from family and friends because we seemed so settled there. We lived in our house three years and hadn’t really out-grown it or particularly disliked living there, it’s just we wanted to take the next step in life. Move to our forever home. And who’s business is it anyway? If you want to move, do it. Just because it’s ‘your first home’ doesn’t mean you’re tied to it. If it’s not working, change it.
Once the house was on the market another worry was if it was going to sell. As it was my first home, I naturally became quite protective of it. So exposing it to judgement and scrutiny was hard. We were proud of what we had achieved in our home and had turned an unloved terrace into a cosy home in less than three years. We’d put our time and money into the house to make it amazing. So naturally I took it personally when no one snapped it up in within the first 24 hours.
At the end of the day it’s business. A variety of factors can make the viewer not buy a home. From them wanting a project to refurbish, to not having the right layout or even the way the house is facing, plenty of factors can play a part, and you can’t please everyone. Just remember it only take one buyer to absolutely love it.
Do it your own way
We were surprised at how fast we sold our house, and although actively looking we didn’t find our dream home in time. So instead of panic buying or delaying our buyers any longer, we decided to pack up and move in with my mum and dad.
Ok, moving back in with parents might not be possible for everyone but for us it was perfect. I know some people cringe at the idea of loosing their independence and heading back home after selling their first home but it’s helped us out big time. We are lucky enough that my parents live close by and offered to help us move, letting us stay for a few months whilst we house hunt and save a bit extra money.
It feels strange moving back home after running my own house for the last three years but honestly I’m loving being looked after a bit. I know it’s only for a short while and it puts us in an ideal situation when our dream house does come on the market.
I stupidly worry about what people might think when I say I’ve moved back in with my parents but who cares at the end of the day?! We are doing it our own way and one which will mean we are 100% happy when we invest in our next house.
Learn from it
The biggest lesson I’ve learnt from selling my first house is what I want from our next home. I’ve learnt what’s important to me, what I can live with and what I can’t. One of the biggest selling points for our house was the location. You’ll always be able to sell a home if it’s in a desirable location, and this is one lesson I’ll bare in mind when house hunting. Second to that is the space inside and out. Aesthetically you can always change a home but if the practical space isn’t right, you’ll struggle live in it and eventually sell again.
Staying at my parents for a bit has really taken the pressure off the house search. We can really focus on what we want from a property without rushing into anything.
Glad we did it? Absolutely!
It’s been a whirlwind few months but I’ve learnt so much and am so proud of what we’ve achieved. We were lucky that our house sold within a few weeks at full asking price and will now become another couples first home to enjoy. I’ll miss our first home as there’s been so many great memories in it but I’m excited for the future and cannot wait to find our dream home.
How did you find selling your first home? I’d love to hear your thoughts on selling property and if you have any tips for my next big move! Don’t forget you can follow me over on Instagram and Twitter to see how the move is going!
Anna x
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