Monday, March 26, 2012

That house is never going to sell

The neighborhood where me moved, especially our little area of it, is brand new. Of the 10 houses on our street, only 5 are occupied. There are also six empty lots. Neighbors are few and far between.  Someone has bought the house to our right, but they haven’t moved in yet. Once they do, I’m going to have to buy window treatments for that side of the house, at the very least.

In the past I’ve joked about the sellers’ agents paying me a commission to keep my kids inside and quiet while they are having showings, and after yesterday, they really may want to.

Something to know about our family – we’re noisy when we’re outside. My four kids bicker and play and laugh and cry all at full volume. I never really noticed how loud we are until we moved here. Our old neighborhood was filled with kids and the bustle of in-town life. Out here, all you hear are crickets, and on Sunday afternoon, even the crickets are quiet.

Yesterday was a gorgeous day. Austin was in full show-off mode – clear blue skies, light breeze, non sweltering temperatures. We all wanted to spend as much time outside enjoying the weather as we could, because we know that in a month or two, we’re not going to be able to go out without melting.

So I let the kids help me give FeeBee a bath (for a water dog, she sure doesn’t like baths). This turned into Campbell spraying his big sisters with the hose. They ran for the house and came back out a few minutes later in bathing suits. And it was ON. All four kids were in the driveway spraying each other and laughing and screaming. Then the big girls got on top of the Suburban and started throwing wet rags down on the little two, which lead to lots more screaming and laughing.

I was sitting the shade, reading and making sure things didn’t descend into absolute chaos. And then two cars pulled up across the street. A Realtor and two clients, who looked to be retirement age and who had a purse dog with them, emerged, looked at the mayhem in my driveway and disappeared into the first house.

I thought about pulling the kids inside, but I decided not to. If those folks are going to buy one of the houses, they need to know what they’re in for – and it’s not a quiet retirement village.

They left about 20 minutes later, casting horrified glances over their shoulders at us.

We’re never going to have new neighbors.

6 comments:

Frank said...

This scene would make me more likely to buy in your neighborhood. One of the things I found most appealing about my current neighborhood was the prevalence of swing sets, basketball hoops, forts, and bikes in driveways. Wish I had known about the dysfunctional HOA, but that's another story.

I think you made the right choice not to reel in the kids... it doesn't serve anyone's interest for folks to get a false impression of the neighborhood.

knittergran said...

Well, you won't have THOSE new neighbors, which is just as well for everyone.
And Frank--there is no such thing as a functional HOA. I gar-un-tee.

Raji P. said...

Great strategy! That way you won't have to buy blinds, and can enjoy having your own corner of the world to yourself :)

donna said...

Honestly having had a great set of neighbors and some lousy ones too, it's good to let any potential home buyers see the real you. That way you know the people that move in will be a good match. Better to have them run away before buying the house than to spend the next few years having them knocking on your door complaining ( which is what we have had from one set of neighbors who found the way my boys play to be upsetting to their daughter - shessh)

ckh said...

All those things would bring me IN to your neighborhood, too.

Susan said...

We are the oldest in a small court neighborhood with some young families. We knew that coming in and liked it, tho our kids were older. I admit that the screaming and skreeching does get to me at times (like when I'd llike to have dinner on our patio) but it is still nice to be around vibrant kids.