Snail’s pace

This is only our second time selling a house and I’m coming to believe that – first time around – we were seriously lucky. We put the house up for sale in late January, and completed in early April.

This time, it’s not looking quite so good. We didn’t get the house ready to slide in before the increase in Stamp Duty, interest rates are still fairly high, utility bills are due to rise, and caught between the twin evils of Presidents Putin and Trump it feels as if everyone is hunkering down to wait out the storm.

Or – of course – nobody is in the market for a character cottage with fabulously fast internet and a peaceful walled garden in a quiet village with no other amenities.

Our estate agents and friends who have more experience buying and selling houses all tell us that spring and the attendant sunshine will bring out new buyers. That people just need to see how much disposable income they have between price rises and utilities to afford a mortgage. That it just takes time.

It’s most likely all true.

And not really helpful.

We’ve dithered so long over this decision, now we’ve made it, we want to see progress – and the snail’s pace we’re moving at doesn’t suit either one of us.

It’s a time when distractions are in high demand – which is most likely one reason for my decision to reclaim my waistline, sort out my shoes and my fitness, and finish a book that’s been on my WiP stack since 2019.

I also keep telling myself that snails – however slow they appear – still move forward. And that our house hasn’t yet found a buyer because we’re still waiting for our forever home in Northumberland to come to the market. 😉