Real Estate Ready!

One of my dear friends is selling her country ranch to move to another country ranch.  When she told me about prepping the house for market, she commented "it looks so freaking good right now; I don't even want to leave it!"  

Right.  Because it was ship-shape.  De-cluttered.  Magazine ready.  Buyer-appealing.  

So, why do we get our houses attractive for a buyer ("They do not want to see your clutter!", admonishes Realtor Rob), so said buyer can move in and junk up the previously tidy place with all their stuff?  A mystery, indeed.  

The fact that you're nodding in affirmation right now tells me you've been there and thought the same.  It also validates my original concepts that most of us really don't like clutter and crap messing up our zen. 

Beloved Husband reminds me on the daily when I am tidying up the living room or recycling the endless periodicals that decorate our counter tops, "we LIVE here, y'know?!?".  As if to say, we don't have to be magazine ready here at the ranch.  Well, we are far from it.  I would argue that no one walks into a home and comments, oh wow, I love what you've done with all those magazines stacked next to the bed, and look at that pile of mail over by your couch!  A true art form!  And that wall crammed full of crosses from Hobby Lobby?  An original decorating concept for sure!

But when you're scoping out properties on Zillow, you know you gravitate toward the sparse kitchen counter tops and the neatly arranged (just a few, people!) throw pillows.  You can't see the closets (usually), so they may be floor to ceiling with all the stuff they threw in there just before the photographer showed up, but the rest looks inviting, right?

Even if you're not in the market to sell, look at your place with a buyer's eye.   You probably loved the place once, so love it again!  Make your living spaces look like you live there, but not as if Hoarders is on their way over to feature you.  Maybe get rid of the dust collectors on top of your cabinets, and leave that space open.  You rarely use your can opener, so find it a spot near the pots and pans. Make the master bedroom an "owner's retreat" to borrow from the lexicon of the real estate world, not a depository for clothes and kids' crap. 

We spend 40% of our income (or more?) and lots of our time in our homes.  Remember why you bought/leased the place initially?  Bring yourself back there, and don't just get it ready for the next buyer.  They are just going to crapify it with all their stuff anyway.  

Happy Weekend, Minimalist friends!

Only Richie Rich Can Be a Minimalist?

I read a rather chastise-y article recently about how only the rich can reeeeally afford to be truly minimal.  Just the few at the top of the income pyramid can purge the noise and need only a few belongings, free to jettison all the rest less useful things and live with white walls and just two sweaters. 

Ouch.  I hadn't looked at it that way at all. 

Yes, I appreciate that if you cannot afford furniture, and you are living with one of those giant electrical wire spools as your dining table, that "living with less" is a big freaking millennial joke to you.  What choice do you have?  Every day is less!

But I would argue that many who have quality "24 months No Interest!" furniture and a hefty mortgage are in no better financial shape than the spool guy. Not because they HAVE more and are wealthier, but because they likely owe more.  More debt and more burden. 

Embracing minimalism is not about being fortunate enough to throw all your stuff away.  It's about freedom, really.  Comedian Whitney Cummings wrote about how she felt differently about money once she started calling it "freedom" instead (click here for her Money magazine article).  For example, when making a purchase, saying those jeans aren't worth 200 of my freedom units.  If you have less crap to clean, maintain, or organize (Container Store is making a lot of cash selling boxes!), you have more time to a) work your side hustle and get out of debt, b) enjoy your family/friends, or c) do something you WANT to do, not be a slave to "spring cleaning" yet again.  Freedom. 

Being debt free is almost the biggest freedom you will welcome in life (aside from being told you are cancer free, I would imagine - that's got to be #1).  You can decide if you want to bring a purchase into your home (or not), solely based on whether you need/want it and are willing to separate yourself from your funds to do so.  NOT based on whether the "no interest" deal is good or if your have room on your Visa card's credit limit. 

I have written often about how many Americans live paycheck to paycheck, and its freedom-limiting ramifications of doing so.  I think rich is not about how much your home is worth or how much your salary is.  I think it is measured in freedom, so if you make $30,000 or $300,000 a year and you are in debt, neither is rich.   There is a guy who lives in a $750/month apartment with a roommate, takes public transportation, buys a $4.00 Starbucks every single day, but he owes no money on student loans or credit cards.  His net worth is probably more than the guy who owes $750,000 on a house worth $800,000, and has two car loans and $10,000 on a credit card.  The minimalist guy?  Far richer than the guy with stuff (maybe he has white walls, but NOT minimalist).

I understand that not having a paycheck to support buying furniture and a late model car and plentiful belongings by definition makes one a minimalist.  I would never seek to insult those living with less because of circumstance, not choice.  I do, however, challenge the rest of us to look at living with less and exchange some debt stress for freedom.  Living intentionally (a buzzword I am still trying to define for myself) seems to permit choice in our lifestyle rather than obligation. 

Is Queue Time Phone Time?

Recently, I was in a not-that-lengthy queue at a taco joint (worth waiting for, I might add) where I noticed EACH and every person who was waiting to order was looking at his or her phone.  There were 5 or 6 ahead of me and a few behind, and they were all shuffling forward with their heads down.  Checking email, social media, or to see which Kardashian is pregnant today.   Not one was looking at the menu above, or standing patiently, waiting to remind the staff no sour cream, please.  

Agreed, it is boring to wait in line.  But when you've waited for Buzz Lightyear at Disney for two hours with two children under 7, you're pretty sure you can queue up for a taco for 3-4 minutes.  Even 10 if you knew how awesome this place is.  

I am in the generation (X -- the cool one) who remembers a time before the internet and social media drove our brains and self-worth to distraction.  But I am also young enough to use many of the internet's gifts to my advantage and enjoy the memes my teenager finds the time to share with me.  

I can still wait in line.  

I am not so old that just the mere thought of queuing up (and making my knees support me for more time than a TV commercial interrupts Matlock) makes me surrender to the drive-thru.  

But I guess I am old enough that strolling into a restaurant, ladies restroom, or a grocery check out doesn't make me automatically reach for my phone when I see I will not be waited on immediately.  

I guess we can't have blank-brain for long at all anymore.   We can't look around at other patrons, wondering if that mom over there was from our kid's baseball team, or why on earth she would leave the house dressed like that.  We can't take the time to say, hmmm, looks like they switched to organic meats in the tacos now, and wonder if their prices reflect that.   

We have to have our brains fed with stimuli.  

I noticed in the waiting room of my clinic, almost no children are passing the time until their appointment with toys, action figures, or books.  Nearly all over the age of 18 months are being pacified with a tablet or their parent's phone.  And when the mom/dad take the electronics away to gather their things to head back into the exam room, often the child/ren scream and grab for the screen as if the last lifeboat left the Titanic.  

Boredom is boring.  But doesn't it makes our senses do some work?  Doesn't it ask our brain some questions?  I offer this:  next time you find yourself in a line, at the post office or taco place, ponder the smells, the decor, the folks around you.  Leave your phone in your pocket while waiting. Don't check your email when stopped at a red light (I know you NEVER do it while driving).  

Be comfortable with a bit of boredom again.   You may think of a great meme you can publish as soon as you're back to your phone!