Packing

Packing is OK, assuming you don't have a hard time finding boxes. Must be because it's the end of the month, but all stores I've hit for spare boxes are out, including the liquor stores (normally a great source of sturdy boxes for heavy items). I had to BUY boxes, go figure. Fortunately, I'll be able to claim up to $2,000 of my moving expenses with my new employer. Yay!

I met with my realtor on Friday morning. This lady is incredible. The last time I saw her was probably in 2004, when she sold one of my neighbour's place. When I called to set up an appointment, she said "Melissa? Oh yes, with the condo on West 8th?" She's good. I wanted to sit down with her to get an idea of which renovations I should focus on to prepare my place for the market. First thing she said? The carpets have to do. I cringed at the statement, this means the staircase and top floor need hardwood and it's going to be expensive. What else? The place needs a fresh coat of pain. Agreed. Fortunately, I had just met with a contractor (recommended by two colleagues) who quoted me a very reasonable price to repaint almost the entire condo. What else? Replace the linoleum floors in the bathroom and kitchen with tiles. Yup, already on that and I'm getting an estimate from the tile guy working for Rona tomorrow morning.

She said that spending $10,000-15,000 on the place could get me an additional $20,000-30,000 on the selling price. In any case, I'll recover at least the cost of the renovations and it will make my place much more attractive to buyers. The market has become more competitive in Vancouver, condos don't sell as quickly as they used to.

I'm sad that I, unfortunately, won't be the one enjoying the renovated place. Annie will get to live in a snazzy one-bedroom condo in Vancouver. What she doesn't know yet is that she'll probably have to live through some of the renovations, as most contractors are not available to do the job within the next two weeks ;)

Better

Day #2 of my non-employment and I managed to get a few things done, good. Yesterday was my birthday and I didn't lift a finger. OK, I bought food but that's because I was in the mood to cook, not to order out.

Having three weeks to prepare for my move back may seem like a lot of time, but if I'm not careful, the days will fly by and I won't get anything done. Let's be honest, it's quite tempting to be lazy. I just have to keep on reminding myself that Greece will be the place for no work and lazy afternoons on the beach.

Paperwork was the first order of the day, cheques that needed to be mailed, forms that needed completing (including one for my International Driving Permit) and I always seem to have lots of paperwork that needs sorting. I'll have to devise a better system than dropping everything that comes through the mailslot on my dining room table and then sorting it when I need space to eat :-)

I visited a local accountant to understand how I can rent my place without it losing its status as my primary residence. I thought I was going to need an appointment, but he kindly offered me a few tips (for free) and the process is pretty straightforward. So I passed on the appointment.

I then dropped by Home Depot on Cambie to check out paint colors, countertops and tiles. I'm not 100% sure how much I can spend on renovations, but I'd like to do a few upgrades to give the place an updated and clean look. I'm pretty certain I'll have painters in to fix cracks and apply a fresh coat of paint. That's one of the most worthwhile renos if you plan on selling, and because my ceilings are so high, it's not something I would do. I would like to also replace the countertop in the kitchen and tile both the kitchen and bathroom floors. Again, nothing big but visual upgrades that would have an impact. I'm unsure about appliances, I'd like to replace mine, but I think I'll speak to my realtor first. If I put in cheap appliances to sell, they'll be replaced. My appliances are old, but they are good quality and work well.

I found an interesting laminate countertop with a textured surface, in chocolate brown. I also found cute tiles for the backdrop in the kitchen (just a small strip over the counter). I didn't find tiles for the floor yet, nothing HD had was really what I was looking for. I want to visit Rona and IKEA to see what options they have to offer. I'll do that probably tomorrow.

So I managed to knock down a few items from my extensive to-do list. Some progress is nice :-)

I received a call from Sarah today who told me that our friend Gwen gave birth to her baby daughter yesterday, August 18, same day as MY birthday!! Woot!