This post is sponsored by Opendoor.
Pssst….. can I tell you something?
We are moving.
Eeeeeeeeeeekkkkkkk!
Stick with me here, this is a fun story laced with different ways we saw God in the small stuff.
So, when we moved into our current home, it was supposed to be the home we stayed in forever and ever. And then we had kids and realized there were a few tweaks that we’d like which would make life easier, like not having vaulted ceilings from the living room to the kid’s bedroom door and this little thing called MORE STORAGE.
I digress.
We imagined we would move when the kids were older, in school, when things like showings and packing would be “easier” and our home wouldn’t be so littered with toddler stuff.
But then it all started with a sentence, the one when your husband looks a little nervous to say what he’s about to say because he has no clue what your reaction will be.
“Hey honey, I have been praying about maybe us moving a little sooner than we planned.”
“No.” (Clearly I gave it a lot of thought.)
My reasons were limitless: we are entering into the quieter real estate season, the thought of packing up for showing was exhausting, the concept of keeping a house clean with 2 18-month old twins – impossible. Besides, just the mere consideration of actually selling the house and having to do all of the random tasks (carpet cleaning, wall patching, etc.) was just too much for this momma to think about.
He explained that it was a nudging put in his heart a few weeks ago and he decided to just start praying about it and in return, felt like God was beginning to encourage his heart that this was a good thing.
Gah, how do you argue with God?
I told him I still felt like this wasn’t the right time, but would join him and prayer and we’d regroup in a week.
And of courseeeeee, God started dropping us small and big signs in ways only He can do and it quickly became apparent that this really was His timing and my stubborn fear of all of the what-ifs would be handled by Him. I won’t go into all the ways and reasons, but let’s just say after a week of us praying together about it, God gave us both not only peace, but excitement for this change for our family. We found the most perfect lot, just a few miles away, with land for the kiddos to explore as they grow up, and after putting money down, learned our new neighborhood is filled with families we know and love who just moved in. It makes me smile as I type this because He just reassured us so much and I love how personal He is.
Okay, now the part that makes this momma SOOOOO HAPPY.
Let’s talk selling our house.
Isn’t that always the overwhelming part? Josh came home one day and asked if I had heard about Opendoor. I hadn’t and he filled me in.
Basically, he explained, you contact Opendoor and request an offer on your house. There’s no commitment, you simply give them unique information about your house and then they look at market data to put together an offer . So Josh did just that, he contacted them and a day later, we had an offer. An offer we were really excited about. But it seemed too good to be true?!
We did our own research and once we felt confident their offer was really fair, we signed the contract locking in the offer. After that, Opendoor sent out an awesome team of people to our house and while we were home and playing with the kids, they went through and did an assessment. It was super chill and our home advisor was like “Don’t worry about cleaning and making everything perfect! This is the real Opendoor experience. So just let them come do their thing and don’t sweat it.”
So. Much. Freedom.
There were a couple things they said they would want to do after the house closed, like patch a couple dents our stair gate caused, and switching out this HVAC tubing that was needed due to a code change. They told us how much it would be (a few hundred dollars in our case), and then deducted that from our final offer. It’s all stuff we would have had to do anyways if we sold traditionally so the fact that they were offering to do it themselves made me a happy momma.
Josh and I keep looking at each other because it all seems too good to be true! You guys, we signed the offer and got to pick our closing date, and because we are building, they give us flexibility in changing the closing date as it gets closer if the new house isn’t ready yet. Also, at any point we have the freedom to cancel the deal, however, they are locked in, which alleviates SO MUCH STRESS about a buyer falling out at the last minute of a traditional home sale.
Best part?
No showings.
No cleanings.
No staging.
No strangers running through our house while we park down the street during naptime.
Because Opendoor is buying the house, they handle getting it list-ready once we move out (paint touch ups, carpets cleaning, a deep clean, etc.) and we just get to ENJOY the process of moving. They aren’t flippers, they are just making the process so much easier for families like ours.
Say what!?
Opendoor is new to the Minneapolis area and the timing clearly has been perfect for our family. Not only that, but I seriously think we are saving so much money doing it this way. (They also have markets in across the country in Phoenix, AZ, Dallas-Fort Worth, TX, San Antonio, TX, Las Vegas, NV, Atlanta, GA, Nashville, TN, Charlotte, NC, Raleigh, NC, Orlando, FL, Tampa, FL, Houston, TX, Sacramento, CA, Riverside, CA, Denver, CO, Portland, OR, and Austin, TX.
(I know they also work with buyers but haven’t lived through that experience, but it’s worth checking out if you are looking to buy a home in the New Year!)
So, I couldn’t help but share with you how God answered another prayer for us in making this move a more simple experience than we could have ever imagined AND giving me the chance to focus on what’s to come with the new digs!
Now, framing on our new house begins this weekend (eeeekkkk!) and of course I have to share a few pictures of the process thus far! The kids are SO excited to have some woods to explore and we can’t wait for what’s next! Stay tuned to the blog for more updates in the weeks to come.
Trials Bring Joy 