Like a Rolling Stone: July 2016

More on Packing and Packing Materials

Packing Paper vs. Newspaper

If you are going on the cheap, then use newspaper. It is readily available and you can ask neighbors to save it for you. You don't want the ads or inserts (the slick glossy stuff). It doesn't mold well. Just the regular newspaper. My recommendation is to use some disposable gloves when you wrap with it because otherwise your hands get black with the ink that rubs off.

Also, do NOT wrap white dishes with newspaper. The ink will rub off on the dishes and you will have hours of scrubbing time to clean them.

Packing paper has more body to it than newspaper and will stand up to more than one use. It also is a little heavier so often one sheet is enough whereas with newspaper I would use two or three sheets.

Packing paper is readily available at all the DIY stores or Moving specialty stores such as U Haul at a reasonable cost. The sheets are a standard size 24 x 30 inch although you can find a larger one also. It can be torn in half lengthwise for wrapping smaller items.

U Haul packing paper

I use lots of this -- probably 2000 - 3000 sheets of this for the entire house. Use it for:

Wrapping dishes and glasses
Wrapping knick knacks and collectables
Cushioning empty spaces in all your boxes so you don't get shifting
To line tops and bottoms of boxes that don't seal tight to keep out dust

Bubble Wrap
Bubble wrap comes in three sizes of bubbles (although the medium size is a little harder to find) and different width rolls. The narrowed width rolls (12 "K) are usually fine for dishes and small breakables. The wider rolls will be needed for artwork and framed photos.

I use the large bubble for large items, the small bubbles for small items. There is also an anti-static version that is for electronics. I will use that on those items where we don't have the original boxes but I do try to save the original boxes for printers, computers, TVs etc. It all depends on how much storage room you have.

Shop around for bubble wrap, or save it from items you get sent to you. I buy the large rolls of both sizes. I found Staples to have the best price around me for in store pick up.

Staples large bubble 100 ft. roll

When do I use bubble wrap vs. paper?

Paper is fine for everyday dishes and items you can easily replace. I use bubble wrap on my precious china, antique glass and china and silver tea sets, for example (not the flatware).

Foam sleeves, Rolls of Foam, and Styrofoam Peanuts

The foam sleeves can be handy but they are pretty expensive on a per sleeve basis. I do like the pink version for the non-static applications on my electronics. The foam rolls are better for larger or unusually shaped items. Best for electronics are the original boxes and packing material they came in -- especially for printers and scanners. I actually will not ship the electronics with the moving company anyway; those all go in the car with me.

Styrofoam peanuts are great for filling around odd shaped items inside boxes. For example, lamps or breakable art objects, even things like breakable pitchers I will wrap in bubble wrap, then place in a box and backfill with peanuts.

The House Hunt - Search via Internet

Internet Pre-Search
In these days of internet bringing photos and listings of houses for sal to our finger tips, you can do a lot of looking ahead of time before you ever actually go on the physical house hunt.

From the internet you can look at the houses inside and out, the neighborhood (Google earth), the tax records, services and businesses surrounding, the schools, the terrain, the roads, and local government.

Some popular sites for online house hunting are:
Zillow
Trulia
Realtor
Redfin

It does help if you know the general area where you want to search, but with any of those websites you can set up search filters for houses with certain attributes, price range and location. Those automatic searches will allow you to keep track of ones you have already looked at and notify you of new postings.

Some real estate agencies host their own front end searches to MLS listings in their region. These may offer additional features for you to rate the houses you have seen, or to automatically get updates if there are any changes to the listings.

Be aware! If you click the button that says "I want more information about this property" you will get several calls almost immediately from real estate agents. Some will be helpful, some will be pushy. If they find out you are just looking and not in the position to buy just yet, they may not be as helpful. I would suggest doing as much research as you can before you request more information from an agency. You will find the same home listed on different sites and they may have different photos or different information about the home.

Getting information on the houses you like
So much is available on the internet now, that you can get a lot of background information on the homes you like. For example:

Tax Records - check the county where located. Tax records will show the sales history of the property and ownership, a timeline of property tax assessments, permits for remodeling, possibly even photos if construction is relatively new
Geospatial maps - part of county website or perhaps state website. These can show the parcel ID, neighborhood and surrounding area including recent home sales, drainage and zoning features, voter districts, school districts, and a host of other types of information.
Google Earth will allow you to zoom into the area and look at the street level views of the neighborhood as well as getting a birds eye view of the area from above. This is a very valuable tool for identifying traffic and roads in the area, proximity to industry or commercial property, greenbelts or water nearby.

The House Hunt - in person

In Person
At some point you will need to physically go looking at the houses and area you have selected. You will be surprised by the some of the houses that look so good in the photos but so bad in person! The sense of the neighborhood is hard to pick up from photos or internet searches as well. You simply have to go in person!

Buying Direct from the Owner
You will make your own contacts to see houses For Sale by Owner. Many of them have open houses or stipulated viewing times during the week. Some are shown by neighbors or friends if the owners are absentee. The good thing about buying directly from an owner is you are by-passing the intermediary agent, and the price of these homes is less because you are not paying a commission to the real estate agents (6% is customary in WA although that is changing rapidly). The downside of purchasing this way is that you need to be aware of the steps necessary, be your own advocate and be prepared to work with a real estate attorney and a title company directly, as needed, to accomplish a satisfactory deal.

Buying through Agents
When you are ready, you can click the button for more information and start interviewing and sorting through the different agents that call you. Or if you already have a recommendation of an agent in the area, that is even better. If you are looking in more than one MLS region you will need to contact a real estate agent within each MLS region. They know most about their region and have ready access and agreements between agents that allow them to easily schedule showings within their own MLS regions. Outside their regions, it gets trickier because they have to actually call the listing agent and coordinate getting the keys and it just gets more complicated. They also tend to want to stay within the area that they are most familiar, which is better for the buyer.

We looked at several houses for sale by owner, but ultimately we wanted to look at houses represented by agents. So, we chose two different agents to show us houses in two different areas. There are lots of agents and you need to pick someone you feel comfortable working with. Since we were working from a distance, we needed someone willing to stick with us over a period of weeks while we search, then make themselves available when we were able to physically go out of state to look.

Some agents are pushier than others; some are in a hurry and when they find out you aren't looking next week, they aren't interested. Some specialize in high-end housing and some specialize with certain types of housing (senior communities, for example, or condos in the city). At any rate, you will have plenty of agents to choose from, so be picky and interview them to figure out what will work best for you.

Open Houses
Open houses are a great way to overview a lot of houses in one area in a short amount of time. Get the local newspaper on Friday and it will list all the open houses on the weekend. You can pick up paperwork at each house and then go back later for a closer look if you find one you like. Open Houses sponsored by listing agents will be hosted by a real estate agent who is on hand to answer question and you can count on them to follow up with a phone call later in the week.

As the time approached for our house hunting trip we decided to look in the suburbs of Kansas City and around the Topeka area plus the small towns in between. These areas are greener and more hilly than around Wichita, and it is more pasture land rather than farm land, so more favorable for my allergies and asthma.

We lined up appointments for a solid week of looking everyday. Finally on the last day, we found our house! It is just perfect for us. I am still pinching myself that I have come the complete circle to the place where I am so excited about this move and the new house. In fact, this place is our dreams! We have always wanted to live on a lake. The Lord is saying to me, "See I want to bless you both".

It is out in the country on Lake Perry with .8 acres of wooded property. Yet it is in a subdivision with a golf course, clubhouse, pool, restaurant, park, playground, and cohesive homeowner's association, and, just 20 miles easy drive to Topeka or Lawrence for doctors and shopping. The house has an awesome view of the lake from the large deck and a full walk out basement for grandchildren, parties and hobby space.