My sister and I left Chicago decades ago to start our own families in less crowded metropolitan spots, Minneapolis and Milwaukee, leaving behind our widowed mother. She lived alone, in a home where the porch and her bedroom could accommodate her wheel-chair bound lifestyle, until it became unsafe for her. She suffered from alcohol-related dementia (ARD), and was increasingly allowed to mix pain pills with alcohol by a selfish caregiver who was quickly fired. Mom agreed she didn’t feel safe at home. When she turned 71, she agreed to move into a local nursing home, and sell the house.
We had been traveling to Chicago monthly for the previous 90 days, alternating weeks so mom had a visitor as she made the adjustment to nursing home life.
The house went up for sale. It had sold in three days after the listing. My sister persuaded our mom to lower the price to seal the deal on the very first offer. She also had mom agree to pay the buyer’s closing costs, a deal they couldn’t resist. She then handed authority over to me at the point of contract negotiations over inspection issues. The house was built in 1952, never once remodeled and had no handyman on site since 1994 when our Dad died. I had a lot on my list. This particular weekend we were both in town on a mission: clean out mom’s house in preparation for the closing. We had to get the job done in one day, and do it in 3 hours in order to get back to caring for our own children in neighboring states. [Read more…] about How to Run an Estate Sale in 3 Hours