Selling homes in Montreal’s West Island, I deal with all sorts of people — from varying backgrounds, with different priorities, and embracing a multitude of approaches to the process of buying or selling property. Sometimes the people that I deal with believe that a hard-nosed approach is going to get them farthest in a negotiation. […]
Dear 2017
Dear 2017, As we approach the end of the year, I’m a bit out of sorts. I am tired … and feeling more like lemon than lemonade. In short, I am not myself right now. And I really don’t want to enter a bright and shiny New Year in this way. And so I have […]
Clearing the Clouds: On Bookkeeping and Home Selling
“Your bookkeeping is a pleasure to work with; detailed and balanced.” Those very words were said to me today by my accountant. I KID YOU NOT. I nearly fell off my chair. I’ve run my business doing my own bookkeeping, recording everything and putting expenses into categories that made sense to me, but without any […]
Moving and Life-Preservers: When Downsizing is Right-Sizing
This post is ninth in the series on my family’s decision to downsize. Links to previous posts can be found at the end of this article. I want to say that once we had made the decision to downsize, chosen where we wanted to go, found the right home for us, figured out how to […]
You’d Better Take Care of That: On Corrections and Home Ownership
When I was a student finishing up my Master’s degree in criminology at the University of Ottawa, I was lucky enough to get a full-time job at the Correctional Service of Canada. I had previously put in many unpaid hours there as a student doing my practicum (a “stage” in Quebec speak). My boss at […]
We Have Too Much Crap: When Downsizing is Right-Sizing
This post is eighth in the series on my family’s decision to downsize. Links to previous posts can be found at the end of this article. So you’ve decided to downsize. Whether it’s for financial reasons, peace of mind, an ego check, simplifying your life, or moving to a neighbourhood that better suits you, sooner […]
Pick Your Poison and Buckle Up: When Downsizing is Right-Sizing
This post is seventh in the series on my family’s decision to downsize: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Links to previous posts can be found at the end of this article. What sounds worse to you: owning and paying for two homes at the same time, not knowing how long that will go […]
The Next Reality Check: When Downsizing is Right-Sizing
This post is the sixth in a series on my family’s decision to downsize. Links to previous posts can be found at the end of this article. By now, my family and I had decided that it was time to downsize. We had even planned where we wanted to move AND — talk about putting […]
Ego is a B*tch: When Downsizing is Right-Sizing
This is the fifth post in a series on my family’s decision to downsize and how we went about doing it — the good, the bad, and the ugly. You can find links to previous posts in this series at the end of this article. I’m worried that I’ve made it seem like my family’s […]
Selling a Lifestyle Change: When Downsizing is Right-Sizing
This post is the fourth in a series on downsizing, written about my own personal experience with this painful yet liberating process. The first post can be found here, the second here, and the third here. Our decision to downsize did not come about in a linear, straightforward way. It was much more fluid. Feeling […]
