Aspen Lane House Has Sold!!!

It is done!  We have closed on our house in Park City.  As of yesterday we no longer own property in the USA.  About a month after the initial offer came in the house is now owned by a new family.  Ashley and I are happy and sad at the same time. After our summer in Park City we knew it was not a place we want to come back to so we put it up for sale and luckily for us the right buyer came forward and is now the new owner.

Aspen Lane August 2018

At the end of October Ashley headed to Park City on her own and started organizing, donating and selling anything that would not be coming back with us to Mexico.  The kids and I joined her on the November 1st and we packed up the last of our remaining items that would fit in a suitcase or duffle bag. Seeing our artwork, furniture house stuff etc drive off with other people was difficult.  Pretty much everything in the house that was still there had some kind of memory attached to it from our time there.

The kids were patient and did not give us much grief for being bored since they were too busy just trying to stay warm under puffy down jackets, socks, beanies and blankets.  It snowed too!  They loved to see old photos of us and our families before they came along.  Friends and neighbors stopped by to say hello and some to even pick up items that they wanted for their own.  Everyone knew how we loved that house since many friends really enjoyed the house as well.  It just had a good feel to it and one could sense that just sitting in the living room.  The house just felt right.

During our time at the house we receive the buyer's pre-purchase inspection report.  The items that needed to be attended to were substantial to say the least.  Some things were not unexpected for a 40 year old house, some items were a surprise and some items were things we knew we couldn't pay for.  Lacking time or money to set everything straight pre-purchase we hoped that the buyer would come back with an amount to deduct from the purchase price to make up for the inspection issues.  Until that happened, all we could do was to keep packing so that we did not have to return to Park City at some later date.

After about 5 days of work, the kids and I left Ashley alone to finish the job and headed back to Mexico with 11 bags of personal and house items.  If we did not get to LAX and then on to PVR we may have had to stay somewhere until we could get seats to come home.  Fortunately we were able to  get to both destinations flying "stand by" and by the time we arrived in Puerto Vallarta all our luggage had made it as well.  Ashley stayed on to ship, clean and tie up lose ends and say her own "good byes" to the Aspen Lane house.  

During that time she had a chance meeting with the buyer.  Not something that usually happens but they introduced themselves to each other and had a bit of a visit.  Apparently the buyer had been recently widowed and had a 10 year old daughter and were relocating to Park City from an outlying town to be able to attend school in the school district.  The house reminded him of the time he spent with his wife in Maine and really wanted to make the deal work...and so did we.  He loved the house and the fact that it would continue to be occupied by a family made Ashley and I feel good about handing it off to new owners who would make their own memories.

The last sunrise from the Park City house.

Shortly after the kids and I got home and Ashley returned to Atlanta we received news from our realtor with an updated offer for a sale price deduction based on the items that needed to be remedied.  It was substantial though not really surprising and we agreed to the price deduction just to be able to walk away and allow the new owner to take care of items he felt were necessary to correct.  Just yesterday we received news that the deal was done and could see the funds that were wired to Ashley's account following the closing.  It was a cash offer so things went very smoothly with no banks involved for financing etc.

We are sad to leave the house but we are happy another family is excited to make it home.  We now turn to our construction project in Mexico that has been limping to the finish line due to an unresponsive contractor and capital we just didn't have any more of.  It is time to make memories in our new home south of the border.

Sale Pending!!

We have received and accepted an offer on the Park City house.  Now we wait, cross our fingers that nothing gets in the way or goes wrong and we close on schedule in November.  Needless to say we are VERY happy to have an offer come in!

It's Official! Our House In Park City, Utah Is For Sale!

We are selling our house in Park City!  The house we bought before we got married. The house we brought both kids home to after being born.  The decision seemed to come out of no where.  We never intended to sell and told everyone as much.  But as we drove away and headed to the airport our discussion in the car changed from "no way" to "let's ask some questions and crunch some numbers".

The house will be listed by our amiga, Jennifer Johnson, with Equity Real Estate Luxury Group.  Jennifer was also our Realtor when we bought the house back in 2003.  Her # is 435-901-1704.

We spent 6 full weeks putting the house back together and spent lots of $ doing so. Looking at the money that will continue to go out each month to pay for the improvements is steep.  Add that to the money out to pay for and finish the Sayulita house and the financial benefits of selling significantly outweigh the argument for keeping it.

These are some photos that our realtor had taken of the property by Kellie Hatcher Photography. We think they are great.  Makes me even sadder to see how good the house looks after working on the place for six weeks.  We still enjoy the mountains, are close to many people there and love our neighbors on the street but it just isn't the place we want to come back to when there are so many great places to go visit in the world.

The market is up, inventory is low and the rental market is saturated with similar properties to rent.  The house looks good and is empty to allow our Realtor to do her thing and see if she can find a buyer.  We are sad but at the same time we feel relief at the idea that selling the house off may pave the way to bigger experiences rather than putting more money and time into something we may never have the means to really fix up properly.  Our kids are unfazed by the idea since they were very young when they lived there and feel Sayulita is home too.  Hopefully, another family can pick it up and love it as much as we did.  Crossing fingers we can find a buyer soon.

Park City - A Month Back In The Mountains - Final Week

I has been a blur.  Getting the house together and rented again has been a task much larger than Ashley or I ever expected.  We figure for every year we were not here to maintain the house it resulted in a week's worth of work this summer to set it right again.  This house was a fixer upper when we bought it 14 years ago and it certainly is still that now.  We cannot walk away from this place for 6 or 7 years at a time and hope it holds up.  Yes, having tenants who will occasionally knock down weeds, cut the grass, trim a few limbs, or tighten a loose screw would be a big help but 7 years is too long to not do some real maintenance on the place.

Our home in the mountains.  Love this place...and hate it.

The question is always if we are going to sell it.  Selling would certainly make things simpler for us. We have been gone for a long time now. With a consistent renter in here and the current rental market we would finally might make a few dollars(just a few) to put back into the house or pay for improvements/maintenance.  We have replaced and fixed so many items this summer that we hope the house holds together for a few more years so we can wait to make a decision about selling it a while down the road.  The next time we come to PC and have to put this kind of work into this house means we are selling it or we are really remodeling it so it is ours for the long haul.  The lowest end of the market in Park City for a single family home is currently about $600,000. That is in our neighborhood and down the street from us.  A 3000+ square foot home with cheap builder finishes can begin around $800,000.  WTF?! We are around 2200 square feet so we are not looking at really BIG money for our place but should the day come there is room for actually improving the house or getting a decent return if we put the place up for sale.  Capital gains would hurt for sure so that is something to consider too.

Trace out early again on the trail.  Our backyard in Park City.

So, what has been going on?  Well, I hate to say it but more house stuff.  We got the new granite kitchen countertops installed and replaced the upstairs sink.  The granite countertops look great and with the addition of a new sink and fixture it is certainly an improvement over the cracking, rotting, crappy countertop that was in there for 10 years.  We actually liked the sink that was in the old kitchen so much during that time that we are taking it to Mexico with us to reinstall in our new kitchen.  It's bomber!

Trace will miss the bathtub.  Trace testing out his new mask.

As with the carpet, the granite installers were Mexican.  Out of habit I said something in Spanish.  As soon as I did that and they knew we actually lived in Nayarit the lead installer and his helper were quickly amigos.  They smiled, laughed, wanted to talk to the kids and asked lots of questions about how it was for us to be back in the USA, US prices, beer/tequila and things we liked about Mexico.  Just being able to field questions in Spanish about the install and their other questions made me feel pretty good about my language capabilities. We also made sure they found a 12-pack of Modelos in their truck when they left.

Girls chillin' in the neighborhood.

I was able to catch up with some ski buddies from "back in the day" for guys only dinner.  Beers, fish on the grill and of course a little tequila.  Lots of fun catching up with these guys who I have known since the mid 90's.  Older and maybe a bit wiser but pretty much the same guys.

The deck work and enclosure is wrapped up, windows cleaned and Ashley has been hauling chipped bark left by the fire department chipping service up from the street to cover the remaining parts of our yard. Looks good and only cost us some sweat. The grandparents have left and their contributions to the house clean up were so appreciated. Their efforts saved us so much time and energy. Thanks Gram-O and Gramp-O!

This is what I remember living in a neighborhood looks like.

We have had some interest in the house and have shown it to some folks but as I write this I can honestly say we are frustrated.  For 6 weeks we have busted ass everyday/all day, spent lots of money and really have not given the kids the summer of experiences we had hoped to.  They have not had the needed important time with us or seen things we had hoped to show them so they understand a bit better how cool where they were born can be.  All the energy, time, frustration and money and no one wants to rent the house...or even see the house for that matter.  Ashley and I sit at then end of the day totally spent from another full day and feel like we have nothing to show for it.  Is it worth it or should we just unload this place and not have to worry about it anymore.  Our highly anticipated summer in the mountains just did not turn out the way we hoped.  This is not to say that the kids did not have a good time being kids biking, hiking, swimming etc.  It is just that we had hoped to do a lot more things together and we will have to make up for it somehow.

The kids finally got to see their moose!

I think we are all ready to go back to our lives in Mexico.  Trace certainly is but absolutely has had a good time riding bikes everyday, hiking and hitting the pools.  Alex might be just fine staying a little while longer since her friends in town won't be around until school starts in another 2 weeks or so.  Ashley and I are ready for some new scenery and she is remembering just how bad her allergies get here.  I check the internet surf/beach cam in the morning and I get butterflies even if there are no waves.  So, yes, I think it is time for us to head home.

So it was the day of departure and we were exhausted.  We were up late continuing to fix items and up early doing the same.  In total, we left with 14 bags and paid big fees for overweight luggage.  The heaviest bag was 77 pounds!  Our little rented Subaru was packed.  So much so the kids had to share a seat and I rode with my knees up around my ears.

Barely room for the kids.

Packed!

 We checked the baggage and the family sat in first class with me in an empty row in Economy Comfort and over the 3 hour flight we prepared ourselves for customs.  In Puerto Vallarta there is a random bag checking process and we passed through with no need for inspection!  We grabbed a bag porter and he promptly delivered us to a transportation company who hooked us up with an air-conditioned private van to deliver us to Sayulita.  So happy to see the jungle!

Final leg of the return trip.  Stoked!!!!

Before and afters:

House then.

House today.

Then

Now

Then

Kitchen now.

Deck and backyard then.

Deck and backyard now.

Deck and backyard then.

Deck and backyard now.

Side deck then.

Side deck now.

Side deck and yard then.

Side deck and yard now.

Backyard then.

Backyard now.

Side deck and storage then.

Side deck and storage now. Bark in progress.

Trace's room then.

Trace's room now.

Alex' room then.

Living room now.

So that wraps up things in PC.  An endless 6 weeks of house work trying to erase 7 years of house neglect and lack of maintenance.  So did anything good come out of the summer in the mountains?  Absolutely!  First and foremost we were all together everyday since the middle of June...and we still like each other.  Ashley being able to fly out of Salt Lake City made this possible and it worked out great. The kids became hikers and bikers.  Everyday they rode bikes just like we did as kids and played with the kids on the street.  Trace especially loved the hiking.  About every other day Trace and I were out on the trail early.  He loved being in the woods and exploring the trails I knew so well from when we lived here.  He also loved the cross training it provided for his SUP racing and surfing back home.

Reflections:
-We know for sure that coming back to Park City would not be a reality.  Sayulita is home and there really was no doubt.  "You can never go home again" right?  PC has changed so much in what feels like a short time and is just not our place anymore.  It is a great place and we still have great friends there.  It is easy to see why it is growing but it is just not home anymore.
-Our neighbors are still awesome!
-I should never drink margaritas...ever!
-When Ashley and I team up we GET SHIT DONE!
-We forgot how cold it gets up here in the mountains when the sun goes down.
-Trace and I get excited watching the Sayulita beach cams.  Time to go home.

Park City - Winter and Summer

Just for kicks.  Again, Ashley has been digging up some great photos while we have been here.

Do we miss winter?  Yes.  Do we want to LIVE winter.  No!

Summer 2018

Winter 2004?

Park City - A Month Back In The Mountains - Week 5

We had to extend our visit to Park City by one week so that will give us a total of about 6 weeks of mountain time by the time we leave August 7th.  The extension of a week is totally bumming Trace out since waves have been firing in Sayulita and he misses his life in Mexico.  With the reported power situation being so bad in Sayulita this summer we may have picked a good one to be away for a little while.  No fans or AC for those who have it.  Bugs and heat.  Not a good combination.  It has also meant mold in our apartment.  Heat, humidity, no ventilation and the fans and dehumidifier not being able to run.  Not sure what we will go back to.

What have we been up to?  Oh, house stuff of course.  Some things are finally done and we can move on to other items.  Gram-O and Gramp-O have reported for work duty almost every day during their time in Park City and have been a HUGE help with cleaning, painting and providing some needed help with some demolition.  Alex and Trace have been able to pitch in a bit more that do not require much supervision.  Ashley is now seeing the finish line and is motivated to be done with this too.

Trace and Gram-O kicking ass in the kitchen.

The early morning hikes with Trace have continued and we are getting stronger and accustomed to the thinner air.  Hikes we needed multiple stops for a couple weeks ago are done with little or no break.  We may not have had water time but our legs and lungs will be ready for the surf when we get back.  Alex has mostly opted to sleep in but joins in with the strength workouts Trace has put together after the hikes.  The kid action on the street has been quiet lately so the bikes have been parked and have not moved.

Trace and I are rewarded by our early morning hiking efforts. 

 The grandparents have not only been a big help around the house but took us out to eat in Old Town one night.  We took the free Electric Express bus into town for dinner and arrived early so we walked around Main Street for a bit.  For years I would see visitors stop and look around and have no idea where to go or what to do once they arrived.  Well, we were suddenly in that position.  We were now the tourists strolling down Main Street and not locals anymore.  We all were in agreement that Main Street now resembled something like Main Street USA at Disney.  So clean, so tidy, so well maintained and essentially "perfect".  In the 90's I worked for the City of Park City and this was essentially our goal with Main Street, parks and facilities.  Now that Main Street and Park City has achieved that I feel that it has lost a lot of it's character and local feel.  It is all like a photo shoot.  It is "Disney-esque".  Some of the same names/establishments are still there but most of the smaller unique shops have been replaced by big name brands who can afford the current rents downtown.

Strolling the streets of Park City after dinner

Alex in front of the famous Banksy mural

Trace and I went out one night to get some Mexican food and to see my old softball team play in City Park.  I played a few nights a week for over a decade and brought the kids in their baby carriers to games as other players on my team helped me keep an eye on them or even give them a bottle if needed.  They grew up going to games until we moved to Mexico.  Well, there are not that many familiar faces left on the team since my last game 7 years ago but it was super fun to be at the ball field in City Park mid-summer in the mountains.  So many fun memories and it was great to see a few familiar faces and Trace interested in the game too.

From behind the backstop.  Photo by Trace.

Ashley and I celebrated our 14th anniversary.  Tequila and vino tinto!

How we roll.  Red and Reposado.

Access to more choices is certainly reality here and Alex took advantage of it this week when Ashley and her went to an equestrian outfitter shop in Salt Lake City.  Alex was borrowing riding clothes for her competitions and now finally has her own gear to take into this winter's season.  She looks great!

White pants and white polo.  If you do not have it you do not compete...so say the judges.

What is up in Sayulita? Besides the heat and power issues, the biggest news came from a friend of ours who took this photo of what looks to be our street getting ready for resurfacing. NOT a bunch of dirt thrown on the street to fill in the trench created but the summer rains but a real effort to begin putting down a real road. We will see how that develops but we might go back to a new house AND a new street.

So, here we are at the end of July and the house is not ready and we do not have a renter yet.  Got to fix both those situations in a hurry.  We will be on our way on the 7th.

Our neighbor's trees get some trimming. Super high boom.  3.5 stories plus...?

Reflections:
-All of our items here in Utah fit in to an 8x8 storage shed.  I incorrectly assumed we had very little in the way "stuff".  Nope, we still have lots of "stuff".  It was just efficiently stacked in the shed.
-People have big vehicles here that carry or tow really BIG toys.
-Gas prices.  Wow! With big vehicles so common I cannot even think about how expensive it is to fill the gas tank.  500 pesos will mostly fill our little car by in Mexico.  $30 USD does not even fill the tank of our rented Subaru Outback half way here.  When you have to drive everywhere here it gets painful.
-We are taking a lot of stuff back with us that have been in storage for a long time.  It will be nice to have some additional personal items back home in Mexico.