Anyone else been gutted to sell house which you love?

Unicorn_cottage

Just wondering if anyone has felt the same? House has sold and it looks like we could complete in a couple of weeks at the earliest . I know on moving day I am going to be a wreck. I absolutely love the house and am gutted to leave it (as is my partner). We are moving as my partner wants to move back up north to be nearer to parents. The pandemic has brought all of this into sharp focus. I have no problem moving at all. I just absolutely love this house and never thought I would be so lucky to live in such a beautiful house. If we could lift the house up and take with up we would. Is it strange to be so attached?

onyx911

I didn’t feel this way about moving because I couldn’t wait to move but my parents downsized last year and said they found it really hard to hand over the keys to the agent on the last day. They sold a beautiful five bedroom detached house with two decades of memories and moved to a 2 bedroom bungalow. Downsizing made financial sense for them but they wished they didn’t have to. I felt very sad for them when they told us how hard they found it. They avoid driving past the house now too as it still makes them sad. 

I hope your move is a successful one and you enjoy your new home just as much as your old. 

Falafels

Unicorn_cottage said:

If we could lift the house up and take with up we would. Is it strange to be so attached?

In a word, NO! I found it even more difficult to let go of my garden emotionally (why, most of those plants I'd grown from seeds or cuttings...)

Good luck in your new place! xxx

tigerlily74

Yes I felt exactly the same when we completed last week. Like you I wished I could pack up my house and take it with me. We are moving in with my mum to my husband’s home town after my dad died suddenly in February so it’s all been really hard, even though it’s the best thing for us. Good luck to you. How do you feel about your new house? We are currently staying at my mum’s til it sells, I think we will love our new house once we have made it our own, it’s just hard to start again!

phoebe1989seb

Definitely felt gutted selling our last house, especially as it was the first time we'd given up on finishing a project 

It was an unusual property - very plain and unassuming from the road side, but go round to the back (where the front door actually was 🙄) and oh boy was it a stunner! Built in the mid 1850s but extended in Arts & Crafts style (my favourite period for architecture and interior styling) in the early 1920s, it was a rambling four bed detached with bags of character/original features, not to mention a 70' wisteria running along the facade.....

We sold it in order to buy a small, repossessed, 400 year old cottage with land in SW Wales and although we're gradually completely stamping our own personality on that (reconfiguring/extending etc), I still miss the old house like crazy.....not helped by the fact that the woman we sold to is a fairly prominent novelist who often posts pics of the house on instagram 🙄

DH, otoh, doesn't miss that house a bit - he hated the location (west Midlands) and instead he still pines for the house we owned before that, lol....a five bed Georgian thatched that I couldn't wait to sell!

Don't get me wrong, now that we've been here almost three years, we are very happy with our efforts to make a beautiful home and we do both feel settled.....it's that the last house was perfect in virtually every way ❤️ whereas this one is only just getting that way!

Good luck, OP, I'm sure it will turn out to be the right decision for you both....as in my head I know this was for us 

Unicorn_cottage

@onyx911 & @Falafels - thank you for your comments. They made me tear up x
@tigerlily74 No new house at present. We are moving in with my partner's parents who are lovely. We are trying to get into a strong position for buying as where we are moving is very competitive. So sorry to hear about your dad. What an awful year for you & your family. Yes am sure we will love our new house but this house represents so much to me that I know it will be hard to move on. Really hope your new house is as special as your last x

UnderOffer

Oh I absolutely loved my previous homes and right up until exchange I was more than happy to stay, however the minute we exchange I’m then overwhelmed with excitement for the new house and all the possibilities the new property can give. 

Once I’ve moved I don’t even think about the old property but I now know it takes me at least 12 months to feel settled. Then I’m in love all over again 😀. 

youth_leader

I loved my listed station, wood lice and all, but spent all of my pension and savings on repairs/oil/wood.  I'm looking forward to living in a small warm box of a bungalow with small bills.

Suseka97

I've been thinking much the same wishing I could pick up my house and move it with me to the new area.  We have recently retired and will be moving closer to my family in Devon, but moving away from my OH's family here in Norfolk.  It'll be a wrench for more reasons than just the house, if truth be told.  I'll miss our family here, our friends and the beautiful North Norfolk coastline and wonderful countryside.

When we moved to this house I have to admit I hated it at first, it was a hasty purchase decision because our upwards chain had fallen through late into the process, and we were under pressure from our buyers to move out and complete the sales chain.  I had absolutely no connection to the area or house for many, many months - not helped by the fact that the vendors left a pile of rubbish in the garden and garage, and the house smelt of rather pungent fragrances which took ages to clear.  I swear the vendor must have been burning incense for months!  Once the kitchen and bathroom had been ripped out and replaced and the garden had been given a bit of a makeover  - I loved it.  

Now I'm sad to leave it and although I really do like the house we are set to purchase, I wish I could just take this one with us.  I think, in part, it's all the memories and the sense of peace I feel whenever I walk through the front door.  We also have awesome neighbours, who we will miss a great deal.

So, to answer your question - no, its not strange to feel so attached, but I'm sure you will soon come to love your new home and I wish you good luck with your move to pastures new  

Lucys_Da

About 5 1/2 years ago I had to sell my forever home. A house that I had bought that was the worst house (condition wise) on one of the best streets in the city I lived in. I poured everything I had mentally, financially, physically and emotionally that I had into the property for 12 months. Maybe too much of all of those. 

4 years later my marriage came to an end and I had to sell. A wealthy family member offered to ‘help’ me out in order to keep the property but turned out it was more about him having access to the property so that in the long run he could access it for his own family. I loved that house and it hurt so much to sell it, but I moved into a ‘mini’ version of the property, not as big or as grand, but more suitable for my needs (still 4 beds and 2 reception lol) and I found myself again, it helped me to heal and I made some great memories there. 

I have moved my life on and 5 years down the line I’ve sold that house too, moved in with my amazing fiancée (renting for the first time in 20 yrs, money in the bank and no stress) and we have a 1yr old which keeps me busy. Life has its way of testing and curve balls are thrown, however, I believe everything happens for a reason and you’ll find somewhere you love again. Life is an adventure and you just find a new place to drop your anchor. You’ll be fine, have one last wistful look and the resolve to be happy somewhere else again - take that challenge and go make it happen. 

I still miss it but I never regret all the pain that I experienced and it just brings into perspective all the amazing things I have in my life...at the end of the day it’s only bricks and mortar!!

Suseka97

Lucys_Da said:

......... Life is an adventure and you just find a new place to drop your anchor. You’ll be fine, have one last wistful look and the resolve to be happy somewhere else again - take that challenge and go make it happen. 

I still miss it but I never regret all the pain that I experienced and it just brings into perspective all the amazing things I have in my life...at the end of the day it’s only bricks and mortar!!

Wise words indeed and its something I will keep in mind when I have to say my final farewells.  I'm already looking forward to new beginnings and need to remind myself that home is where the heart is