Make moving house easier on your children

 

Selling your home can be a stressful and emotional experience, especially if there are children involved. Youngsters may not totally understand the situation and school age children can be reluctant to leave their friends, becoming resistant to the move. To make your selling and moving experience as smooth as possible, it is very important that everyone in the household understands the situation. Whether you decide to have a family meeting, or chat informally one-on-one, it’s up to you to figure out which dynamic best suits your situation.

Communication is key, so don’t forget to listen when you’re explaining. It’s not only your home and routine that are being disrupted, but your children’s as well.

The benefit of having happy children goes beyond the obvious. By keeping everyone in the family involved in the process, you should be able to create a more harmonious and co-operative household. Depending on their ages, responsibilities can be delegated – anything from keeping their rooms tidy and packing their toys to assisting with the day-to-day maintenance required to keep your home presentable and ready to be shown at a moment’s notice. Clean and clutter-free is what you’re after and the more hands you have helping, the better.

Your challenge will be not to make everything seem like a chore. Do things together and have some fun. Go ahead and offer some incentives and rewards like family movie night; a day trip to an amusement park; or for the teenagers in your home, concert tickets or something equally appealing from their electronics wish list.

Moving is listed as one of the top stressful life situations, selling your house shouldn’t be.

Sandy King

www.sandyking.ca

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Copyright 2008 Sandy King