Where to start so much has happened since our last blog. Coalgate went on the market in early July with an auction date of 3 August. All the prep work had been done so it was now time for marketing and open homes. Logistically it was a challenge as we were now living in Blackball but still needed to make sure the property was ready for open homes. The weather wasn’t on our side it was wet and cold. Our main source of heating at Coalgate was firstly the sun and secondly our logburner. There wasn’t a lot of sun and no one was there to get the fire heated up before the open homes. So we had to keep the underfloor heating cranked up and leave the heatpump on in the ‘barn’ for the 4 weeks of open homes. Every Friday night we would return to make sure all was ready and leave Sat am to return to Blackball. But we wouldn’t leave Coalgate emptied handed there was always a load or two and in winter there was always the battle of the passes. Were they going to say Porters or Arthurs Passes were closed to towing or we needed chains. Fortunately throughout all of our backwards and forwards we have always made it through which we were grateful for however there were a couple of close calls, but we had luck on our side with us being the last car through.

In the meantime back in Blackball there was still work that needed to be done. It was winter and we had a logburner but it still needed to be installed. The install was delayed as the rain meant the builder had lots to catch up on so we decided that we would give it a go ourselves (how hard can it be). So on a fine day we decided to give it a go. It took a bit longer for us working out all the different flues and in which order they went but after a bit of head scratching we got there in the end. We love our fire!

Our next jobs were getting the soffits up on the front and back as well as the downpipes installed and a few inside jobs such as bathroom flooring and stair handrails. Al also took the opportunity to tidy up a bit more of the section with a digger. We had Jon Mathews call in and he quickly installed the last few roofing flashings the original installer had not finished. (Thanks Jon!) We are now at the point of getting council sign off.

All this time the marketing campaign continued on the house and the Auction date rolled around. Disappointingly after the agent suggested there would be at lease four bidders, it reduced to one on the day. This meant the house was passed in and become a deadline sale with the 4 interested parties. The original bidder was the only one close to our reserve and after a disappointing negotiation with our agent, where we were going backwards, we decided to pull the house from the market (nothing like a bit of drama). The franchise owner stepped in to take over and started negotiating strongly on our behalf and they accepted the offer…. River Retreat was sold!

So now it’s the big pack up and the final move to Blackball. It’s great to have the place sold and some clarity for the future but Al and I are pretty exhausted so we are looking forward to our 10 day holiday in Rarotonga for a big reset. When we get back it will be the final packup at Coalgate and by mid October we will be fulltime in Blackball. We have already been made to feel as ‘local’s and are looking forward to being here 24/7. Watch this space for the big house build. 🙂