Location, location, location

“Maybe we should sell the house.” We made the decision in a matter of days.  It was early winter 2008--right around the time, you may recall, that the U.S. economy tanked.  People thought we were nuts trying to sell a house in Vermont…in the middle of winter…right after the housing bubble burst.  But we love a challenge.  Well, Ben does.  I love a good realtor.  So we got one (thanks Garry!)—and sold the house in less than a month.

We thought living on the outskirts of downtown Burlington would be more convenient, since my job and Ben’s classes were there.  So we embarked on a hunt for our new home-sweet-condo. Our list of requirements looked something like this:

1.  Large enough to fit a baby grand piano

2. On the first floor to accommodate the family dog who is slightly arthritic but doesn't know any better

3. Rentable, in the event that we don't go to UVM COM

4. Preferably with an instant water heater for the ever-important hot cocoa

5. Doesn't smell like cat urine or wet dog (unless you watch Hoarders, you'd be surprised the way some people live!)


After a couple of weeks of diligent searching and numerous visits to questionable neighborhoods and even more questionable condos, we walked into 800 square feet of clean, new condo in a "colorful" area of Burlington known as the Old North End. Charming.  In its own way.