And Just Like That… We Sold Our House

A story of letting go, transitions, and major manifesting

Our home for almost 18 years. This is where love has lived.

I am smack dab in the middle of a season of transitions. 

Really it started over a year ago:

• I was laid off from my job in March 2023

• My husband’s work slowed considerably due to the strike in the entertainment business, and it hasn’t bounced back

• I’ve been exploring new ways of being in business for myself… stepping outside of so many comfort zones

• My son graduates high school this week and is off to college in the fall

• This past Friday, May 31st, we officially sold our house

• On June 24, 2024 (on my 24th wedding anniversary), we move

Yes, a (long) season of transitions. Or in other words: Life.

For the sake of this particular newsletter, I’m focusing on the why, how, and when we sold our house. It’s been emotional, yet it’s also been magical.

SO, WHY SELL OUR HOUSE?

Something my husband and I have talked about in the past years is how we someday want to move from Los Angeles, even though there is much to love about the City of Angels. It’s where we met when I auditioned to be a backup singer in his band 30 years ago; it’s where we fell in love; it’s where we quit our day jobs and started our own band; it’s where we decided to land after years of traveling with our band so that we could lay down roots; and it’s where we have raised our children and built our family.

See? Much to love.

However, while we have deep affection for this city, we’ve always said that someday we plan to move: away from the L.A. traffic, the high cost of living, and congestion.

And we thought that we would live in our house until that move, but circumstances have changed.

We are moving now.

Not from Los Angeles, not yet – our daughter is still in her high school years. However, moving from our house, our beloved home, has come sooner than expected.

WHY?

See above notes of my being laid off from my job, my husband’s work slowing way down, and sending kids to college.

While we are both smack dab in our what’s next, we started questioning: how hard do we want to try to keep up with the upkeep of this house? What feels like a smart move financially?

What is the best adult decision to make, for our future and our children’s future?

We started really talking about it in the middle of April: should we sell the house and downsize? Should we sell it and invest that money for our future? Or should we try different ways to keep living here? We could try to keep it up, but to what expense?

We talked and we talked. There were tears. There were feelings of disappointment. Vulnerability and some shame. Mad, too. There were feelings of worry and anxiety. How would the kids react and how could we let go of this sweet home where we have grown our family? Where would we go? What would that look like?

But also…

There were also feelings of excitement and relief and possibilities.

I had asked my husband a few months ago: “How do you want to feel in your life?”

He said, “I want to feel peace.” I said, “I want to feel free.”

I wondered: could this decision be the doorway to greater levels of peace and freedom?

WHAT SEALED THE DEAL (ENTER THE MAGIC AND THE MYSTICAL)

Our living room peeking into the kitchen. So many movies, Christmas trees, and family meetings took place here.

Here’s where manifesting comes into play…

In the middle of April Jonathan (my husband) and I were in our kitchen/dining room area of our home. We were looking at each other, in discussion about the house. Is it the right decision – is this the moment where we say yes to moving forward with selling our house? Should we do it? Should we say yes?

As we were talking, I realized I heard a tapping sound in the background.

Tap…… Tap…… Tap ….. Tap.

I stopped and looked behind me at our living room’s picture window.

There, on top of a bush outside of our window, sat a little bird staring in at us.  

It flapped its wings and flew into the window. Tap.

It sat back down for a moment, then flapped its wings again and flew into the window. Tap.

It wanted our attention. 

It proceeded to do this a few times as Jonathan and I both stood and watched the bird in wonder. This felt like something was happening on purpose.

I turned to Jonathan and said, “This is a sign. This is a sign from our spirit guides or the Universe that we should move forward and sell our home. This is our yes.” To me, it felt crystal clear. He agreed.

When we looked back to the window, the bird was gone. 

A feeling of softness rushed over me. Relief and lightness.

We would sell our home.

WHAT CAME NEXT: THE TIMELINE 

We had a family meeting letting our kids know. Reactions were mixed. One is leaving for college in the fall, one is still at home, so I imagine you can fill in the blanks on how each felt. There were some tears.

We said, we will do this together as a family. Wherever we decide to go next, we will decide as a family. We will hold each other closely during this whole transition. We will do this with love.

On April 23rd, I reached out to our sister-in-law, a realtor in Atlanta, Georgia, who also holds her real estate license in Los Angeles. Can you help us, we asked? She jumped on it with her partner here in L.A.

On May 5th, official photos were taken of our home.

On May 8th, it went on the market.

On May 9th, two private parties came to see the house before the open houses that weekend.

On May 10th, we received our first offer. It was from the very first people who stepped foot in our home.

On May 11th, we accepted the offer. (We also had backup offers, too.)

Inspections were made and papers were signed.

And on May 31st, the sale of our house officially closed. We sold our home. 

WHAT WE WANTED TO MANIFEST IN THIS PROCESS

Looking at our guest house, studio, and sauna space. That sauna as been fun!

Selling our home was literally as if we went into the restaurant of the Universe, sat at the counter, and gave the Universe our order. Here’s what we asked for:

• My daughter wanted a nice family to buy this home, so that within these walls there will continue to be a feeling of love, warmth, and support. She wanted nice, good people.

• My husband wanted a musician to move in so that the person could use and appreciate his studio.

• My husband and I both wanted to receive an offer for our asking price – “This, or something better.”

• We wanted people who loved our home as much as we did – who felt the energy and love in this space.

• And finally, I wanted there to be ease in the whole experience. I meditated every day: let there be ease in the sale of our home. Let us attract the most helpful, compassionate, loving people. Let there be ease, let there be ease, let there be ease.

WHAT WE ACTUALLY MANIFESTED

As a family, we had this shared vision of what we wanted to manifest. We all held it, every day. Talked about it, thought about it, played out what it would look like.

Here’s what happened:

• A nice young couple bought our home. Turns out that they are from our neighborhood and were familiar with our house. 

• They are pregnant with a baby due in October. Plus, they have two dogs.

• He is a touring musician and wants a studio.

• They love our home and see themselves raising their kids here; gardening in the backyard; having BBQs; and working in the studio. (She is also the director of an incredible charity that my daughter just so happened to be volunteering for the day after we received their offer.)

• They offered a bit over our asking price – and, all cash.

• They offered a rent-free lease back to us, so we can stay in the house in June, giving us time to fully move out by July 1st.

At the end, they did ask us to take some money off. We said no; they said “Okay. We still want the house.” It was done; it was theirs. (I will write a future article on the unwavering belief I’ve had in this house. This process has taught me a lot about how to have unwavering belief in myself, about the topic of self-worth, and how when we believe in something with such conviction, it’s like an immovable mountain. I’ve never questioned the value of this home because I believe in the energy and love that it holds.)

This whole process has unfolded with so much ease. The Universe delivered.

WHAT’S NEXT

We move at the end of this month. We found a townhouse that fits just about all of our needs. It’s two blocks from my daughter’s school, so she’ll be able to walk from school. That’s two hours of driving a day that we’ll have back.

The ceilings are high, there’s a lot of light, and there is a central space for us to live and dine together, like we’ve always done. There is plenty of storage, bedrooms, and bathrooms for us all.

We’ll bring our good energy and love to this space. 

We’ve manifested our what’s next for the next two to three years.

As we move forward, we will be able to focus on things that feel expansive and growth-oriented instead of focusing on all that’s needed to run a house. This is our intention. This is our desire.

Peace and freedom.

AND SO, WE MOVE ON

Will there be more tears when we finally move out at the end of June? Most assuredly. This house, she is special. We love this old lady. This is where we’ve grown together as The Grossmans. I’m so happy that she will provide shelter and warmth to a new growing family. She loves children, I just know it. And dogs. And musicians.

So, we will do our work to stay grounded and keep coming back to a feeling of non-resistance, fearless faith, and love. To remember that this is not happening to us, it’s happening for us. Sometimes the Divine moves things for us to help us get unstuck, and to keep us evolving and expanding. 

Our family will continue to connect with our spiritual centers: we will meditate, we will journal, we will walk, we will connect with our angels and spirit guides, we’ll notice signs and synchronicities, and we’ll continue to talk about how we are connected to and guided by something greater than ourselves. So that our inner compass is our guiding light – and not allowing the outer to dictate our inner. This is our work. This is our journey.

Also, most importantly, our home is each of us. It’s not four walls. It’s us. It’s me. It’s you.

And so, our journey continues.

Thank you for reading. Keep holding the light.

xo, Laurie