Chico Home Show
This past weekend (April 13th) we were a volunteer contractor for the VCE booth at the Chico Home and Garden Show. We had the opportunity to talk with a few Camp Fire survivors about their current housing situation and what they were thinking about doing next. I am trying to put together a list of common questions with answers to them. Hopefully I can provide some insight into the process of redevelopment or relocation. And fill in all of the in-between.
Questions
A big question that is among many of the Camp Fire survivors is, “do I rebuild in Paradise or move somewhere else?” That is a personal decision for each individual. You have to consider if the level of trauma that you experienced from the fire will permanently scar your comfort. It is important to feel safe, and not that Paradise won’t be safe. Paradise will probably never allow the amount of overgrowth again. Safety is a big question that each homeowner has to decide on. And on top of safety is the question of the psychological trauma that could have incurred. Will you be reminded of the loss when you see the changes in the town? A lack of buildings, trees, and whatever other missing parts of the town that used to be there could cause some grief. I won’t go into too much detail about this in this post, but will write about it soon.
Questions Continued
Continuing on from the psychological trauma questions, if you do think it would be best to move on from Paradise, it raises the question of affordability and location. Meanwhile buying a home at this time comes at inflated prices due to California’s housing shortages. If you find a house within the range of your budget from insurance, and the layout is perfect, or only needs minor changes, it may be the best way to go. The housing shortages does cause houses to be more expensive, and could be outside of your budget. You own the land in Paradise, and the city is giving great prices for permits. A new home is your own design, its exactly how you want it. And its brand new. With the prices to build a new home you end up paying less for what you want versus an older home that isn’t exactly how you want. And older houses have the potential to have lots of much needed repairs down the road.
Decisions
This an entire topic will be an ongoing discussion, and I will be going into more in-depth thoughts and answers about the subjects that were brought up here and at the Chico Home & Garden Show. Trauma comes in many forms, and there are many ways that it can be triggered. I will have a new post about this soon to explain some ways to identify trauma. I will be talking about a checklist you can have to help in making those important decisions. If you choose to return to Paradise, we will have the answers for you on how to navigate the rebuild.