Personally, I would have tried to make the deal work even if the amount was lower than what I wanted. I would have just cut my losses instead of digging a deeper hole and trying to recover from that initial loss. I had a friend in college who lost thousands of dollars in gambling, and ended up losing tens of thousands when he tried to recover that initial loss. What other options does the OP have? Renting it? That would have been a mistake. One of the fundamentals of rentals is that the owner should live close by to keep an eye on the property. You can turn to a PM, but you have to go through a lot of indifferent ones out to find a good one. And, given how unique this property is, renting it out was going to be difficult as well. Reject the offer, and wait for another one? That wouldn't really help either. Its not like the market is going to get better soon, and will probably get worse. Who knows when the next offer will come? And, since the OP doesn't live there, the house is going to get dirty from dust and will show even worse. That certainly won't help. If the OP was still living at this house and not in a hurry to move, that would be one thing. But, the OP has already moved and is paying rent for her new place and mortage for an empty home. Those mortage payments for an empty house is going to cost her anyways. Its either lose money now, or lose it later in drips.

Hi annz, Thanks for your tips. The outside, recessed entry area is around 6 wide feet by 4 feet deep. The inside entry is a few feet larger. I agree that coach lights that stick out might be a problem in terms of blocking the view. Everyone, Thanks for your quick input. The electricians have been and gone, so hopefully we made the right decisions. We are roughed in for two exterior lights near the front door (two adjacent walls). Now my search will be for flat sconce style outdoor lights. Hopefully we can find that, as I agree with those who cautioned against not having bulky coach lights that stick out too far from the wall. Thanks again for rushing to answer me. It is great to have this forum at such times. Carol

That's going to look great! Is there any way to simulate 80" long? It looks like you might be able to put a leaf in your current table? Or if no leaf at least pull it apart to 80"? Or, if not that, move your current table down so it anchors one end of the 80" and find a big piece of cardboard to add to the other end? I agree your current table looks too small, but 80" is 1/3 larger and looks like it might overwhelm the sofa. I'm so visual that for me it would help to somehow get a better feel for the 80". Even if you move the table down to where one end of the 80" would go and hold the tape measure up to the other side. The width doesn't seem like a big change so not a big deal there. I would want the table to go to the end of the arms of the sofa, but maybe not quite so far past them. ? I'd also see how that measures up against the windows behind the table. Might help with the decision. Good luck!

If you are looking for pivot close, unless you are taller than me (5'6") 42in is not pivot-worthy. My current (needs to be remodeled) kitchen has 42in aisles in a "L" shaped kitchen. it's 39in countertop to countertop. it feels tight when people are helping... it's barely passable when the dishwasher is open... but it does work. But I cannot "pivot" back and forth between counters. It's more like pivot-step. if you are SERIOUS about having a traffic-free prep area and want to pivot back and forth, I think 39" between would probably be good (so 36-37in between counters). But think long and hard to see if you really want that. Mock it up. Live with the mocked up size a bit. Some people end up loving it. Others feel cramped. (I think for my remodel, I'm probably going to have to live with the 42in aisle for clean up side, I might shrink an inch or 2 for my prep side, but my prep side is the short side, so it's not quite the same situation as a long wall being "tight.")