I think I found my new home!

[frau kaleun]

So, went out today with my realtor friend/co-worker and another friend and looked at half a dozen places, and I think I'm gonna make an offer on one of them. I'll do another walkthrough with my sister and her Mr. Fix-It husband just to get a second opinion on things that might need to be fixed or replaced... which will probably not be much, from what we could tell today. Everything seems to be functional, all appliances are included except a microwave which I've already got, so replacements can probably be elective over time because I want something different, instead of being based on the fact that OMG I DON'T HAVE A REFRIGERATOR? :huh:

Really nice condo with an attached garage (YAY!) that is an end unit (YAY!) in a nice community very close to both the major N/S and E/W highways, also a bit closer to my office than where I live now, also very convenient to major local shopping areas, restaurants, and all that stuff.

It was already my favorite of all the ones I'd seen so far, just from what I saw online, but it turned out to be a lot more spacious than was obvious from the pictures, and there were three rooms that weren't IN the pictures and one of them wasn't even mentioned in the listing.

Living room, dining room, eat-in kitchen, den/study and half bath on lower level. Three bedrooms and two full bathrooms on upper level. The two "spare" rooms upstairs are smallish but I probably wouldn't do a full second bedroom in either one of them anyway... because, you know, if you have a guest room, it just encourages people. :O:

Anyhoo - it's more than 20K below the top of my price range at the listed price, and in much better shape and nicer and bigger and more "homey" than any of the more expensive places I've looked at - and the cheaper ones are cheap for a reason that often involves having been abandoned after a foreclosure and pretty well trashed, or else the persistent odor of cat pee which drove us out of one place before we even got past the front hall, or else they are just butt ugly and cramped and badly laid out on the inside. In many cases they are just glorified versions of the apartments that are ubiquitous in this area and look like where I live now with a couple small extra rooms and slightly more storage space. No thanks.

This place I like - it looks more like a home inside.

So - gonna talk to my lender guy to see if I can get a ballpark figure on what the monthly payments would be, and talk to the electric co. to see if I can get an idea of what the average bill is there when occupied, and then make an offer unless some kind of dealbreaker presents itself at the next showing.

Wish me luck! I'm excited!

[Reece]

I wish you luck and hope it is all you are looking for!:yep:
Is it your first home buy?:hmmm:

[frau kaleun]

I wish you luck and hope it is all you are looking for!:yep:

Thanks!

Is it your first home buy?:hmmm:

Yep. And hopefully my last. :O:

[Cybermat47]

Good luck with it! Although I don't understand most of the financial terms. The innocence of youth :O:

[frau kaleun]

Although I don't understand most of the financial terms.

Neither do I. The ignorance of single, childless middle age. :O:

[Red October1984]

Hey frau kaleun! That sounds great!

Good luck with it! Hope it all goes well! :up:

[Tribesman]

Good luck Frau.
Just a couple of things.
Double check on your surveyors report.
Get local information from two good sources, the police(of course), the mailman(an often untapped source of indepth knowledge of the neighbourhood and its properties).

[Cybermat47]

the mailman(an often untapped source of indepth knowledge of the neighbourhood and its properties).

He also knows which houses have dogs :yep:

[Feuer Frei!]

Just elaborating on what Tribesman said, do some 'drive-bys', early in the morning, lunch time, late afternoon, late at night, do this during a week day and then on the weekend, you will find out if the neighborhood is noisy, party people etc etc.
Maybe talk to neighbours that have been there for a while.
Recon mission :D

Good luck with it all, hope it's a dream come true event for you.

[Herr-Berbunch]

Good luck, Frau. I'd also recommend driving by at differing times.

[The Enigma]

Congrats with the new home Frau.

[BossMark]

Enjoy your new home and I hope its what you are looking for frau :yep:

[u crank]

Good luck frau kaleun.

Some good advice has been given. ^^^

There's no place like 'your own' home. :up:

[Skybird]

Do you buy your new home mod via Steam or Nexus?

[Takeda Shingen]

Good luck with everything! Always exciting to be a new home owner!

[Red October1984]

Do you buy your new home mod via Steam or Nexus?

:har: Is it compatible with the 1.47.23 version of humanity?

In regards to the recon mission, I recommend sending in the Spy Plane or the Drone.

If not them, at least some Blackwater Mercenaries.... :D

[Sailor Steve]

Awesome news!

Posted right after I went to bed last night, so I missed it until now. If it's the one you want, I hope it works out. :sunny:

[frau kaleun]

Thanks everybody!

I will probably do a few drivebys since it's so close to work. If nothing else I'll want some idea on how bad the traffic is during morning/evening rush hours. And yeah at least one on, say, a late Friday or Saturday evening is a good idea.

One thing I did notice, it was very quiet yesterday when we were there and it was early afternoon on an absolutely beautiful day - sunny, unseasonably warm - but there were not hordes of kids/teens/people running around outside making a lot of noise. Since the area around my apartment building has lately become the unofficial playground/hangout for all the young people in the neighborhood, this was a big deal. Don't get me wrong, I like kids - I just don't want to live and (try to) sleep in the middle of a public playground, lol.

[GT182]

Congrats Frau Kaleun! Enjoy the space and quiet. ;)

The ignorance of single, childless middle age. :O:

That is not always a bad thing. ;) If you had kids now you might not be able to afford that condo. Kids are more expensive than any thing I've ever seen in all my years.

And no, I have none of my own either. :D Just step kids all grown and their animals. That's bad enough. I'd rather play in a pool full of leaches. :yep:

My 'kid' is my 66 GTO. Always treats me with respect. Never bothers anyone nor does it get in trouble. And I only have to feed and clean it every-so-often. :D

[Jimbuna]

Good luck in your new place of abode...ivite me over for the housewarming and I'll bring a bottle :sunny:

[swamprat69er]

Congrats on the new home and welcome to the club of homeowners!

i would post a pic of my 10 kids, but they wont group together for the shot. ;)

[geetrue]

So like would you like to get married to take away that stigma of having to put down the words an unmarrried woman aka frau kaleun after your name.

We could have the same relationship as I had with my ex-wife, it was a non sexual relationship lol

I have a 31' motorhome I could park on the street or something like that.

I even qualify for VA no down payment guranteed loan ...

Let me know if your interested ... I have RV will travel :yep:

[swamprat69er]

So like would you like to get married to take away that stigma of having to put down the words an unmarrried woman aka frau kaleun after your name.

We could have the same relationship as I had with my ex-wife, it was a non sexual relationship lol

I have a 31' motorhome I could park on the street or something like that.

I even qualify for VA no down payment guranteed loan ...

Let me know if your interested ... I have RV will travel :yep:

Now there is a proposition for you.:D

[Red October1984]

So like would you like to get married to take away that stigma of having to put down the words an unmarrried woman aka frau kaleun after your name.

We could have the same relationship as I had with my ex-wife, it was a non sexual relationship lol

I have a 31' motorhome I could park on the street or something like that.

I even qualify for VA no down payment guranteed loan ...

Let me know if your interested ... I have RV will travel :yep:



This post is not creepy at all... :timeout:

[frau kaleun]

So like would you like to get married to take away that stigma of having to put down the words an unmarrried woman aka frau kaleun after your name.

We could have the same relationship as I had with my ex-wife, it was a non sexual relationship lol

I have a 31' motorhome I could park on the street or something like that.

I even qualify for VA no down payment guranteed loan ...

Let me know if your interested ... I have RV will travel :yep:

Well, that's not the least romantic offer I've ever had, but... all things considered I think maybe I'll just settle for getting a cat. :O:

[Takeda Shingen]

Well, that's not the least romantic offer I've ever had, but... all things considered I think maybe I'll just settle for getting a cat. :O:

Good call on that one. Geetrue, we don't get that many women around here. Let's not get all creepy and end up with one less, okay?

[swamprat69er]

Well, that's not the least romantic offer I've ever had, but... all things considered I think maybe I'll just settle for getting a cat. :O:
I got 5 that are barely tameable.:har: You can have 'em all, if you want.

[Jimbuna]

Well, that's not the least romantic offer I've ever had, but... all things considered I think maybe I'll just settle for getting a cat. :O:

Wise choice me thinks :03:

[Sailor Steve]

Meow. :sunny:

[em2nought]

What are the maintenance fees? How much do they go up each year? How many of the homes in the HOA are occupied vs for sale or in foreclosure, etc? Is the HOA one of those that sues you the day after fees are past due? Just some of the things you might want to know also.

[Onkel Neal]

Good luck frau kaleun.

Some good advice has been given. ^^^

There's no place like 'your own' home. :up:

That's exactly what I was going to say.

Glad to hear it, FK. Congrats and enjoy. I wish you many cozy, quiet and content evenings where you can surf the web, quest in Skyrim, and listed to LvB in peace and comfort. :salute:

Neal

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/picture.php?albumid=727&pictureid=6494

[Wolferz]

We'll all be needing your new address. So we can show up without warning to raid your fridge, sleep on your couch and put our feet on your table while we watch tv.:03:

[frau kaleun]

We'll all be needing your new address. So we can show up without warning to raid your fridge, sleep on your couch and put our feet on your table while we watch tv.:03:

See, this is why I'm gonna hafta prop that big black belt diploma right up there in the front window. :haha:

[Red October1984]

We'll all be needing your new address. So we can show up without warning to raid your fridge, sleep on your couch and put our feet on your table while we watch tv.:03:

PARTY AT FRAU KALEUN'S! :woot:

[Jimbuna]

We'll all be needing your new address. So we can show up without warning to raid your fridge, sleep on your couch and put our feet on your table while we watch tv.:03:

One can well imagine the scene :O:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VnUSSLvBHqg/UEYoFqOYkII/AAAAAAAADPQ/1gjLQM2K0wk/s1600/Pushing+and+Pulling.jpg (http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=pushing+door+funny&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=Ix8R1cjf8S4KOM&tbnid=Vo2dMxc83Z4AHM:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffralfonse.blogspot.com%2F2012%2F0 9%2Flk-431-37-pushing-and-pulling.html&ei=kKU9UZj5IIrN0QWpwIG4DQ&bvm=bv.43287494,d.ZGU&psig=AFQjCNHJ5sm4CqYUTy3ukhJHzD-HLmLpJw&ust=1363080952705739)

[Wolferz]

See, this is why I'm gonna hafta prop that big black belt diploma right up there in the front window. :haha:

I beats easy, you won't need the show of force.:D

Another sign that works...

FORGET THE DOG
BEWARE OF OWNER!

[AVGWarhawk]

Frau,
I just closed on my 3rd home. Things are a bit different these days concerning financing. Years ago I had to put down a large percentage on my first home. My second home all I needed was a pulse and two paycheck stubs. As of the past three months on the house we closed on just last week, I never had a body cavity search by the finance folks like this...EVER. It was to the point I felt like a criminal. Every dime that deposited into my checking account I had to explain where it came from. Not my paycheck but other larger deposits. They do this to assure you have not other outstanding obiligations financially. Also, pre-approved does not amount to a hill of beans. Not until you go through the process getting actual approval for the purchase are you in the clear. At that time do not apply for credit. Do not run up a credit card. These folks will look and continue ask for statements, stubs and a pint of blood. No matter how much they hound you remember that the finance people are in business to approve a loan. The way they probe your rear you would think otherwise.

It's very stressful to purchase a home. Eventually the smoke clears and you are standing with the golden key to your new home. Also a tidy interest rate write off every April(at least for now). Remember to set aside start up money. Moving van/guys if needed. New blinds if needed. Things of that nature. That crap adds up.

Good luck! :up:

[vienna]

Congrats on finding a possible new "Frauheim"...

Now, besides all the fiscal and recon advice, I'd like to point out, in addition to posting your black belt certificate in the front window, perhaps also placing a bust of Beethoven next to it might deter ne'er-do-wells; a scowling LVB would probably frighten away anyone...

Good luck with the new digs...

<O>

[frau kaleun]

Frau,
I just closed on my 3rd home. Things are a bit different these days concerning financing. Years ago I had to put down a large percentage on my first home. My second home all I needed was a pulse and two paycheck stubs. As of the past three months on the house we closed on just last week, I never had a body cavity search by the finance folks like this...EVER. It was to the point I felt like a criminal. Every dime that deposited into my checking account I had to explain where it came from. Not my paycheck but other larger deposits. They do this to assure you have not other outstanding obiligations financially. Also, pre-approved does not amount to a hill of beans. Not until you go through the process getting actual approval for the purchase are you in the clear. At that time do not apply for credit. Do not run up a credit card. These folks will look and continue ask for statements, stubs and a pint of blood. No matter how much they hound you remember that the finance people are in business to approve a loan. The way they probe your rear you would think otherwise.

It's very stressful to purchase a home. Eventually the smoke clears and you are standing with the golden key to your new home. Also a tidy interest rate write off every April(at least for now). Remember to set aside start up money. Moving van/guys if needed. New blinds if needed. Things of that nature. That crap adds up.

Good luck! :up:

Well, I don't know what else is coming or what to expect, so I'm sure it will be a new and exciting experience. :D I've sent bank statements, paystubs, and W2s to the bank's loan dude already. I have zero debt except for what's on the Amazon card I use for everyday purchases and pay off twice a month. I got the letter notifying me that they'd checked my credit scores and let's just say that they are really, REALLY good. :yeah:

I've got a 25% downpayment on the place I want, and that's assuming I pay the price at which it's currently listed... plus $5K set aside for other expenses without touching my other savings. I should be able to add to that, depending on how long the process takes, since unless something major and unexpected comes up in other areas I've got a surplus of around $1000 a month after all current bills and expenses are paid. I can open an account at the bank where I'm doing the financing and get a nice discount on closing costs, so I plan on doing that as soon as things get underway for realz.

[swamprat69er]

Well, I don't know what else is coming or what to expect, so I'm sure it will be a new and exciting experience. :D I've sent bank statements, paystubs, and W2s to the bank's loan dude already. I have zero debt except for what's on the Amazon card I use for everyday purchases and pay off twice a month. I got the letter notifying me that they'd checked my credit scores and let's just say that they are really, REALLY good. :yeah:

I've got a 25% downpayment on the place I want, and that's assuming I pay the price at which it's currently listed... plus $5K set aside for other expenses without touching my other savings. I should be able to add to that, depending on how long the process takes, since unless something major and unexpected comes up in other areas I've got a surplus of around $1000 a month after all current bills and expenses are paid. I can open an account at the bank where I'm doing the financing and get a nice discount on closing costs, so I plan on doing that as soon as things get underway for realz.

Sounds to me like you got your act together.:up:

[Red October1984]

Sounds to me like you got your act together.:up:

Yeah....How does she have no debt? :hmmm: :D

She is a black belt....which points to Asia....which can point to Triads/Yakuza...which are criminals....that can erase bank records for a price....and Frau Kaleun gets off because she knows Karate....which is an Asian thing....hence...connection.....then she mentions that she has money....and can pay the Yakuza/Triads to take care of her financial issues. BAM! :yep:

:stare: I'm watching you Missy....

EDIT: WHAT IF SHE IS TRAINING ASIAN GANGSTERS TO FIGHT?!?!?!

[Takeda Shingen]

Yeah....How does she have no debt? :hmmm: :D

She is a black belt....which points to Asia....which can point to Triads/Yakuza...which are criminals....that can erase bank records for a price....and Frau Kaleun gets off because she knows Karate....which is an Asian thing....hence...connection.....then she mentions that she has money....and can pay the Yakuza/Triads to take care of her financial issues. BAM! :yep:

:stare: I'm watching you Missy....

EDIT: WHAT IF SHE IS TRAINING ASIAN GANGSTERS TO FIGHT?!?!?!

Then you are probably in a whole lot of trouble for putting all that together. Is that a knock at the door? If so, are there large men standing outside?

[Sailor Steve]

Yeah....How does she have no debt? :hmmm: :D
She explained all that, probably long before you came aboard. Go look at her old threads.

She is a black belt....which points to Asia....
Or to Ohio.

:stare: I'm watching you Missy....
Didn't you read her comment to Neal when he called her that? And you might not want to let her catch you watching her, let alone tell her about it.

EDIT: WHAT IF SHE IS TRAINING ASIAN GANGSTERS TO FIGHT?!?!?!
Then you might not want to antagonize her. Or even let her know you're alive. :O:

[Red October1984]

Then you are probably in a whole lot of trouble for putting all that together. Is that a knock at the door? If so, are there large men standing outside?

As far as I know...I have not angered any Triads or Yakuza.

I don't THINK at least. I've no idea about the Mafia or the Russians.

[Sailor Steve]

As far as I know...I have not angered any Triads or Yakuza.

I don't THINK at least. I've no idea about the Mafia or the Russians.
It's not those you need to worry about.

There is no Subsim Party Education Coersive Overlords Protective Strike team, but if there were... :shifty:

[Herr-Berbunch]

^ :up:

:haha:

[AVGWarhawk]

Well, I don't know what else is coming or what to expect, so I'm sure it will be a new and exciting experience. :D I've sent bank statements, paystubs, and W2s to the bank's loan dude already. I have zero debt except for what's on the Amazon card I use for everyday purchases and pay off twice a month. I got the letter notifying me that they'd checked my credit scores and let's just say that they are really, REALLY good. :yeah:

I've got a 25% downpayment on the place I want, and that's assuming I pay the price at which it's currently listed... plus $5K set aside for other expenses without touching my other savings. I should be able to add to that, depending on how long the process takes, since unless something major and unexpected comes up in other areas I've got a surplus of around $1000 a month after all current bills and expenses are paid. I can open an account at the bank where I'm doing the financing and get a nice discount on closing costs, so I plan on doing that as soon as things get underway for realz.

You sound golden! :up: Good for you on the 25% down. Screw that mortgage insurance crap. Save a boat load!

[Tchocky]

Good for you on the 25% down

All I can think of.

http://www.totalmortgage.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/no-money-down1.jpg

[frau kaleun]

Is that a knock at the door? If so, are there large men standing outside?

Sadly, I don't know any Asian men who can go scare the crap out of anybody. I do however know a couple former paratroopers and Marines. Most of them seem to be scared of me, though... I can't imagine why. But I'd probably have to do the dirty work myself. :O:


There is no Subsim Party Education Coersive Overlords Protective Strike team, but if there were... :shifty:

But... but... I already ordered the uniform! I had it embroidered and everything!

You sound golden! :up:

Um... yeah. That's why I just had to google "mortgage insurance." :haha: But apparently that's usually only required if you are putting down less than 20%, so maybe as you say I won't have to worry about it.

I expect when all is said and done, I'll feel a lot like this at the closing:

http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/lease.png

[vienna]

Angering Yakuza and/or Triads? Damn, I knew there were some I had left off my list...

<O>

[frau kaleun]

So I sent the banker dude some info and asked for a ballpark figure on what my monthly payment would be at the price I am going to offer and the current rates - the number he quoted me (mortgage + taxes) is less than my current monthly rent. :rock:

Granted I doubt I will get it at that price, but even at the full listed price it's not much more a month. The best part is he misread my email and based his math on a 20% downpayment, not a flat $20K downpayment... so he underestimated my downpayment (and over estimated the amount of the loan) by several thousand dollars. :har:

Also checked with the local electric company (which would be the only utility where the bills could be significantly higher without me opting into more services) and the average monthly bill at that property over the past two years is only about $30 more than what my bill is here. Even the highest bills during the coldest winter months are only about that much more than I pay now in the winter.

In short: THIS IS SO TOTALLY DOABLE!!!!! :woot:

I am checking like, every 30 minutes to make sure the status of the property isn't suddenly upgraded to "under contract" or "pending" or something. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't let anyone else make an offer on this before Saturday.

[Takeda Shingen]

I am checking like, every 30 minutes to make sure the status of the property isn't suddenly upgraded to "under contract" or "pending" or something. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't let anyone else make an offer on this before Saturday.

Wait, you didn't want someone else to make an offer? Uh oh.....

[Madox58]

But... but... I already ordered the uniform! I had it embroidered and everything!

On behalf of the non existent SPECOPS team.
If We existed (Which We don't) I would like to thank you for your co operation by decorating a uniform that doesn't exist.

You did of course use a non existitng thread to do your embroidery work I hope.
As the non existing guidelines do not clearly state this requirement for some reason.
:hmmm:

.................. I'm Batman................................

[frau kaleun]

Wait, you didn't want someone else to make an offer? Uh oh.....

Why uh oh? I just mean I don't want someone else making an offer and getting a lock on buying this place before I have the opportunity.

[frau kaleun]

On behalf of the non existent SPECOPS team.
If We existed (Which We don't) I would like to thank you for your co operation by decorating a uniform that doesn't exist.

You did of course use a non existitng thread to do your embroidery work I hope.
As the non existing guidelines do not clearly state this requirement for some reason.
:hmmm:

.................. I'm Batman................................

I would reply to this post but as it clearly does not and never did exist, I have found it impossible to respond.

On a related note, I'm Spartacus.

[Takeda Shingen]

Why uh oh? I just mean I don't want someone else making an offer and getting a lock on buying this place before I have the opportunity.

And I was joking by insinuating that I was going to make an offer on the property.

[frau kaleun]

And I was joking by insinuating that I was going to make an offer on the property.

Oh, okay. That's alright then.




But... uh... just don't make an offer on it 'kay? Cuz I like you and I wouldn't want to have to kill you or anything. :O:

[Takeda Shingen]

Oh, okay. That's alright then.




But... uh... just don't make an offer on it 'kay? Cuz I like you and I wouldn't want to have to kill you or anything. :O:

No worries. I know you're nervous. I certainly was before closing on my home.

[frau kaleun]

No worries. I know you're nervous. I certainly was before closing on my home.

And I haven't even opened negotiations yet, imagine what I'll be like when it's all happening for realz. :88)

[Reece]

If you're happy with the house and land, price/payments, neighborhood, then relax, it's a great investment.:up:

[Red October1984]

But... uh... just don't make an offer on it 'kay? Cuz I like you and I wouldn't want to have to kill you or anything. :O:

WHOA WHOA WHOA!

The whole point of having Asian Gangster pals is so you don't have to do any of the dirty work. It isn't worth it FK....

Just go find your best Yakuza Student.... :yep:

[Madox58]

Relax!!
Your just about to enter into a deal that will lock you in for at lest 15 years.
:D

If I can make it through that?
(Payed it off 2 months ago!)
I have no doubts you will make it look easy!
:salute:

[swamprat69er]

Relax!!
Your just about to enter into a deal that will lock you in for at lest 15 years.
:D

If I can make it through that?
(Payed it off 2 months ago!)
I have no doubts you will make it look easy!
:salute:

Paid mine off in 2010. 18 years after I signed on a 25 year mortgage.:)

[Mork_417]

Good Luck! :yep:

[Jimbuna]

And I haven't even opened negotiations yet, imagine what I'll be like when it's all happening for realz. :88)

You'll be just fine but good luck anyway :sunny:

[swamprat69er]

When it comes down to negotiating, take a list with you and refer to it often. Be firm, not demanding. If the other people don't want to move on a point, pass on it for right now and when the deal is almost done go right back to the point you passed on.
Be cool and don't let your temper get in the way of closing a deal.
Enjoy the haggle!:)

[AVGWarhawk]

Um... yeah. That's why I just had to google "mortgage insurance." :haha: But apparently that's usually only required if you are putting down less than 20%, so maybe as you say I won't have to worry about it.



Correct, 20% or higher down payment will negate having to pay mortgage insurance. To me, mortgage insurance is just a darn cash grab.

[AVGWarhawk]

So I sent the banker dude some info and asked for a ballpark figure on what my monthly payment would be at the price I am going to offer and the current rates - the number he quoted me (mortgage + taxes) is less than my current monthly rent. :rock:

Granted I doubt I will get it at that price, but even at the full listed price it's not much more a month. The best part is he misread my email and based his math on a 20% downpayment, not a flat $20K downpayment... so he underestimated my downpayment (and over estimated the amount of the loan) by several thousand dollars. :har:




This is the first indication to check and recheck all the numbers. Do not trust what the finance guy has written up. Have your agent look as well. They make mistakes that usually cause you to write yet another check at closing. Also, these folks are not your friends. You are simply a paycheck. They are the cheeriest people and after the closing is complete, disappear like a fart in the wind. Start looking to lock in your rate now. Inquire about buying points if needed. I purchased 1/2 a point for $400.00. I make that back after the first 18 months of payments. After that the money is saved over the term of the loan. 1/2 a percentage off the interest equates to $1000's plus saved. I was able to lock a 3.50% thirty year fixed. Look ahead and start analyzing the interest rates on 30 year fixed. Please, please, please...no ARM loans. These killed the housing industry and the banks still peddle this crap.

PS. I went 30 year fixed as I have no intentions of being in the home 30 years from now. Plus, 30 years from now I will be 78 and will not really care as I drool on myself and wear Depends. More than likely, I will sell the home in 15 and purchase a small rancher outright, enjoying the golden years with my wife. It is also the only tax writeoff we have.

[AVGWarhawk]

When it comes down to negotiating, take a list with you and refer to it often. Be firm, not demanding. If the other people don't want to move on a point, pass on it for right now and when the deal is almost done go right back to the point you passed on.
Be cool and don't let your temper get in the way of closing a deal.
Enjoy the haggle!:)

Haggle? Like anything else, what are you willing to pay? That is the bottom line.

[frau kaleun]

Well the offer has been made and signed as of this morning so we'll see what happens. I opted to offer a bit more on the place than what was originally discussed, but asked for the seller to pay some closing costs which would make up the difference on my end. Since the difference would mean a large chunk of ready cash remaining in my pocket now instead of me "saving" it in increments of a few dollars a month over the next 30 years, that seemed like a good idea.

Funny thing was going through the place with my sister and her husband - they both really liked the place and he couldn't find anything to be concerned about, but my sister has already lined up a year's worth of work for him in her head. Every room it was "he can put in a new floor for you" and "he can put a new vanity in here for you" and "he can put a cat door in for you" and "he can put some shelves in here for you." Poor guy.

I did tell him that under NO CIRCUMSTANCES is he allowed to change jobs any time in the near future. Cuz he works at Lowe's. :O:

My sister also thinks I'm going to decorate a guest bedroom, on the principle that "you've got to have somewhere for visitors to sleep!"

Well, duh, of course you do. IT'S CALLED A COUCH, PEOPLE! :stare:

[swamprat69er]

Well the offer has been made and signed as of this morning so we'll see what happens. I opted to offer a bit more on the place than what was originally discussed, but asked for the seller to pay some closing costs which would make up the difference on my end. Since the difference would mean a large chunk of ready cash remaining in my pocket now instead of me "saving" it in increments of a few dollars a month over the next 30 years, that seemed like a good idea.

Funny thing was going through the place with my sister and her husband - they both really liked the place and he couldn't find anything to be concerned about, but my sister has already lined up a year's worth of work for him in her head. Every room it was "he can put in a new floor for you" and "he can put a new vanity in here for you" and "he can put a cat door in for you" and "he can put some shelves in here for you." Poor guy.

I did tell him that under NO CIRCUMSTANCES is he allowed to change jobs any time in the near future. Cuz he works at Lowe's. :O:

My sister also thinks I'm going to decorate a guest bedroom, on the principle that "you've got to have somewhere for visitors to sleep!"

Well, duh, of course you do. IT'S CALLED A COUCH, PEOPLE! :stare:

Couch? Let them sleep in a tent on the front lawn.:D

Sign in my laneway; IF you are not expected, you are not wanted so TAKE A HIKE!

[frau kaleun]

Couch? Let them sleep in a tent on the front lawn.:D

Sign in my laneway; IF you are not expected, you are not wanted so TAKE A HIKE!

That's why I only serve 100% Minnesota Lutheran coffee at my house. It's the coffee you serve only to the best of guests... the ones that call before they come, and don't stay too long. :O:

[Sailor Steve]

but my sister has already lined up a year's worth of work for him in her head. Poor guy.
That's what wives do. It's in the contract. She actually promises the HE will "love, honor and obey".

Well, duh, of course you do. IT'S CALLED A COUCH, PEOPLE! :stare:
That's right. Any single person knows that extra rooms are for extra stuff. One's the office, one's the workroom, one's the play room, one's for storage... :sunny:

[frau kaleun]

That's right. Any single person knows that extra rooms are for extra stuff. One's the office, one's the workroom, one's the play room, one's for storage... :sunny:

Not to mention the fact that there's a HoJo's literally RIGHT DOWN THE STREET. Seriously, 0.3 miles. That's walking distance. :O:

[Penguin]

Is there an agent involved in the sale, or do you buy it directly from a private person?
Well, in any case I would still let the house being checked out by an expert surveyor, really good invested money if you are not into surprises, like finding out your garden was used as a plutonium dump or the former owner was an avid diy electrician.

Keeping my fingers crossed that it works out for you, Frau!

The couch is ok for me, but I like my french toast with maple syrup - in case you only have American beer in the fridge - I prefer microbrews or Sam Adams. The 42 cats which accompany me on my travels are happy with 2 rooms and the garden.
I hope the Crown Vic, which I borrowed from a friendly cop fits into your garage - still have to get rid of the bullet holes and bloody dents from the ride home from the bar last night. :O:

[Red October1984]

Is there an agent involved in the sale, or do you buy it directly from a private person?
Well, in any case I would still let the house being checked out by an expert surveyor, really good invested money if you are not into surprises, like finding out your garden was used as a plutonium dump or the former owner was an avid diy electrician.

Keeping my fingers crossed that it works out for you, Frau!

The couch is ok for me, but I like my french toast with maple syrup - in case you only have American beer in the fridge - I prefer microbrews or Sam Adams. The 42 cats which accompany me on my travels are happy with 2 rooms and the garden.
I hope the Crown Vic, which I borrowed from a friendly cop fits into your garage - still have to get rid of the bullet holes and bloody dents from the ride home from the bar last night. :O:



So I just watched Superbad again last night.... :har:

[frau kaleun]

Is there an agent involved in the sale, or do you buy it directly from a private person?
Well, in any case I would still let the house being checked out by an expert surveyor, really good invested money if you are not into surprises, like finding out your garden was used as a plutonium dump or the former owner was an avid diy electrician.

I have an agent, the seller has a different agent. Generally there is an inspection done prior to closing the sale, if anything comes up that wasn't previously disclosed that's when you start renegotiating the terms of the sale, or possibly back out of it completely if radiation poisoning looks like it could be an issue. :O:

Keeping my fingers crossed that it works out for you, Frau!

Thanks! We requested an answer by tomorrow evening so here's hoping I know something this weekend. I'm off work all next week so it would be a good time to get my ducks in a row and start doing all the stuff I'll need to do if I'm really gonna do this thing.

The couch is ok for me, but I like my french toast with maple syrup - in case you only have American beer in the fridge - I prefer microbrews or Sam Adams. The 42 cats which accompany me on my travels are happy with 2 rooms and the garden.
I hope the Crown Vic, which I borrowed from a friendly cop fits into your garage - still have to get rid of the bullet holes and bloody dents from the ride home from the bar last night. :O:

Allow me to direct your attention to the following:

http://www.hojo.com/hotels/ohio/cincinnati/howard-johnson-inn-cincinnati/hotel-overview

[The Enigma]

:haha: , but that isn't a private pool, is it?

[Penguin]

I have an agent, the seller has a different agent. Generally there is an inspection done prior to closing the sale, if anything comes up that wasn't previously disclosed that's when you start renegotiating the terms of the sale, or possibly back out of it completely if radiation poisoning looks like it could be an issue. :O:


I don't know how your state laws are. My girlfriend and me are currently looking for a house in Sweden. The law over there says that the seller/agent is liable for flaws they withheld. This goes not if the flaw was unknown to them - and there lies the rub. Of course they claim it was unknown to them when you discover it later.
So a surveyor over there guarantees with his name (and money) that the house is ok in the field they look into (plumbering, wiring, static, etc - most are not universal experts). So even when we are 100% sure that the house is ok, and check the things we know about, there are still fields which we just don't know ethe same about as an expert. So will certainly hire an expert to confirm it - just to be sure that the hut will last a lil longer.



Allow me to direct your attention to the following:

http://www.hojo.com/hotels/ohio/cincinnati/howard-johnson-inn-cincinnati/hotel-overview

Oh this is very generous of you: moving into a hotel, so you don't disturb me while I'm staying in your house! :salute:
This way I can probably finish reroofing your home with sauerkraut even earlier. :88):O:

[frau kaleun]

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!

The offer was accepted! Not even a counter offer! Turned out the owner - a lady about 10 years older than me - had to leave town suddenly to care for an ailing parent and the situation became permanent and she ended up moving in with them and wasn't coming back. So she really, really needed to sell the place ASAP.

While I'm sad for her situation the timing really worked out. Funny how six months ago everybody was gently (and sometimes not so gently) urging me to get out there and find something, and I just couldn't get motivated. This place wasn't even on the market then, I could've ended up with something nowhere near as nice for a lot more money. Then one day I decided the time was right and BOOM this place turned up and after looking at what else was available, there was just no competition at all.

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!! And it's so much less money than I thought I was going to have to spend to get what I wanted in a place that was move-in ready! I'm so excited!

AND NOW THE GREAT HUNT FOR BOXES BEGINS. :O:

[Red October1984]

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!

The offer was accepted! Not even a counter offer! Turned out the owner - a lady about 10 years older than me - had to leave town suddenly to care for an ailing parent and the situation became permanent and she ended up moving in with them and wasn't coming back. So she really, really needed to sell the place ASAP.

While I'm sad for her situation the timing really worked out. Funny how six months ago everybody was gently (and sometimes not so gently) urging me to get out there and find something, and I just couldn't get motivated. This place wasn't even on the market then, I could've ended up with something nowhere near as nice for a lot more money. Then one day I decided the time was right and BOOM this place turned up and after looking at what else was available, there was just no competition at all.

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!! And it's so much less money than I thought I was going to have to spend to get what I wanted in a place that was move-in ready! I'm so excited!

AND NOW THE GREAT HUNT FOR BOXES BEGINS. :O:



:woot: :woot: :woot: :woot: :woot: :woot: :woot: :woot: :woot: :woot: :woot:


CONGRATS FRAU!!!!!!

HAVE FUN! :D

[swamprat69er]

Congratulations home owner!:yeah:

If you have an office supply place down there, they will probably sell 'bankers boxes'. Sturdy corrugated cardboard boxes and they hold up pretty good.

[vienna]

Good on you, Frau! Congrats on the new homestead (or is it condostead?)! Now the real fun begins. You now get to go through all the stuff you have accumulated and wonder why you ever kept some of them. A few years ago, I moved from one apartment in my complex to a newly remodled unit after having lived in my old unit for many, many,many years. As I went through all the items, I finally came to a point where I just decided anything I had not looked at or used in the last 5 years was toast and bound for the bin. Even then, I had an alarming amount of items to move. It would proabaly be a good suggestion to beging the culling process as early as possible...

Seeing as how you're relegating all outsiders to the local HoJo, I guess a housewarming party is out of the question...

<O>

[vienna]

If you have an office supply place down there, they will probably sell 'bankers boxes'. Sturdy corrugated cardboard boxes and they hold up pretty good.


A good idea, but a better one is to go to a Home Depot store. Most of them have boxes for sale of various sizes designed especially for moving and the price per unit is much lower than the "banke's box"...

<O>

[Sailor Steve]

Congratulations!

I was going to suggest U-Haul for boxes, but after reading Vienna's recommendation I compared for you. Home Depot's boxes are half the price of U-Haul's. :sunny:

[Takeda Shingen]

Congratulations, Frau. Feels good to have your own, own place, huh?

[frau kaleun]

As noted above my bro-in-law works at Lowe's, and he works in Receiving. They break down and throw out boxes by the truckload, they have a particular kind that they go through like crazy that is just the right size for most basic packing and even has the little slots to stick your hands through on the sides for easy toting around.

He is already on notice to save them for me. And I've already brought home (and packed) at least a dozen boxes from work. The only thing that stopped me from doing more was that most of what I was packing to start was books, and they get too heavy and I ran out of smaller size boxes. Then I started putting them in the bottoms of bigger boxes and filling up the top half with lighter stuff that I could safely pack with them. Then I ran out of non-breakable stuff to pack, and ran out of stuff to wrap breakable stuff in... so I'm kinda stuck until I get more supplies.

I'll probably go to Lowe's tomorrow (if I'm not on the phone all day dealing with other details of this process) and get some packing paper and wrap and pick up whatever boxes I can get. I can buy some nice ones there pretty cheap as well if I have to do that.

But yes I moved in here many years ago with a couple carloads of small stuff and one van load of larger items, and the van was only about 1/2 full. But it's gonna take a truck to get me out. :O:

We will have a yard sale at some point but the nice thing is, I'm moving into a much larger space so there are some things I was on the verge of getting rid of that I will now probably keep because, hey, I might actually want them or need them and have room for them. If nothing else I'll have room to store them until we can have a sale later in the year.

Right now I have a living room, bedroom (which also doubles as my "office"), tiny eat-in kitchen and one bathroom.

In the condo I'll have a living room, den, dining room, eat-in kitchen (which is probably twice the size of what I've got now and three (!!!!!) bedrooms. Lots of closets, plus extra storage space in the garage. I will probably need to leave trails of breadcrumbs around the place so I don't get lost. :haha:

[frau kaleun]

Congratulations!

I was going to suggest U-Haul for boxes, but after reading Vienna's recommendation I compared for you. Home Depot's boxes are half the price of U-Haul's. :sunny:

And here's another thing - there's a U-Haul place right down the street from me, so I was on their website to see what they had that I could pick up close to me. I started out with 20 boxes and it said "not in stock at that location." Dropped it to 10, same thing. When I got down to 5 and it still told me the local store didn't have FIVE LOUSY BOXES TO SELL ME I gave up.

Looked at Lowe's online and boxes are also much cheaper there and they probably actually have more than five in stock, you know?

Anyway I may not need to buy any if my brother-in-law can scrounge them for me for free. :yeah:

[vienna]

I will probably need to leave trails of breadcrumbs around the place so I don't get lost. :haha:


...or you could put up little signs with the floor plan drawn on them with the notation "You Are Here"...

(That reminds me of the time a company I was working for posted floor plan diagrams ih the elevator lobbie and, in a puckish mood, I decided to modify the notation so it read: "You Are Here. Why Aren't You Back at Your Desk?". It took several days before anyone noticed the change...)...

<O>

[Reece]

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!

The offer was accepted! Not even a counter offer! Turned out the owner - a lady about 10 years older than me - had to leave town suddenly to care for an ailing parent and the situation became permanent and she ended up moving in with them and wasn't coming back. So she really, really needed to sell the place ASAP.

While I'm sad for her situation the timing really worked out. Funny how six months ago everybody was gently (and sometimes not so gently) urging me to get out there and find something, and I just couldn't get motivated. This place wasn't even on the market then, I could've ended up with something nowhere near as nice for a lot more money. Then one day I decided the time was right and BOOM this place turned up and after looking at what else was available, there was just no competition at all.

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!! And it's so much less money than I thought I was going to have to spend to get what I wanted in a place that was move-in ready! I'm so excited!

AND NOW THE GREAT HUNT FOR BOXES BEGINS. :O:
Congratulations FK, very good news!!:up:
Exciting isn't it!!!:yep:

[Cybermat47]

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!

The offer was accepted! Not even a counter offer! Turned out the owner - a lady about 10 years older than me - had to leave town suddenly to care for an ailing parent and the situation became permanent and she ended up moving in with them and wasn't coming back. So she really, really needed to sell the place ASAP.

While I'm sad for her situation the timing really worked out. Funny how six months ago everybody was gently (and sometimes not so gently) urging me to get out there and find something, and I just couldn't get motivated. This place wasn't even on the market then, I could've ended up with something nowhere near as nice for a lot more money. Then one day I decided the time was right and BOOM this place turned up and after looking at what else was available, there was just no competition at all.

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!! And it's so much less money than I thought I was going to have to spend to get what I wanted in a place that was move-in ready! I'm so excited!

AND NOW THE GREAT HUNT FOR BOXES BEGINS. :O:


CONGRATULATIONS NICE GERMAN WOMAN WHO I'VE NEVER REALLY TALKED TO BEFORE! :woot::woot::woot::woot:

[Herr-Berbunch]

Really pleased for you, Frau. :D

Are there any removals companies are that will just come in and pack it all up and shift it for you? More expensive but a lot easier.

[frau kaleun]

Really pleased for you, Frau. :D

Are there any removals companies are that will just come in and pack it all up and shift it for you? More expensive but a lot easier.

Yeah there are, but honestly I'd rather do as much of it as I can myself. My brother in law is probably planning out the worst of it already in his head. :O: They've moved themselves across the country twice, so he's no slouch in that department.

Closing is set for April 16 and I will not give notice on my apartment til then, which means I will actually have until the end of May to vacate - paying that extra month's rent and utilities here will not be a problem, I'd always figured that into my costs anyway.

The condo is only about 15 minutes away, and work is right in between on the road from here to there and back. So I can take smaller non-essential stuff in the car and drop it off there after work every day if necessary, really we'll only need to rent a truck for furniture that's too big to transport any other way and that will be a one day job.

It's also not uncommon for the husbands of some of the ladies I work with to show up en masse and help move their wives' coworkers across town. They did it for my best friend twice, lol. I honestly don't think we'll need that much help but if anybody offers I certainly won't turn it down. :O:

Also: the idea of total strangers packing and unpacking my stuff gives me the heebie jeebies. :huh:

[Herr-Berbunch]

Also: the idea of total strangers packing and unpacking my stuff gives me the heebie jeebies. :huh:

But sharing when you buy underwear from Amazon with us doesn't? :hmm2:

:03:

[frau kaleun]

But sharing when you buy underwear from Amazon with us doesn't? :hmm2:

:03:

Well, Neal wants to know when people use the link and he needs to know what was bought so he can make sure he gets his cut of it.

PMing him that I bought underwear on Amazon would actually be a little creepier. :O:

[geetrue]

You sound excitied frau kaleun and I am excited for you.

Hope you don't mind some advice from an old man that has been there and done that, but first I am sorry about the fooling around to move in with you.

That was just a joke of course ...

Where do I start ... nine years in the navy of moving from coast to coast and the Navy moved my family when I got out and then the three homes
I have owned since then and now down to just a RV for a single lad of me.

First of all don't put anything into storage that you want to see again
I have lost everthing I own more than once ...

treat your heirlooms and photos with special care of storage and enviorment, humdity, etc

try to copy as many as your photos as you can onto removable media

treat computers being moved special even a speck of dust can be jarred into a crevice of a pci slot or a hdd can get upset.

put a date on each box and when you unpack put a new date on the box and after awhile you will see how important the contents are if it becomes like in my case years of not needing anything in that box.

sell as much useless stuff as you can and give away the rest

you don't really need it, but I hope it doesn't take a fire or a flood or a hurricane to convince you of this

and most important of all double up on the mortgage payments, making sure there is no pre-pay penalty.

Debt free is where it's at for people with and without insurance

oh one more thing get replacement insurance or the claim will only pay what it originally cost you

keep us informed so we can move with you (not in of course)
we just want to share your joy :yeah:

[AVGWarhawk]

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!

The offer was accepted! Not even a counter offer! Turned out the owner - a lady about 10 years older than me - had to leave town suddenly to care for an ailing parent and the situation became permanent and she ended up moving in with them and wasn't coming back. So she really, really needed to sell the place ASAP.

While I'm sad for her situation the timing really worked out. Funny how six months ago everybody was gently (and sometimes not so gently) urging me to get out there and find something, and I just couldn't get motivated. This place wasn't even on the market then, I could've ended up with something nowhere near as nice for a lot more money. Then one day I decided the time was right and BOOM this place turned up and after looking at what else was available, there was just no competition at all.

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!! And it's so much less money than I thought I was going to have to spend to get what I wanted in a place that was move-in ready! I'm so excited!

AND NOW THE GREAT HUNT FOR BOXES BEGINS. :O:

Good deal! Glad it is working out for you. Boxes are relatively inexpensive at Home Depot/Lowes. :up:

[swamprat69er]

A good idea, but a better one is to go to a Home Depot store. Most of them have boxes for sale of various sizes designed especially for moving and the price per unit is much lower than the "banke's box"...

<O>
I plumb forgot all about HD.

[Jimbuna]

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!

The offer was accepted! Not even a counter offer! Turned out the owner - a lady about 10 years older than me - had to leave town suddenly to care for an ailing parent and the situation became permanent and she ended up moving in with them and wasn't coming back. So she really, really needed to sell the place ASAP.

While I'm sad for her situation the timing really worked out. Funny how six months ago everybody was gently (and sometimes not so gently) urging me to get out there and find something, and I just couldn't get motivated. This place wasn't even on the market then, I could've ended up with something nowhere near as nice for a lot more money. Then one day I decided the time was right and BOOM this place turned up and after looking at what else was available, there was just no competition at all.

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!! And it's so much less money than I thought I was going to have to spend to get what I wanted in a place that was move-in ready! I'm so excited!

AND NOW THE GREAT HUNT FOR BOXES BEGINS. :O:

Mega congratulations young lady....enjoy :sunny:

[frau kaleun]

Mega congratulations young lady....enjoy :sunny:

Thanks Jim, and everybody, for all the good wishes.

I'm off to meet the home inspector in about 10 minutes. Keep your fingers crossed that he doesn't find anything amiss.

[AVGWarhawk]

Cool beans. :up:

[Herr-Berbunch]

Cool beans. :up:

Aaaaaargh! My stepson keeps saying that to just about everything we say to him. It's driving us crazy and now you start doing it here, too. :/\\!!

[August]

Once you get into your new place you should post some pictures Frau. :yep:

[AVGWarhawk]

Aaaaaargh! My stepson keeps saying that to just about everything we say to him. It's driving us crazy and now you start doing it here, too. :/\\!!

Cool beans! :D

[Takeda Shingen]

http://www.embedded.com/ContentEETimes/Images/Design/Prog%20Logic%20DL/2011-05/Cool-Beans.jpg

[frau kaleun]

Once you get into your new place you should post some pictures Frau. :yep:

As it happens I finally remembered to take some today.

Here's the exterior:

http://imageshack.us/a/img24/5739/photo002cx.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img585/5811/photo003mz.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img441/7641/photo004vc.jpg

Here's the kitchen and dinette area:

http://imageshack.us/a/img16/5875/photo005fh.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img829/1256/photo006jf.jpg

The door from the dinette leads out onto the patio.

Living room, looking through past the stairs to the dining room:

http://imageshack.us/a/img834/1843/photo007e.jpg

The den, which will be my office/computer area:

http://imageshack.us/a/img109/8167/photo008co.jpg

Master bedroom:

http://imageshack.us/a/img593/7714/photo009d.jpg

The interior pictures were turning out kinda crappy, so I didn't take that many, except of things I wanted to remember about the room layouts and such. It would all just be pics of empty rooms that look basically the same, lol.

One thing I didn't get a pic of was the windows in the living room, it's a three window deal like in the master BR but it's a bay window thingie so there is a nice ledge about 12", maybe 15" deep. Will make a perfect place for future adopted kitties to sun themselves and have fun knocking over whatever knick-knacks I sit up there. AND YES I WILL GET SOME KITTIES EVENTUALLY and then I will start posting pictures of them so my sad misuse of the interwebs for other, less noble purposes can come to an end. :O:

Regarding the inspection everything went well, only a couple of minor repairs to be made, a couple of things that the condo association needs to know about and take care of, some concern about the age of the water heater and heat pump - which I will compare with what the listing says to make sure there was no false indication of newer equipment - but they are all still working fine, it's just a matter of knowing that they may need to be replaced sooner rather than later. The humidifier needs to be looked at and probably cleaned.

The dishwasher doesn't work at all, but that's not an essential appliance and I'll talk to the realtor about working something out to compensate for that since it was included in the sale as a functioning appliance.

Oh and you will notice in the pic of the back of the unit there is a thing to put a decorative flag in, over to the right of the garage door. I've seen a lot of college flags flown from those things in the neighborhood, we see a lot of Ohio State and Miami and UC flags hereabouts. I'm now wondering if it's at all possible to get a flag with the College of Winterhold emblem on it, because I think that would be hilarious if a neighbor ever asked about it.

[Sailor Steve]

Oh wow! :rock:

I'm green with envy. Or maybe the gomboo, but that's not important right now. This is so cool. :yep:

[frau kaleun]

I'm now wondering if it's at all possible to get a flag with the College of Winterhold emblem on it, because I think that would be hilarious if a neighbor ever asked about it.

Google and you shall receive:

http://muchneededmerch.storenvy.com/products/526717-college-of-winterhold-flag-large

Sadly, now that I look at it, people probably wouldn't ask - they'd just assume I belonged to some bizarre pagan cult and keep their distance. Which... you know... might actually be a bonus to having it. :haha:

[Sailor Steve]

Cool. I wouldn't have had a clue. Actually I still don't. That's nothing new.

[Oberon]

Man, American houses are so big...

We need a bigger island... :yep:

[u crank]

That's a great looking place frau. Congrats and many years of comfy livin'.:yep:

[Jimbuna]

I like it and I'm sure you'll make it into exactly what you want :sunny:

[frau kaleun]

Man, American houses are so big...

We need a bigger island... :yep:

I seem to recall you had one once, but then for some reason you decided to fill it up with all your spare criminals. :O:

I like it and I'm sure you'll make it into exactly what you want :sunny:
I looked into that and unfortunately my first choice of "wretched hive of scum and villainy" is expressly forbidden by the HOA by-laws. So I guess I'll have to think of something else. :hmm2:

[Wolferz]

Needs furniture.:hmmm::O::03:

/ runs out the door.

[Takeda Shingen]

Nice pics, frau. Congratulations again!

[Wolferz]

I seem to recall you had one once, but then for some reason you decided to fill it up with all your spare criminals. :O:


I looked into that and unfortunately my first choice of "wretched hive of scum and villainy" is expressly forbidden by the HOA by-laws. So I guess I'll have to think of something else. :hmm2:

So, that means meth lab is off the table?:haha:

[August]

Looks very nice Frau. May your house be filled with joy and laughter.

[frau kaleun]

So, that means meth lab is off the table?:haha:

Meth lab, casino, the Subsim All Male Strip Club - where Jimbuna was booked to come over and perform on spring break and holidays - all out of the running. I know you really had your heart set on the latter of the three but the HOA simply will not back down on this issue.

Of course meth lab was never even ON the table for me personally, as I understand that would involve cooking and I'm pretty sure I'll still be well within the La Rosa's delivery area. All that counter space is just for displaying shiny small appliances, fancy kitchen knives, and Le Creuset. Nobody actually expects me to use any of it. :O:

[geetrue]

I like your new home, however the curtains need a lot of help

the kitchen floor needs a cleaner surface, easy to take care of I mean,
perhaps large white tiles with a non skid throw rug

the dinning area looks too small ... how about a u-shaped bar add on to the present kitchen bar with a flip up counter top to get to the inside area, if it's just you that is.

bedroom needs window treatment, how about a window storage setee moving the floor vent to underneath the setee at a 90 degree angle

the outside is nice ... I like the second story look especially if you add a fake or real security camera

saftey rail on those steps going up

don't forget to add security alarms with suction cups on those low windows
that can feel vibrations ...

end unit with a garage is a big plus

don't forget the big dog food bowl and water bowl with a large bag of half empty dog food (forget the dog)

you did good girl ... no charge for interior decorating tips :know:

[Wolferz]

Man, American houses are so big...

We need a bigger island... :yep:

A small FYI...
Condos usually contain four abodes in one building.:)

[Wolferz]

Meth lab, casino, the Subsim All Male Strip Club - where Jimbuna was booked to come over and perform on spring break and holidays - all out of the running. I know you really had your heart set on the latter of the three but the HOA simply will not back down on this issue.

Of course meth lab was never even ON the table for me personally, as I understand that would involve cooking and I'm pretty sure I'll still be well within the La Rosa's delivery area. All that counter space is just for displaying shiny small appliances, fancy kitchen knives, and Le Creuset. Nobody actually expects me to use any of it. :O:

Yes Peggy. Stay away from the hot thing. Far away.:D

[GT182]

Congrats on the new home Frau Kaleun. Looks like some of the homes I've looked at here in Delaware a few years ago. But I know that's not possible. ;)

BTW.. did you get a Home Warranty included with the purchase? That could save you some money if things go bad and need repair or replacing. Sometimes the seller will include it to make the sale a little sweeter.

[frau kaleun]

I like your new home, however the curtains need a lot of help

All the curtains will go eventually, as soon as I get blinds or something in place. The first time we looked at the place my best friend was with me and she walked in, looked at the window treatments, and said, "Well... somebody's grandma lived here."

The funny part is that it turned out the current owner is a lady who is a year or two younger than her. :haha:

the kitchen floor needs a cleaner surface, easy to take care of I mean, perhaps large white tiles with a non skid throw rug

I like the flooring there, in fact if it had been my decision I would have put it down all the way into the dining room and not had carpet in there at all, I'm not crazy about carpet in a room where the primary activity is eating and drinking. Altho TBH I do most of that in front of the TV or computer when I'm alone and those rooms will likely stay carpeted even if I replace what's currently there.

The only rugs I'd put down in a kitchen are the rugs/mats for providing comfort in front of the sink or other places where I'm likely to stand for any length of time. I have no idea how difficult the current kitchen flooring will be to take care of so I guess I'll see once I get in there. My brother in law did carpet and flooring for most of his adult life until he started working at Lowe's and if I want to make a change he knows where to get stuff at a discount and how to install it - or where to find an installer who'll do it as a side job for a fraction of what it would cost to go through the usual retailers.

the dinning area looks too small ... how about a u-shaped bar add on to the present kitchen bar with a flip up counter top to get to the inside area, if it's just you that is.

It is a bit small but since the only thing going in there will probably be a table for 4 (maybe six with an extension) and some small decor type stuff, it's not too bad. I thought at first I might use it for a small TV room but it's too small to put any decent amount of seating in for that. If I use it for the dining table I can put counter stools or chairs up along the outside of the counter separating the kitchen from the dinette and eat there if I want something more casual just for myself.

The rest of that space... I don't know. Probably some kind of nice kitchen storage, like a casual hutch for good dishes (I have a set of china I've never been able to display since the day I got it). It will likely be full of unpacked boxes for a while. :O:

The flip-up countertop - no. Any spaces designed to be moved through, I like them to obstacle-free. I'm more likely to take doors down than to add more stuff that I have to push, pull, or lift out of my way just to walk from room to room. I'm already considering removing the door to the master bathroom because right now the only way to sit comfortably on the toilet or get into the tub/shower is to go in and completely close the door behind you, which I can tell you will quickly become a PITA when I'm going in and out of there trying to get ready for work in the morning.

The only access to it is through the walk-in closet and "dressing area" of the master BR, so I see no reason to have a door like that when all it does is get in the way. Obviously I'd like to replace it with something that allows for privacy in that room if necessary but ME NO LIKE THAT DOOR.

the outside is nice ... I like the second story look especially if you add a fake or real security camera

I'm not sure security cameras are included in the small list of things you're allowed to attach to the exterior. Also nothing outside the walls belongs to me, so there might be an issue with recording the activities of people who are going about their own business on common property.

saftey rail on those steps going up

I like to live dangerously, lol.

At any rate, not until after all upstairs furniture gets moved in.

end unit with a garage is a big plus

Yep, the fact that it was an end unit was a big selling point. If the interior of the next unit is like mine, there's a good chance that most of the shared wall in my master bedroom is up against their walk-in closet and not the bedroom proper. An extra layer of "insulation" against noise intrusion (in either direction).

And honestly in my apartment, the chief problems with noise come from neighbors living above and occasionally those below, the ones to the side might as well not even be there as far as I can tell. Not having anyone else living above or below me was one of my must-haves. After 18 years of apartment living, I've had enough of that.

[Cybermat47]

Man, American houses are so big...



Wait, I thought she was German. :hmmm:

Now that I think about it, I have no idea why. :oops:

[frau kaleun]

Congrats on the new home Frau Kaleun. Looks like some of the homes I've looked at here in Delaware a few years ago. But I know that's not possible. ;)

BTW.. did you get a Home Warranty included with the purchase? That could save you some money if things go bad and need repair or replacing. Sometimes the seller will include it to make the sale a little sweeter.

The For Sale sign on the property has a big "Home Warranty Included" notice on it, or something to that effect. If nothing else it's written into the contract that one will be included at the expense of the seller up to a specified amount which was $425 IIRC.

Thinking back on when I read through the HOA manual, it may be something that is included because it's covered in the HOA fees. I'm pretty sure there was something in there about that. Anyway - it's covered in the purchase contract so I think I'm good.

[frau kaleun]

Wait, I thought she was German. :hmmm:

Now that I think about it, I have no idea why. :oops:

Because my user name is "Frau Kaleun" and my rank is "Valkyrie"? Those would be pretty good reasons. :D

[Takeda Shingen]

Because my user name is "Frau Kaleun" and my rank is "Valkyrie"? Those would be pretty good reasons. :D

Wouldn't that be walküre?

[Sailor Steve]

Wouldn't that be walküre?
Be careful. You don't want her to go all Wagner on you.

[frau kaleun]

Wouldn't that be walküre?

Technically, yes, but that spelling is far less recognizable to English speakers and using "valkyrie" generally avoids the necessity of explanations.

Also there is no "ü" on my keyboard and pulling up Character Map is a PITA. :O:

[Red October1984]

Be careful. You don't want her to go all Wagner on you.

Ride of the Valkyries (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V92OBNsQgxU)

Just gonna stick this in here..... This is actually one of my favorite Classical pieces.

[frau kaleun]

Be careful. You don't want her to go all Wagner on you.

I'm pretty sure that's explicitly prohibited somewhere in the small print of the Eighth Amendment.

[Takeda Shingen]

Ride of the Valkyries (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V92OBNsQgxU)

Just gonna stick this in here..... This is actually one of my favorite Classical pieces.

Have you heard the whole opera?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5RqfFPWSrE

And then the whole cycle as well?

I Das Rheingold: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_jfE2XUDug

II Die Walküre: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5RqfFPWSrE

III Siegfried: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXIY1VFAbJI

IV Götterdämmerung: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PM3evhj3Kc

The above are the Bayreuth recordings with Georg Solti, my favorite Wagnerian conductor, and my second favorite recordings, right behind the 60's studio recordings.

Here are PDF liner notes, synopsis and libretto for each opera, both in original German and English:

I http://www.chandos.net/pdf/CHAN%203054.pdf
II http://www.chandos.net/pdf/CHAN%203038.pdf
III http://www.chandos.net/pdf/CHAN%203045.pdf
IV http://www.chandos.net/pdf/CHAN%203060.pdf

This is a good beginner's primer for the leitmotif and usage within the cycle.

http://www.well.com/user/woodman/singthing/ring/themusic.html

For the more initiated, here are three excellent books; the first on the cycle itself, the second a compilation of his rather prolific writing catalogue and the third a dedicated harmonic and philosophical anaylsis of middle to late Wagner.

1. I Saw the World End, Derek Cooke, Oxford University Press, New York, 1979 http://www.amazon.com/Saw-World-End-Clarendon-Paperbacks/dp/0193153181/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363833509&sr=8-1&keywords=i+saw+the+world+end

2. Wagner on Music and Drama--A Compendium of Richard Wagner's Prose Works, Albert Goldman/Everet Sprinchorn, Da Capo Press, New York, 1964 http://www.amazon.com/Wagner-Music-Drama-Capo-Paperback/dp/0306803194/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363833543&sr=8-1&keywords=wagner+on+music+and+drama

3. The Tristan Chord--Wagner and Philosophy, Bryan Magee, Holt, London, 2000
http://www.amazon.com/Tristan-Chord-Wagner-Philosophy/dp/080507189X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363833563&sr=1-1&keywords=the+tristan+chord


And if you like what you hear and read, you can see it live at the Met this spring: http://ringcycle.metoperafamily.org/tickets

Happy listening!

PS Sorry for the thread hijack Frau.

[Sailor Steve]

AAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't have time to sit and listen to all that right now. I don't even have time to read this thread any more tonight, but every time I try to get off, there's another post! :O:

[vienna]

Technically, yes, but that spelling is far less recognizable to English speakers and using "valkyrie" generally avoids the necessity of explanations.


Brought to mind an old Smothers Brothers routine where they sang the tune "Volga BoatMen". In the course of the routine , Tommy would talk about the Volga boatmen and their drinking of vodka. Dick would correct Tommy's pronuciation by pointing out the "v" is pronounced as a "w" sound. Tommy then went on to pronounce the words as Wolga and Wodka. Dick asked what the Wolga boatmen would do to relax, "Well, they wold sing and dance and drink wodka; and if they drank too much wodka, they would womit..."...


Have you heard the whole opera?



I have seen perfomances on DVD and on PBS. Some of the DVD performances are a bit old school (horned viking helmets, etc.) and some are modern "interpretations". I really dislike when they try to moderenize Wagner, almost as much I dislike when they modernize Shakespeare. I fear it is only a matter of time before they do a "hip-hop" Ring Cycle...

Frau, sorry for responding to the previous hijacking of the thread...

Your new home looks very nice and I wish you a very pleasant life in your new digs, I was very surpised at how much of a "home" it appears; here, in Southern California, units like yours are often called townhouses and the name condo is given to the high and low rise buildings where the units are little more than glorified apartments. Continued happiness to you...

<O>

[frau kaleun]

Do not listen to the heathen Wagnerite.

You want Beethoven. You need Beethoven. Your soul craves Beethoven.

Cross over, children. All are welcome. All welcome. Go into the Beethoven. There is peace and serenity in the Beethoven.

Here's me, listening to the beginning of the overture of every Wagner opera ever:

"Hey... this isn't too bad. Maybe I'll really like this one."

Here's me, 45 minutes later:

"OH DEAR GOD PLEASE LET IT END."

:O:

Actually "Ride" is pretty awesome, I used it for the ringtone on my old cell phone. Wagner does have some wonderful moments (and some terrible quarter-hours *cue rim shot*). I like some of the purely orchestral suites I've heard, with all of the singing - or "singing" as the case may be, YMMV - left out.

[Red October1984]

Have you heard the whole opera?

No I haven't...but it looks like you've supplied enough information to get a Degree in Classical Music. :O:

My connection would collapse and die under that amount of youtube. :dead:

[vienna]

Good lord, you are quick, Frau!...

I have listened to Wagner in the past, but, as with you, my loyalty has always been with Beethoven. There is no other composer I admire or enjoy listening to more than LvB. My mp3 playeris loaded with the symphonies, sonatas, and other pieces by Herr Beethoven. I also have a bit of space for Haydn, Beethoven's teacher. I have always said, if you want to understand a master, learn to understand his teacher...

<O>

[Oberon]

Well, that's the background music for tomorrows Simcity 4 bash sorted. :up:

Nowt wrong with a bit of Beethoven either...although a nice run through the solar system with Holst followed by a bit of French defeat by Tchaikovsky and fading out with a nice bit of Rachmaninov. Good stuff... :yep:


Getting back to the housing, touché on the convicts, the only problem with that island was that most of it was trying to kill us, I think we kind of hoped that the islands hunger would be satisfied with the criminals we sent but it all went a bit wrong. Still, could be worse, the other island we tried wasted a batch of perfectly good tea, that's a crime worse than treason. :nope:

Much worse...

It's Teason...


http://imageshack.us/scaled/landing/836/tumbleweedv.gif


Yeah...I'll get my coat... :dead:

[Takeda Shingen]

I have seen perfomances on DVD and on PBS. Some of the DVD performances are a bit old school (horned viking helmets, etc.) and some are modern "interpretations". I really dislike when they try to moderenize Wagner, almost as much I dislike when they modernize Shakespeare. I fear it is only a matter of time before they do a "hip-hop" Ring Cycle...

Frau, sorry for responding to the previous hijacking of the thread

I own the 1990 Met Box Set with James Morris, Christa Ludwig, Matti Salminen, Ekkehard Wlaschia, a very annoying Siegfried Jerusalem and conducted by Levine. Overall, it is a pretty good traditional production and I completely agree with your view of modernist interpretations. I am particularly disdainful of the 1976 Chereau production.

Again, sorry for the continued hijack.

[Takeda Shingen]

Do not listen to the heathen Wagnerite.

You want Beethoven. You need Beethoven. Your soul craves Beethoven.

Cross over, children. All are welcome. All welcome. Go into the Beethoven. There is peace and serenity in the Beethoven.

Here's me, listening to the beginning of the overture of every Wagner opera ever:

"Hey... this isn't too bad. Maybe I'll really like this one."

Here's me, 45 minutes later:

"OH DEAR GOD PLEASE LET IT END."

:O:

:haha: Wagner is an acquired taste, particularly late Wagner.

Wagner does have some wonderful moments (and some terrible quarter-hours *cue rim shot*).

Pfft. Rossini was a sellout.

AAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't have time to sit and listen to all that right now. I don't even have time to read this thread any more tonight, but every time I try to get off, there's another post! :O:

No I haven't...but it looks like you've supplied enough information to get a Degree in Classical Music. :O:

My connection would collapse and die under that amount of youtube. :dead:

Sorry guys, I didn't mean to flood with information. My concentration is Wagner Studies, and I actually teach a course on the Ring Cycle. It is hard to turn off professor mode sometimes. Feel free to disregard.

EDIT: In fact, that goes for everybody. I am sorry if I am droning on and lecturing. I try not to talk about music here for fear of being overbearing.

[frau kaleun]

Your new home looks very nice and I wish you a very pleasant life in your new digs, I was very surpised at how much of a "home" it appears; here, in Southern California, units like yours are often called townhouses and the name condo is given to the high and low rise buildings where the units are little more than glorified apartments. Continued happiness to you...


I think the technical term for the homes in that community is "landominium," which I suppose means they are more like homes attached to one or more other homes in the same building with private entrances and exits. Instead of being stacked one on top of the other like apartments.

And the phrase "glorified apartments" is exactly what I used to describe a lot of the places I looked at - I didn't even bother looking at anything with a stacked design, but even some of the two/three story townhouse style places were, in matters of interior design, little more than larger versions of the apartments that are ubiquitous here in the small municipality where I currently live. Some of them looked exactly like my own apartment inside, just with a couple extra rooms thrown in. No thanks!

I suspect a lot of the condos and apartments complexes were built around the same time, when the population here really started to take off, and thus the interiors all look very familiar unless someone has done a lot of renovating and remodeling. Most people haven't and some of those who have did a very bad job. We looked at one place where we all stood around in a couple of the rooms scratching our heads saying "WTH were they thinking?" And it wasn't design choices, it was counters that were obviously not level and new paint that didn't cover a whole wall because they were too lazy to move something and paint behind it.

Everybody who looked at this place with me got the same impression - that it looked like a home inside, not a cookie cutter duplicate of a thousand other units in complexes all over the area. Yeah it's got some of the issues that any 34 year old, lived-in place is gonna have but it's also got more character inside than anything else I saw.

I'm so excited! Just the thought of having a bedroom that is not also an office and an office that is not also a bedroom is a real thrill. A room for just my computer and personal business stuff and bookcases! A room that is actually dedicated to sleeping and relaxing! And a kitchen with more than two square feet of counter space! And a dishwasher that is not Frau Kaleun standing there trying to wash something that is 50% bigger than the sink it's being washed in!

[vienna]

Sorry guys, I didn't mean to flood with information. My concentration is Wagner Studies, and I actually teach a course on the Ring Cycle.


Does this mean if we listen to all your Wagner postings, we'll get course credit?...

<O>

[Takeda Shingen]

Does this mean if we listen to all your Wagner postings, we'll get course credit?...

<O>

Sure, full credit at the University of Tak. Accreditation pending.

[frau kaleun]

Does this mean if we listen to all your Wagner postings, we'll get course credit?...


No, just a headache. :O:

[frau kaleun]

:haha: Wagner is an acquired taste, particularly late Wagner.

Speaking of acquired tastes, I went to the symphony again last month - Pinchas Zuckerman (sp?) was guest conductor/performer and they opened with Beethoven's violin romances and closed with Mendelssohn's Italian Symphony.

In between they did Schoenberg's Verklärte Nacht and much to my surprise I really sort of... liked it. Of course IIRC it is a very early composition.

This Sunday I've got tickets again and they'll be doing something and something else and then the Emperor Concerto. It has become one of my very favorite pieces over the past couple of years and I'm really looking forward to it.

Next season they are doing a whole BUNCH of Beethoven, including the 8th symphony, and in all honesty I might even like that one better than the 9th. I never even listened to it until a couple years ago, I mean with LvB it seems like the focus is always on 3-5-7-9 and sometimes 6, but man when I got a complete cycle on CD I listened to it and it took me DAYS just to get through the first part of the first movement, I would get to the part where it - crap I don't know the technical terms - it all builds up and then you get that big "da da da DUM da da da DUM da da da DUM da da da" and then the last "DUM" bounces you right back to the beginning again. IT BLEW ME AWAY. I just kept listening up to that point and then starting over again, because it's so awesome.

Then I listen to the rest of the first movement and it gets EVEN BETTER. When it gets all minor and tense and builds and builds and then there's that moment where it all resolves back into a major fanfare and it's like the sun suddenly breaking through the clouds after a dark and violent storm. TA DA!!

And the fourth movement is seven minutes of pure bliss, unless the conductor sets the tempo too slow in which I case I turn it off and go listen to somebody else's version. :O: Too slow it loses what I love about it most, which is that it feels so playful and mischievous. The image I always get in my head is someone dangling a string in front of a kitten, where of course you are the kitten and the music is the string and LvB is the one dangling it and chuckling every time you jump.

Oh hey yeah and I also bought a condo, what were we talking about again? :rotfl2:

[Sailor Steve]

You want Beethoven. You need Beethoven. Your soul craves Beethoven.
You youngsters and your newfangled violins and forte-pianos. I've been listening to Hildegard von Bingen and the hurdy-gurdy all week. :O:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2aKyH2NhW0

[Sailor Steve]

Sorry guys, I didn't mean to flood with information.
You misunderstand me, I think. I wasn't complaining about the amount of information, or the amount of music. It's just that when someone posts links like that I want to go listen to the whole thing. When I don't have time it's frustrating. :sunny:

[vienna]

Next season they are doing a whole BUNCH of Beethoven, including the 8th symphony, and in all honesty I might even like that one better than the 9th. I never even listened to it until a couple years ago, I mean with LvB it seems like the focus is always on 3-5-7-9 and sometimes 6, but man when I got a complete cycle on CD I listened to it and it took me DAYS just to get through the first part of the first movement, I would get to the part where it - crap I don't know the technical terms - it all builds up and then you get that big "da da da DUM da da da DUM da da da DUM da da da" and then the last "DUM" bounces you right back to the beginning again. IT BLEW ME AWAY. I just kept listening up to that point and then starting over again, because it's so awesome.


I know the feeling (which is not the same as "I feel your pain.")...

It does seem a bit strange LvB's seemingly best symphonies are the odd numbered works. It is rather like the first set of "Star Trek" movies...

I have a number of favorite movements in LvB's symphonies; my favorite is actually the melding of the 3rd and 4th movements of the 5th Symphony, particularly the transition. The 3rd is so labored and angst-ridden as it continues, then, just as it transitions into the next movement, there is a slow, hopeful swell in the strings and it burst into a loud, joyful cekebration of what I have sometimes referred to as "free flight"...

I particularly dislike recordings where they separate the 3rd and 4th movement with the standard silent space used between numbers on a disc...

Speaking of the 5th Symphony, some co-workers of mine several years ago were debating "the world's greatest riff". They turned to me as the ancient keeper of long-forgotten rock lore and asked my opinion. I replied "The opening notes of Beethoven's 5th Symphony; just two notes, the first repeated 3 times followed by the second. It is the most identifiable, referenced, imitated sequence of notes in all music history. No other comes close." They looked at me and then decided the greatest riff was the opening to "Whole lotta Love"...

So, Frau, what's new with your house?...

<O>

[frau kaleun]

I am still coming to terms with the 5th. Of all his "great" symphonies, that's the one that I've so far had trouble really connecting with. Don't get me wrong, I know it's brilliant, and there are parts of it that I've always loved - that segue from movement 3 to 4, and the first part of 4, being one of them - but for some reason the big emotional attachment just hasn't happened. It's more of an intelletual appreciation than a big emotional reaction. I'm more drawn to it now than I was in the past, so it may just be a matter of "the right music at the right moment" - sometimes you just have to be in the right place in your life and development before the light bulb over your head clicks on and your heart really takes something in completely.

Maybe it's because the opening motif is so prevalent - I mean, everybody knows it even if they don't know that they know it - by the time you sit down to really listen to it for the first time, it can be more of an "oh, that" moment than an "a-HA!" moment.

So, Frau, what's new with your house?...

Well, in the absence of anything else to do at the moment (I was too tired to pack up much of anything tonight) I've been looking at things on line that I want or will need to buy or replace. A new desk, new bedroom furniture, etc. Mostly just to get some ideas and keep some price comparisons in mind for the near future.

Think I found the desk I want (http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/475877/Realspace-Magellan-Collection-Corner-Workstation-63/) today, a nice corner workstation altho I may have to look at it in the store again, possibly with a piece of cardboard cut to match the dimensions of my monitor which should fit but it's going to be close. It has a nice lower ledge which will keep my CPU off the floor without buying a separate stand for it, probably also hold the subwoofer and some other stuff. Downside is that it has no drawers of any kind, but I'll have plenty of room to add a file cabinet and pick up a little cabinet with a few drawers to sit on either side and it will still likely take up less or about the same room as the standard L-shaped desk. I wanted a lateral file cabinet anyway, which can double as a place to put the printer.

Also looking at this bedroom set (http://www.furniturerow.com/BedroomExpressions/Zen-II-Bedroom-Group-/prod1090003/), I'd like to go for a clean, simple Asian influence there and I really love the the looks of the bed. Not so sure about the finish on the wood, though, I'll have to look at it in person. Definitely not the bedding in the picture though. DO NOT WANT. Thinking of something with maybe shades of lilac or plum and/or a very pale, cool green. Not having much luck finding anything so far, altho they do have this set (http://www.furniturerow.com/BedroomExpressions/Tranquil-Blossoms-Comforter-Set/prod590006/) currently at the same place. Not crazy about the gold but it's not too, too yellowish in the picture so I dunno. It doesn't look much like purple in the pic either altho the description says it is. I like that it has the black added in as I have some nice black lamps with an Asian feel, one of which would make a nice nightstand lamp if I convert to a "touch" lamp.

Also looked at this set (http://www.kohls.com/product/prd-c24233/madison-park-mendocino-6-pc-pintuck-duvet-cover-set.jsp) and thought it had the pale green I wanted, but the comments from buyers describe it as a pewter/silver grey, and it's not in the stores so I can't see it in person without buying it and then returning it if I don't like it. I would probably like the silver grey, but not sure how it would look with the beige carpet, and the hardware on the furniture I like above appears to be some kind of silver tone... of course the carpet could come up and be replaced eventually... so many decisions! And then what to paint the walls and trim?

Man I bet you can find lots of cool, legit Asian-inspired stuff on the Left Coast, here it's not so easy.

[Mork_417]

Well, Neal wants to know when people use the link and he needs to know what was bought so he can make sure he gets his cut of it.

PMing him that I bought underwear on Amazon would actually be a little creepier. :O:

:har:

Aaaaaargh! My stepson keeps saying that to just about everything we say to him. It's driving us crazy and now you start doing it here, too. :/\\!!

Too funny, i say it all the time. I forget where i got it from though. :hmmm:

Meth lab, casino, the Subsim All Male Strip Club - where Jimbuna was booked to come over and perform on spring break and holidays - all out of the running. I know you really had your heart set on the latter of the three but the HOA simply will not back down on this issue.

:har:


Congrats on the new home, it looks really nice! :up:

[Penguin]

The house looks nice. Bonus points for brick walls. When a Tornado hits your town, you can still live in the lower floor.

Wouldn't that be walküre?

Hey, Americans can't 'ü'!:timeout: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42dAZQ2kadU)

[Herr-Berbunch]

The house looks nice. Bonus points for brick walls. When a Tornado hits your town, you can still live in the lower floor.
I've often wondered why the inhabitants of Florida, in particular, have never heard the story of the Three Little Pigs. Every year another hurricane, every year more wooden houses made into matchsticks. :-?

Hey, Americans can't 'ü'!:timeout: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42dAZQ2kadU)

Nope, but they can say squirrel. :haha:

Wow, when I came to this thread I had to go back to page 8 to pick up where I left off. Nice house Frau, looks great. But then we go into pages of music. :doh: Personally, I don't like opera but I do like classical music - I tried listening to the Ring Cycle once.

*wonders off to find a bleeding-ears emoticon*

:O:

http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs14/f/2007/094/d/c/Bleeding_Ears_by_YourSpleen.jpg

[AVGWarhawk]

I just looked at the pics. I really like the exterior. Garage! Guy thing really. :D Super nice place!!!! I'm betting you will enjoy it for years to come! :yeah:

[frau kaleun]

I just looked at the pics. I really like the exterior. Garage! Guy thing really. :D Super nice place!!!! I'm betting you will enjoy it for years to come! :yeah:

Well I hope so as I'll certainly be paying for it for years to come. :O:

[AVGWarhawk]

I know the feeling. But it is a good feeling calling ones home their own. :up: Enjoy!

[Sailor Steve]

IThink I found the desk I want today, a nice corner workstation altho I may have to look at it in the store again, possibly with a piece of cardboard cut to match the dimensions of my monitor which should fit but it's going to be close.
Corner desks are cool. My personal preference would have been a corner desk with two wings for books, but I had to settle for a single-wing straight desk, since any corner in my place puts my back to the windows I like to look out of while I work or play.

The bedroom furniture looks awesome. I'm sure you'll find the perfect bedding to go with it.

[antikristuseke]

Congrats on getting a new house, just started saving money myself so i can make a down payment on a place of my own in the next couple of years.

[Onkel Neal]

As it happens I finally remembered to take some today.

Here's the exterior:

http://imageshack.us/a/img24/5739/photo002cx.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img585/5811/photo003mz.jpg



Thanks for the pics, really nice place!

[Herr-Berbunch]

Congrats on getting a new house, just started saving money myself so i can make a down payment on a place of my own in the next couple of years.

The rate you're work it shouldn't take long. :o

[Jimbuna]

The rate you're work it shouldn't take long. :o

Aye that....any chance of a loan? :)

[antikristuseke]

The rate you're work it shouldn't take long. :o

I don't think you can appreciate exactly how low the pay is in the security sector in Estonia. At least untill I can rise another step on the career ladder.

Edit: sorry for the thread highjack, was not my intention.

[geetrue]

after reading all the above I get the funny feeling that some of you wear headphones and surf the web at the same time ... :yep:

How on earth do you guys do more than one thing at the same time? :o

[Sailor Steve]

I do exactly that, but when I start concentrating on the typing or reading I don't really hear the music, unless I concentrate real hard, which I usually don't. So unless a piece of music really grabs my attention it becomes background noise. Very nice background noise, but still kind of not really there.

So no, I don't multitask either.

[frau kaleun]

Corner desks are cool. My personal preference would have been a corner desk with two wings for books, but I had to settle for a single-wing straight desk, since any corner in my place puts my back to the windows I like to look out of while I work or play.

I'm just the opposite, when I'm inside I like to block out as much of the outside world as possible. Altho that might change when the outside world is more pleasant to look at. :hmm2:

I like the idea of a corner workstation but my problem is most of them seem to come with the hutch attached and not optional, and the center space for monitors is always way too small for what I have. The one I linked to is the only one I've seen that has a space that is big enough... it's 27" wide at the narrowest part in the front, which would give me an inch of leeway on either side.

And I like that the space underneath on each side is open and not filled up with drawers and stuff, it leaves room for the stuff I want to put there and more leg room. The desk is cheap enough that I can buy drawers and a file cabinet and have the configuration I want for those things instead of being stuck with some manufacturer's design.

The bedroom furniture looks awesome. I'm sure you'll find the perfect bedding to go with it.

Yeah, I really like it - in the pictures, at least. It's quite a drive down to the closest store, it's in northern KY. But I have a friend who lives near it and she's the one who suggested I check it out, because their prices are usually so good. So I'll probably go down there and she and I will have a day of shopping which will be fun. Once i see it in person I'll know for sure. I can't really do anything until I have the place anyway. I just hope they deliver up here and that the cost of that isn't outrageous.

after reading all the above I get the funny feeling that some of you wear headphones and surf the web at the same time ... :yep:

How on earth do you guys do more than one thing at the same time? :o

Last night when I was posting in this thread I was also surfing shopping sites in another tab, listening to Beethoven on headphones, and watching The Two Towers on TV with the sound muted. Oh and for a brief time I was also getting up every ten minutes or so to set up a box and toss some stuff in it. :O:

What can I say, I'm a born multi-tasker!

[geetrue]

Gidget (Sally Field) was the first person I saw do this in her bedroom doing homework, talking on the phone and listening to her 45rpm records

all at the same time.

I'm too old I guess for music, tv and surfing too

but I do have this pc hdmi corded to a 40" Samsung and a ati 7070 video card resolution 1920X1080 @ 75hz with 16gb of ram

and it looks great with plenty of room to read articles while waiting for
dowloads at the same time.

my old asus 24" lcd is just sitting here ... I think I'll turn it into a security screen for the driveway.

[vienna]

Man I bet you can find lots of cool, legit Asian-inspired stuff on the Left Coast, here it's not so easy.

Yes, there is a ton of Asian furnishings available here in Southern California, but a substantial portion of it is a bit "schlocky", designed more to given the impression of Asian style rather than being authentic. There are also a great many interior deisgn/furnishing stores here for almost every taste and style. Interior design sometimes takes on the mantle of a competetive sport in SoCal...


Last night when I was posting in this thread I was also surfing shopping sites in another tab, listening to Beethoven on headphones, and watching The Two Towers on TV with the sound muted. Oh and for a brief time I was also getting up every ten minutes or so to set up a box and toss some stuff in it. :O:

What can I say, I'm a born multi-tasker!


When I was in my earlier years, I would have the TV on, the radio on, read a book, and make sketches all at the same time. My mother took this as being a possible sign of pending insanity (possibly still pending). Then again, my mother took almost everything I did as a possible sign of insanity, except for sleeping. (I once upset her by asking how she didn't know if I might be having insane dreams.) Later on in life, the ability to do several things at once has been one of my greatest assets. I have had several employments where I have had to deal with several problems at the same time. On one job, the company was going through a merger and the unit I was in was assigned the task of integrating the two HR and employee assignment processes. I was told by one of the participants in the meeting (I didn't go to meetings if at all possible; a bit of the anti-social in me) of how, when the various sub-teams were given their assignments, an argument evolved over which team would have my services. In the end, I wound up working for all the sub-teams. Sometimes early experiences with multi-tasking can be beneficial. And I do not appear to be any more insane than ever...

Now, if you'll excuse me, I must get back to what I always do...

http://www.fanpop.com/images/polls/10715_2_full.jpg

<O>

[GT182]

Frau K, at least you don't have a catch-all desk like mine. An old antique roll top from the early 40s that's great, but everything gets thrown on it.... books, magazines, car and computer stuff too. Even my computer desk is a mess. LOL Someday I'll get over the lazies and clean things up.

[frau kaleun]

Frau K, at least you don't have a catch-all desk like mine.

I do have just that at the moment, mostly due to lack of space and the fact that my bedroom doubles as my office. Altho the kitchen table really takes the prize as the catch-all piece of furniture in my apartment. I can't remember the last time I actually ate a meal off it.

No, wait, I do remember... it was during a brief power outage a couple months ago. Fortunately I already had dinner sorted when the juice cut off, but seeing as how the table is right in front of a window and it was getting dark outside already it was the best-lit spot to try and eat. And I had to stand there with a flashlight moving stuff around on it for a couple minutes to clear a space to put my plate. :haha:

[GT182]

Don't feel bad... we eat on tv trays in the livingroom so we can watch tv at the same time. The diningroom table just sits there being ignored.

The only place I can make a mess is in my computer room man cave. :D

[Sailor Steve]

My computer desk holds my meals as well, so I can eat while I watch whatever it is I'm watching that day. The only other table in my place is my model-building table, and it has models living on it, and besides there's nothing to watch over there.

[Red October1984]

My computer desk holds my meals as well, so I can eat while I watch whatever it is I'm watching that day. The only other table in my place is my model-building table, and it has models living on it, and besides there's nothing to watch over there.

I have a laptop....this means that the entire house is my computer table. My house has everything in it...ergo...my house is the catch-all table.

Usually, I just lay on either my bed or the bigger Queen guest bed and do whatever. SH3, 4, IL-2, Subsim, etc... One time, I was really bored....so I built a "cockpit" out of pillows and blankets ( :oops: ) on the guest room bed and put on some headphones and spent a few highly comfortable hours flying. Call me childish....but wrapping myself up in a blanket, surrounding myself with pillows, and shooting down the enemy made for a nice afternoon. :smug:

Before you judge me, I was bored to the point of I was bouncing a ball off of every surface of the house and counting the little "popcorn" things on the ceiling of all the rooms. :dead: I lost count after a long time of counting and gave up. :shifty: I would've done anything to survive the boredom that day....so I had to resort to more childish methods....

I had a pillow on either side of me, a blanket over me, one of those Laptop Lap Desks, a pillow behind me for my back, and turtle beach headphones.

I love Turtle Beach headphones... :cool:

[frau kaleun]

Usually, I just lay on either my bed or the bigger Queen guest bed and do whatever. SH3, 4, IL-2, Subsim, etc... One time, I was really bored....so I built a "cockpit" out of pillows and blankets ( :oops: ) on the guest room bed and put on some headphones and spent a few highly comfortable hours flying. Call me childish....but wrapping myself up in a blanket, surrounding myself with pillows, and shooting down the enemy made for a nice afternoon. :smug:

Obligatory:

http://i1.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/087/591/vdQwc.jpg

[Red October1984]

One thing....

I didn't call up Red Lobster.... :)

It might've looked like that except mine didn't have a roof. :O:

EDIT: and you joined chat and immediately quit frau! Come on! It's getting lonely in there with only MineBot...

[Cybermat47]

It's getting lonely in there with only MineBot...

http://imageshack.us/a/img703/151/photomar23175648.png

[Herr-Berbunch]

I'm extremely disappointed not to have read the words 'Red Lobster, standing by'.

[geetrue]

That was very entertaining Frau-line ...

I'm going to miss red lobster continuing saga

it was late for you on a Friday night posting that humor,
but it was 2:30 am for me on Saturday morning when I read
it while downloading Firefox plug-ins and sleeping in front of my computer station on the floor on a mattress
(no picture needed of an old man with messed up hair and a beard that just ate a chocolate chip cookie)

I just love this new Firefox better than IE even thought about being and as for you Red October ...
if your so bored why don't you change your plane signature picture ... lol

I'm getting tired of the same plane all of the time ...

good night

[Jimbuna]

Just checked IRC and only the MineBot was in attendance.

[Red October1984]

Just checked IRC and only the MineBot was in attendance.

Well....I'm in there now.

Timezone stuff...that's why I wasn't in there when you and Cybermat were... :yep:

[frau kaleun]

Well....I'm in there now.

Timezone stuff...that's why I wasn't in there when you and Cybermat were... :yep:

I logged in but then after about two seconds realized how tired I was and that I just didn't have the energy to carry on a conversation. So I sat here and played Purble Place for about five minutes until my brain died and then I went to bed.

[Madox58]

I logged in but then after about two seconds realized how tired I was and that I just didn't have the energy to carry on a conversation.
WAIT! HOLD ON JUST A SECOND!
:timeout:

I just didn't have the energy to carry on a conversation.

You MAY be the first female in human history to admit such a state exists for the female!
:hmmm:

(Nancy is not here so I can say that right now)
:haha:

[Red October1984]

I logged in but then after about two seconds realized how tired I was and that I just didn't have the energy to carry on a conversation. So I sat here and played Purble Place for about five minutes until my brain died and then I went to bed.

It happens. I just wish that more people got on IRC every now and then. :hmmm:

[vienna]

You MAY be the first female in human history to admit such a state exists for the female!



Read well, these may be privateer's last words... :haha:

<O>

[Cpt Aurora]

If I had enough money (which I surely don't :hmmm:), I would buy a Sub Marine and make it a home for myself. Preferably a Typhoon class :03:.

[frau kaleun]

Well, serves me right for being optimistic (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=2038232&postcount=406). :O:

Not really bad news, depending on how the seller responds... just got an email from the loan officer letting me know that the appraisal came back $9500 lower than the currently contracted purchase price. Apparently some other units in the same complex and nearby just sold for at or near that much lower price, which is lowering the value of every other comparable place.

So the bank will only agree to pony up for the appraisal price and nothing more, which means I'd have to make up the difference out of pocket by adding that amount to my downpayment which is not gonna happen.

The other option is that the seller will agree to renegotiate the price. It's my understanding that the appraisal stands for 90 days, and if that's what comparable places are being sold for at present she's kinda stuck with that unless she wants to hold out and hope it changes for the better down the road. I do know that due to her situation she really, really wants to sell this place ASAP so it's possible that she'll accept a much lower price. If so that would suck for her but work out very well for me.

It's sad cuz I would be happy to pay what we agreed on if it weren't for this issue but there's really nothing I can do about the appraisal and all that. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that she's willing to renegotiate because I really want this place and it's unlikely that something like it that is affordable is gonna come along any time soon.

[AVGWarhawk]

I get the impression she needs to move. She will probably have to take the loss or meet you half way. Is there meat on her end of the bone ultimately is the question. I hope it works out in your favor!!!

[frau kaleun]

I get the impression she needs to move. She will probably have to take the loss or meet you half way. Is there meat on her end of the bone ultimately is the question.

My realtor got a copy of the same email and called me soon after, she said she'd already called the other agent to get some idea of what he used as a benchmark when listing it because TBH we thought the place was practically a steal at the listed price. It's only been on the market since December but I guess that's how fast things change... doesn't help that there are a lot of foreclosures and short sales in the area which is driving down prices.

But I will say that the places we looked at that were priced lower were generally in terrible shape - some we never got past the foyer because just the smell was so bad. You'd need to spend the extra $10-15K just to make them livable.

I hope she's as anxious to sell as she seemed to be a month ago, but I don't know. My realtor feels that given the current market and the fact that three places in the same complex have just sold at around the appraisal price, she might actually come down to that. Which would be fantastic for me, but we'll have to see what happens. A couple weeks ago she was balking at doing anything about the broken dishwasher because I was already getting such a good deal on the place so who knows how she'll react to this.

[AVGWarhawk]

We can only hope she realizes the home will only for so much. Does not matter who is buying it. Appraisal is an appraisal. So, she is then stuck with the home or takes a loss. The question is, can she afford the loss? :hmmm:

It all sucks after going through the motions and taking your time to work the deal. I hope it works out. If not, you are that much wiser on the next home you look to purchase.

Buying a home is on the top of the list as most stressful endeavor one embarks on. I can think of others. Let say it is in the top five!

Hang in there!

[frau kaleun]

We can only hope she realizes the home will only for so much. Does not matter who is buying it. Appraisal is an appraisal. So, she is then stuck with the home or takes a loss. The question is, can she afford the loss? :hmmm:

Yeah, that's the thing. Anybody else trying to buy it now is going to run into the same thing as me, and unless they're willing and able to pay a lot more out of pocket on the front end it's not gonna happen. If she's not willing to risk waiting for that then I could get very lucky.


Hang in there!

Not much else I can do at the moment! :O:

[frau kaleun]

Well the listing agent for the condo responded to my agent, they are questioning the appraisal and after looking at the info they provided and checking out the comp properties considered by the appraiser I don't blame them (not that I did anyway).

Two of them are 600+ sq ft smaller than the one I want, none of them has as many bedrooms and/or bathrooms, one was an estate sale that had the price reduced as an allowance for the condition of the interior. And I'm pretty sure at least one was a short sale or foreclosure because I remember looking at the listing several times. No adjustments are noted in the report regarding the differences in amenities, size, or condition between those properties and this one. In addition another property within the same area, still smaller than mine, just sold for several thousand more than any of the properties used for comparison.

So my agent is contacting the loan officer to see what if any options exist, I guess for getting the appraiser to revisit his evaluation. If a second look doesn't result in something more pleasing to the seller I guess she'll have to accept that she won't get anything more for the place in the current market, but whether that will make her more open to renegotiating the price for a quick and sure sale is anybody's guess.

[Sailor Steve]

Got all my fingers and toes crossed for you. :sunny:

Tell them to hurry up, I'm getting a cramp. :stare:

And it's hard to eat my birthday cake. :doh:

[Mork_417]

Hope it works out for ya. :yep:

I felt kinda bad for the guy that sold us our house, as he was in a similiar situation. He took a big hit, and had to pay a fairly large amount out of pocket to sell.

[Herr-Berbunch]

Got all my fingers and toes crossed for you. :sunny:

jkl;gdfljkryl;l awer;lkj';lsdfag

:nope: Well I too had my fingers and toes crossed for you, but it turned out my typing with my nose ain't so great.

I'll cross them again any momghjc

[AVGWarhawk]

Two of them are 600+ sq ft smaller than the one I want, none of them has as many bedrooms and/or bathrooms, one was an estate sale that had the price reduced as an allowance for the condition of the interior. And I'm pretty sure at least one was a short sale or foreclosure because I remember looking at the listing several times. No adjustments are noted in the report regarding the differences in amenities, size, or condition between those properties and this one. In addition another property within the same area, still smaller than mine, just sold for several thousand more than any of the properties used for comparison.




Sounds to me the appraiser did not do their homework. If anything, close the gap some on the appraised value and current sale price. The home you are interested in has more to offer obviously than the others in the same neighborhood.

[frau kaleun]

The loan officer has responded that the only recourse if they want to contest the original appraisal is to find additional units in the same complex that sold for more within the past three months and ask they be used to reevalute things.

Note that they want units "in the same complex." I've asked my agent about this, as it was clearly not part of the criteria used in the original appraisal - at least one of the comps the appraiser considered is NOT in the same complex. Meanwhile another condo that isn't in the complex but is still within the 1 mile radius was sold less than two weeks ago for more than what this owner wants and was completely left out of the equation.

Not heard anything more today from the owner or other agent about a possible renegotation.

My loan officer did let me know that if the owner refuses to budge at all, I could pay 10% on the appraisal price instead of 20% on the full purchase price and then make up the difference and my out of pocket would only be $1100 more than what I would have paid if the sale had gone through as originally hoped. It would raise my monthly payment by less than $50 so that isn't bad as a worst case scenario and is definitely doable. The downside is I'd still be paying more for the property than their appraiser thinks it's worth in the current market, which would be bad if I ended up having to resell it quickly for some reason.

[AVGWarhawk]

The downside is I'd still be paying more for the property than their appraiser thinks it's worth in the current market, which would bad if ended up having to resell it quickly for some reason.

Almost everything we do comes at a risk to some degree. I would say if you had to sell it quickly in a year or so you would still be underwater with closing costs etc. Even if the house was purchased at the appraised value today. Hope to stay long and the property appreciates in value. :up:

[frau kaleun]

Almost everything we do comes at a risk to some degree. I would say if you had to sell it quickly in a year or so you would still be underwater with closing costs etc. Even if the house was purchased at the appraised value today. Hope to stay long and the property appreciates in value. :up:

Well, it's certainly not my intention to resell it, my intention was to find a place I would be happy and comfortable in for a long, long time and I think this is a good bet for that. There's always the unexpected but you can't make decisions based on a zillion random things that might (or might never) happen.

[AVGWarhawk]

There's always the unexpected but you can't make decisions based on a zillion random things that might (or might never) happen.


A lot of people do not leave their house because of "what if."

[Jimbuna]

Almost everything we do comes at a risk to some degree. I would say if you had to sell it quickly in a year or so you would still be underwater with closing costs etc. Even if the house was purchased at the appraised value today. Hope to stay long and the property appreciates in value. :up:

Agreed...going by the 'reduced' additional cost I'd still go for it if that is the one you are happy with.

TBH you are taking me back 27 years and I'm glad I never have to go down this route again...too set in ones ways...the kids will get the property but I don't intend leaving many pennies.

[frau kaleun]

At this point I would be happy if the owner agreed to split the difference and come down to halfway between the contracted price and the appraisal value. I'd hate not being able to do the 20% downpayment I planned, it would suck not getting the lower interest rate, but the monthly payment wouldn't be that much more even with the required mortgage insurance figured into it. That seems like the most equitable solution unless the owner is just dead set on not budging at all.

But we'll wait to see what the other side decides to do, if they give up on the appraisal issue and propose another amount themselves. Sure I'd love to get the best deal possible for myself but I'd hate to have it happen when it means someone in a difficult situation gets screwed over so bad. At $65k she'd be taking a HUGE loss on what she paid for the place, almost 50% if memory serves. And it's not like she's selling because she took out a mortgage she couldn't afford, or something else of an irresponsible nature. She had to move to take care of an elderly parent, and needs to sell, and here's someone who really wants to buy and the stoopid bank is ruining it for everybody. :stare:

I know they have to protect their interests as well, after all they'd be ponying up the bulk of the money - but COME ON. That appraisal is not right, if that's the industry standard then the standard is crap.

[Herr-Berbunch]

...the kids will get the property but I don't intend leaving many pennies.

Depends on the scrap value of die-cast. :D

If you don't want them to be melted down then I know a grateful recipient a hundred and some miles south.

[AVGWarhawk]

At this point I would be happy if the owner agreed to split the difference and come down to halfway between the contracted price and the appraisal value. I'd hate not being able to do the 20% downpayment I planned, it would suck not getting the lower interest rate, but the monthly payment wouldn't be that much more even with the required mortgage insurance figured into it. That seems like the most equitable solution unless the owner is just dead set on not budging at all.

But we'll wait to see what the other side decides to do, if they give up on the appraisal issue and propose another amount themselves. Sure I'd love to get the best deal possible for myself but I'd hate to have it happen when it means someone in a difficult situation gets screwed over so bad. At $65k she'd be taking a HUGE loss on what she paid for the place, almost 50% if memory serves. And it's not like she's selling because she took out a mortgage she couldn't afford, or something else of an irresponsible nature. She had to move to take care of an elderly parent, and needs to sell, and here's someone who really wants to buy and the stoopid bank is ruining it for everybody. :stare:

I know they have to protect their interests as well, after all they'd be ponying up the bulk of the money - but COME ON. That appraisal is not right, if that's the industry standard then the standard is crap.

Yes, the lesser of 20% down would screw up having to pay the mortgage insurance. A fee that I think is a utter rip off. In the end, it might be in your best interest to pull out of the deal. I would hope any earnest money would be returned to you as well as inspection costs. Was there a plan B home? Is the agent you are using willing to drop some of their commission? It would seem you would be doing more of the bending than the other parties involved. Like I said, these folks are not your friends. You are a paycheck. Their best interest is themselves. You are not really hard pressed to purchase this home. The owner looks to be hard pressed to sell it.

[frau kaleun]

The owner looks to be hard pressed to sell it.

My agent feels the same way, she thinks that splitting the difference is actually the worst case scenario we should be considering and we may end up coming out with a better deal than that if we sit tight for now. If the appraisal sticks, which it seems likely to do, nobody else is going to get financing for anything more than that either. The owner will be stuck waiting 90 days for the appraisal to expire unless her listing agent can pull something out of his hat to justify a reevaluation and if he could do that I think we'd be seeing it already.

So it's kinda up to the owner right now. But all things considered I think I would be willing to split the difference if it comes to that. I could probably still manage the 20% that way, but it will leave me with a lot less money for things I was hoping to do sooner rather than later. Like, none, depending on what my share of the closing costs turn out to be. :O:

[AVGWarhawk]

Not having to pay the MI over the long haul will pay off. Yep, it sucks not having that money up front(if you meet half way and still come up with the 20%) for things you wanted to do, however, the nice tidy tax write off of interested next year will make it a distant memory. You are still clear of the MI payment. :up:

[frau kaleun]

Just got an email from my agent which had appended to it a series of emails sent back and forth between the loan officer and the owner's agent regarding the appraisal.

The other agent keeps asking about why there was no adjustment for differences in size, the bank says there was an adjustment of $20 per square foot and gives the numbers used.

The agent points out the obvious discrepancy: the adjustments are only about 25% of what they should be at $20 per sq foot, meaning the subject property was undervalued.

The loan officer then says the $20 per sq ft number came from him and could be wrong. Gee, you think? He says he'll check on it, but... the adjustments were done and will not be changed. In that case I hope the appraiser, at least, got his numbers straight. :88)

[Jimbuna]

Depends on the scrap value of die-cast. :D

If you don't want them to be melted down then I know a grateful recipient a hundred and some miles south.

One day...you just never know :03:

[frau kaleun]

Well I was finally able to sit down and screw both my eyes up to a point and read all the tiny tiny print in the appraisal report, and the adjustments for size are consistent at $5 per sq ft so unless the owner wants to dispute the amount used for calculations they're out of luck there.

They haven't come up with any additional comps to present to the bank's appraiser either, apparently. I did a search and there are other comparable properties for sale in that complex, some listed at up to $25K more than this one... but of course they aren't being SOLD for that. And if any other prospective buyer on them gets the same kind of appraisal we did, which seems likely given the excellent condition and size of this property... well, they're not going to be sold for that much in the near future.

Last word from my agent is that the owner wants a second appraisal, which her agent agrees she should pay for herself. I figure I got nothing to lose there, if it comes back low again she'll have to accept that she's not going to get the purchase price she wants anytime soon which is more motivation to sell now while she's got an eager buyer. If it comes back higher then the difference that has to be made up to satisfy the bank (should they accept the new valuation) will be less if and when we try to work out a new deal.

[AVGWarhawk]

Last word from my agent is that the owner wants a second appraisal, which her agent agrees she should pay for herself. I figure I got nothing to lose there, if it comes back low again she'll have to accept that she's not going to get the purchase price she wants anytime soon which is more motivation to sell now while she's got an eager buyer. If it comes back higher then the difference that has to be made up to satisfy the bank (should they accept the new valuation) will be less if and when we try to work out a new deal.


Good plan of action.

[frau kaleun]

Gah haven't heard anything more today at all.

I did do the numbers though for a possible "split the difference" deal, the difference in question is $9500 so I'd have to make up $4750 of that if she agrees. I could do that and still pay 20% on the appraisal value and probably keep my lower interest rate and not have to pay the mortgage insurance. I would not have as much of a cushion after closing costs and other expenses, but probably enough to keep me happy and let me do the few things I really want to do right away.

I'd also be financing a smaller amount, presumably on the same terms offered originally, which I assume would end up making my monthly payment smaller than I thought it would be going in... which means I could make up for some of the padding taken out of my cushion a bit more quickly, lol.

I asked the bank to shoot me some numbers on that so if that's how it ends up working out I'll be prepared to say yeah or nay on it.

[AVGWarhawk]

For every $1000.00 put down the difference in payment per month is $6-$10. You might be already on to that. Not having to pay the PMI will save you much more over 15-30 year on the loan. For me, I took the no PMI option with 20% down. That is money just lost to some non-entity. I would prefer to put the money into the home via larger down payment. I'm only paying myself back and not giving it to this guy...

http://www.parade.com/images/-v5/celebrity/2012/0930/personality-parade/spot-dean-winters.jpg

[frau kaleun]

YES!!!!! :woot:

It appears the owner has agreed to split the difference, agents are working on an addendum to the contract for the new purchase price.

This means I'll still be able to do 20%, not pay mortgage insurance, get the better rate, and on a smaller loan at that.

The figures I got from the bank yesterday on this scenario were for a monthly payment of about $432 including taxes and insurance. :rock:

Good grief send me that addendum to sign and let's DO THIS THING. :sunny:

[Sailor Steve]

Cool!

My face was starting to turn blue and my fingers and toes both have nasty cramps! :sunny:

[AVGWarhawk]

YES!!!!! :woot:

It appears the owner has agreed to split the difference, agents are working on an addendum to the contract for the new purchase price.

This means I'll still be able to do 20%, not pay mortgage insurance, get the better rate, and on a smaller loan at that.

The figures I got from the bank yesterday on this scenario were for a monthly payment of about $432 including taxes and insurance. :rock:

Good grief send me that addendum to sign and let's DO THIS THING. :sunny:

That is excellent news! This home buying stuff will frustrate you until you finally sign. But, you will finally sign at the end of the day.
:up:

[frau kaleun]

That is excellent news! This home buying stuff will frustrate you until you finally sign. But, you will finally sign at the end of the day.
:up:

Just get me to the closing and take my money and give me the keys already. :O:

[AVGWarhawk]

Hurry up and wait. :haha:

[The Enigma]

That's all good news Frau.
You may start planning a house warming party :woot:

[frau kaleun]

Sweet holy crap, if I needed a sign that I made the right decision... I just got it. GET ME OUT OF THIS BUILDING PLEASE.

So about an hour ago I'm sitting here when I hear two men yelling outside. I peek out the window and there's a car pulled up in front of our front steps and two guys fighting in the parking lot. And by fighting I mean they are rolling around on the ground punching each other in the head. Okay, clearly this is not just two guys showing off by yelling, or just horsing around. There's a girl out there - who I later realized was my downstairs neighbor - yelling at them to stop. Which they do. So I start to walk away and then it starts again, okay fine, I'm calling the cops. I call 911 and report a fight at our address and they say they'll send someone out.

A few seconds later I hear a car engine roar, then there's a big... sound... crash... and the car roaring away and next thing I know a woman screaming. I run to the window and the car is gone and the girl is laying in the parking lot screaming. I call 911 back and tell them to get someone here NOW and send and ambulance because I'm pretty sure the fight just ended with someone being run over by a car.

Neighbors are now coming out to see what's going on. I get out there and the girl is up walking around screaming. Then I look over and the police are already there, one of them is talking to a young man and telling him to sit down and take it easy. Then I look down and realize the railing down the side of our front steps has been completely torn out of the concrete and is just laying there at the across the bottom of the steps. The window of one of the lower level apartments has been completely shattered. The young guy the police are talking to is bleeding from the head and face. The poor girl is screaming about her baby.

I realize she's my downstairs neighbor who I've talked to many times, she's a sweet girl, fairly young, always very polite and soft spoken. She's hysterical because not only did the other guy hit both her and the other young man - who is her boyfriend and the father of her baby boy - he did it behind the wheel of her car, which he then stole WITH HER BABY STILL IN IT.

Turns out he is the brother of the boyfriend, why he was there or what started the fight between them I do not know but it ended with him getting in her car and trying to run both of them down. He hit her and knocked her to the ground, injured her leg somehow, but I don't think she even noticed at first because obviously all she could think of was that this maniac just drove off at high speed with her baby.

He hit the boyfriend - his brother - hard enough to throw him face first into the other neighbor's window. He may have even pinned him between that and the car, because it sounded like he actually rammed into the building - so maybe it was actually lucky that it was the window and not the brick masonry. Poor kid's face and head are cut up real bad though.

After hitting the two of them this <expletive deleted> plowed up and over the front steps, taking out the railing, and leaving a big chunk of the car's body or bumper in our shrubbery... then he took off at high speed and drove back to where he lives with the cops chasing him. Don't know if they'd already arrived by the time he was driving off or not, but at any rate they located him and the car pretty quickly. He left the car when he got back to wherever he lives, abandoned the baby there as well, and took off on foot. I think I heard one of the officers say they caught him soon after, I certainly hope that was the case. The baby was fine and someone called the girl's father and her family was going to that location to meet the police and get him. The girl and her boyfriend both went off in separate ambulances but they were conscious and mobile so I'm hoping they'll be okay eventually.

But THIS is why I have to get out of this building... not just because it's a good time to buy, not just because I'm tired of living in a tiny little apartment, not just because I suddenly have the money to do better. This neighborhood was not like this when I moved here many years ago. Slowly but surely, this is what it's turning into. I don't know if it's the economy or what, but the quality of life around here and especially in this building have been going downhill for several years. Now it's gotten to the point where if you hear raised voices in the building or just outside, it might be some people horsing around or it might be an attempted murder waiting to happen.

Please let this closing go through without a hitch. I really, REALLY have to get out of this place.

[magic452]

Holy cow, sounds like you bought just in time.

Hope all goes well with the new digs and you find peace and quite and all the happiness in the world. Looks like you made a good deal as well. :up::up::up:

Being on the west coast I'll need a few days notice regarding the house warming party but have Champagne glass will travel.

Magic

[Sailor Steve]

Wow! I can't think of anything to say to that. Still holding my breath and fingers crossed.

[frau kaleun]

Oh, here's the really good part. I talked to the girl this morning - she was already out of the hospital with a broken ankle but seems okay otherwise. The fight started because the boyfriend and the brother were bringing her back here in her car and on the way the brother took exception to the way the boyfriend was driving.

Yeah, there's no better way to make a point about someone else's bad driving habits than by stealing a car, running two people down with it, ramming it into a building and then leading police on a high speed chase with a baby rolling around in the back seat. :shifty:

I know, I know, it wasn't a situation where this individual was thinking rationally about what he was doing and why. BUT STILL.

[Herr-Berbunch]

This neighborhood was not like this when I moved here many years ago. Slowly but surely, this is what it's turning into.

I can only see one common factor. :p

[Wolferz]

To Haus Frau Kaleun?:up:

[Jimbuna]

Conger rats on the successful conclusion...put the sideshow down to life's peculiarities....been there too many times to take all that much notice anymore.

[The Enigma]

Well, this must make it really easy to say goodbye to your current neighborhood.
What a horrible experience.

[Mork_417]

I can somewhat relate to your situation, which is the same reason we moved two years ago to where we are now. Hope the rest of the closing goes smoothly. :up:

[frau kaleun]

So... now we're just waiting for the stoopid bank to get its act together.

According the loan officer, he hasn't gotten the green light from underwriting yet. The last addendum we signed to the contract stated we had to close by the 19th, which is tomorrow, which is not going to happen. I don't know if we'll have to sign another last minute addendum or not.

As of this afternoon my agent was saying that the bank is having trouble getting the IRS to verify my tax returns. I can understand that the IRS is busy given the time of year... but the problem is not that they haven't gotten any response at all, it's that they've requested the info several times and their requests are being rejected. I don't know why, but according to my agent this should have been taken care of weeks ago. Why they haven't contacted me in all this time to let me know there was a problem and double-check whatever info they are using, I don't know.

Not sure how the IRS handles these things, but if they are cross-checking my SSN with the name also submitted by the bank, that could be a problem. Officially I use my first initial and middle name - that's what's on my Social Security card, all legal and financial stuff, etc. I "go by" my middle name but tax returns are probably under first initial, middle initial, and last name. If they are trying to match up my SSN with just my middle name, that could be a problem.

All the docs the bank has should have first initial, middle name on them. However there's also the fact that they continue to misspell the name they do have on record for me despite my having pointed this out a long time ago, manually corrected it on numerous docs I had to sign and return, and my loan officer's assurances that they would "sort that out" during the process.

So, I don't know.

Probably now the soonest I can hope for is next Tuesday. :stare:

Oh and their home mortgage dept also called my work today to verify my employment. Meaning, they called my office, asked for me by name, and then had ME verify that I worked there. Um... if I didn't work here, why would I be here to take the call? And if the concern is that I gave a fake work number and would answer it myself and pretend that it was my employer's place of business, wouldn't asking for the employer or a supervisor or somebody other than me be more appropriate? Whatever. JUST GET IT DONE ALREADY.

[Onkel Neal]

Here's hoping.:up:

[Jimbuna]

Not long now and I'm sure it will have all been worthwhile :sunny:

[AVGWarhawk]

Our old neighborhood slowly deteriorated over the past 11 years we resided there. It was time for us to go. Unfortunately, some neighborhoods have a bad element move in and the trouble starts. I can completely relate to how you are feeling with the latest neighbor activity. Your story of the domestic reads like a episode of Cops. :doh:

[frau kaleun]

WOOHOO! :woot: :woot: :woot:

Loan officer just emailed to say he has final approval in his hands, the only thing they still want is a copy of a termite inspection report which he says he must have missed in the contract. :shifty:

The only termite inspection stipulated in the contract was done as part of the overall home inspection, and since I've been carrying around every single piece of paper related to this endeavor everywhere I go for the past week, I just faxed him a copy of the termite inspection report from that. I swear if they decide there needs to be another separate inspection done just for termites, I will scream. That is the responsibility of the HOA anyway, I only had it done for my own peace of mind.

Anyway barring a problem with that item, it looks like closing will be next Tuesday or Wednesday. :yeah:

[Sailor Steve]

WOOHOO indeed! :rock:

[TarJak]

Nice news. I'll bet you can just feel those keys jangling in your hand.:woot:

[frau kaleun]

Nice news. I'll bet you can just feel those keys jangling in your hand.:woot:

SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY :O:

[Jimbuna]

Nice one :sunny:

[The Enigma]

Fingers crossed :yeah:

[THE_MASK]

A house is a house . Its the people inside that make it a home . My philosophy on houses :up: You can change things inside a house but you cannot change your neighbours :up: Termidor is cheap insurance against termites :up: Good luck with the new house :up:

[WernherVonTrapp]

Congratulations on your first home, Frau Kaleun. Home buying can be the most rewarding, and frustrating experience in a person's life. Especially if you have a family that needs sheltering. I've recently completed my third (and hopefully last) home purchase. The paperwork can be mind boggling. I had frustration myself in having all those involved (bank, real estate agent, title company, etc.) getting their act together on the same page.
Interesting story about the DV. It sounds typical of what I've been dealing with over the last 25+ years, but not anymore. We actually had a wife drive her car over her husband's head. Popped his eye right out of the socket. Oh, well, anyway, my last home, there was a sweet little old lady that lived next door. A few years later, she moved out and rented to a nice, but severely dysfunctional family. The daughter was a heroin/crack addict and would frequently end up being beaten by one of her older brothers. Neighbors make all the difference in the world and although nobody is perfect, it's important to take note of. There was another older son who was married but they were both in their mid to late 20s. Neither of these sons lifted a finger to help their elderly father rake, mow or shovel, though one worked out at a gym daily.
Just a mere few days before I moved to my present home, the daughter was pounding on my front door at 3:00am in the morning, bloodied and screaming that she had been beaten and "Duck-Taped" by her family. Of course, I dialed 911 immediately and took her into my home but this was becoming all too common and was now directly affecting my family.

I used to occasionally help all my neighbors one way or another. Be it by sometimes shoveling their snow covered walkways, assisting them in pushing their disabled cars from the road (or even repairing them), giving their children toys/gifts for their birthdays, jumpstarting dead batteries, taking in their garbage cans etc. When it came time for me to move, we did it (me and my wife) all by ourselves. I rented a 24' straight-truck and spent almost 3 days (all day long) loading it up. Not one neighbor offered to help or even came out of their homes during that time. They all suddenly disappeared. It was shades drawn and doors closed in what was usually an active neighborhood. I don't hold it against them, though I thought it was interesting enough to note.

Anyway, I apologize for getting off the subject. I wish you the best of luck. I'm certain everything will work out fine with your new home.:up:

[Wolferz]

Haus Frau Kaleun has a nice ring to it.:up:

Making sure that there is no termite activity is a good thing. I once held a job treating homes for the little buggers. All they need is wood and water and 200 feet of soil. That's how deep their nests can go down.

Most homes become infested due to cheap lazy contractors tossing wood framing refuse into porch voids prior to pouring the slab on top.
You definitely don't want to awaken on a warm spring morning to thousands of swarming winged termites in your bedroom looking for a new place to nest.:timeout:

[swamprat69er]

Wow! What a hassle you got from the banker.

When I bought this place off the bank (Power of sale), I offered them the money and told them a 30 day close (the house was empty). The real estate agent told me that he didn't think they (the bank) would accept a 30 day close. I told him that every day the bank was holding onto the house they were losing money and since the banks are in the money business and not the housing business if they wanted to sell the house they would go for a 30 day close. PERIOD. The bank accepted the 30 day close. 19 years ago on April Fools day I moved in.

Congrats on soon to be your new home.

[WernherVonTrapp]

Wow! What a hassle you got from the banker.

When I bought this place off the bank (Power of sale), I offered them the money and told them a 30 day close (the house was empty). The real estate agent told me that he didn't think they (the bank) would accept a 30 day close. I told him that every day the bank was holding onto the house they were losing money and since the banks are in the money business and not the housing business if they wanted to sell the house they would go for a 30 day close. PERIOD. The bank accepted the 30 day close. 19 years ago on April Fools day I moved in.

Congrats on soon to be your new home.
Good thing it wasn't a "Short Sale". Counter to what the name suggests, Short Sales usually take more than a few months to close.:yep:

[swamprat69er]

The bank had $79,000.oo tied up in this house and tried to sell it for that.....No nibbles....Lowered it to 70 still no nibbles....Remember that they tried to sell it for two years before I came along. I had looked at it in the MLS book that the realtor has. Long story short.....I got it for $52,900. and the bank held the mortgage. 18 years later and I own all of it.

[AVGWarhawk]

Good deal Frau! Glad it has worked out for you. :up:

[frau kaleun]

I think my realtor is trying to set something up for Tuesday morning, of course this will depend on the availability of the other parties involved and whether or not the bank can get their end of it together by then. And of course I have zero paperwork at this point regarding what I'm actually expected to show up with in the way of money, lol. Presumably they'll send me that on Monday, if not, I don't know what happens, probably we'll have to postpone again. If they expect me to show up with a cashier's check they're going to have to get me the paperwork and give me time to go over it plus get to the bank to get their money.

The termite inspection was thrown in as part of the home inspection since the company that did it offers that service as part of the rest of the inspection process. The condo association is responsible for prevention, extermination services, etc. on a regular basis. Not that this would make it any more pleasant if there was a problem but it's not something the owner could be held accountable for if termites were found to be an issue. Probably the bank just wants to know that the place got a clean bill of health at the time of purchase - which it did.

If we can do it Tuesday or Wednesday (which are the days the bank suggested) that would be fantastic as I can take a vacation day either day and have the whole day free to do whatever needs to be done immediately after closing and possibly have time to get some things moved over and do a bit of cleaning. I want to clean the carpets before I move any stuff into the rooms that have carpet down but there's plenty of space that isn't carpeted where I can stack boxes until I'm ready to get some things unpacked... mostly I just want to get carpets done and get a clean, stocked bathroom and start wiping down kitchen cupboards and counters because I have a lot of kitchen stuff that can be unpacked and put away immediately. The nice thing is that you can go in and out either the front or back and have access to the lower level bathroom and the kitchen without ever going over a carpeted area, so I can clean the carpets and then keep working on other things while they still have time to dry.

Went out with a friend to look at bedroom furniture today and unfortunately the set I liked online was not available to see in the showroom but I asked them to check on construction details and it is comparable in quality to a similar set on display that I really liked, which I'm also considering. They also have a five-day "no questions asked" return policy and said if I buy something sight unseen just based on pictures and description and don't like what I see when it shows up at my door I can tell them to take it back right then and it's not a problem. This is at a place called Furniture Row, I don't know if anyone else in the states is familiar with them... but I have to say the quality of the stuff we looked at there was far better in general than the stuff selling for a LOT more money in some of the name brand stores we looked at.

But I will have to get in there and look at the rooms and wall space and where the windows and doors are before I can wrap my head around what I want to get and where it's all going to go. I'm one of those quirky people who actually draws a floor plan of a room to scale on graph paper or something similar, then measures and marks exactly where doors and windows and fixtures are, then cuts out little pieces of paper that are scaled to represent furniture I'm considering, and then moves them around on the floor plan of the room to see what will fit where and get an idea of how it will look and what the "flow" of the space will be in terms of moving around in it. Sounds crazy but in a small apartment it's saved me a lot of grief when trying to decide if I could actually fit something into the space I had without buying it first and I see no reason to stop doing it now, lol.

I'm so excited! I know it will be a lot of work and my head is just about to burst right now with all the stuff I know I'm going to have to do over the next month to get sorted and properly moved in just with what I have... but it will be fun. Just the idea of having a bedroom closet just for my everyday clothes and shoes is almost more than I can stand... most of my walk-in closet here has to be used for storage for other stuff that I don't have room for any place else. Heck, half the furniture I have is stuff I bought to put things in because I have no storage space here. Shouldn't be a problem in the new place.

[frau kaleun]

No closing tomorrow after all. Now it's been put off til Wednesday at least or maybe later in the week depending on the availability of the other agent and seller.

Seriously, this is the THIRD time since the loan officer told me everything was done that they have suddenly realized we couldn't close because of something they didn't get done or ask me for. They went ahead and scheduled the closing for tomorrow morning and then late this afternoon suddenly they're calling and emailing me telling me they need something RIGHT AWAY or the closing is off and acting like it's MY fault they don't have it yet, when nobody has ever asked for it up til now and when I asked THEM about it a while back they told me I wouldn't need it until closing. Which to me means, "bring this when you come to the closing," not "do this before closing or the closing doesn't happen." Hey - if it's required for the closing, maybe the time to ask for it was before you greenlit the closing and scheduled it. Duh.

Anyway it's taken care of now and all I can do is hope they send me the final checklist/paperwork tomorrow so we can get this thing over with. Good grief. I better really really REALLY like having my own place. :O:

[Jimbuna]

It'll all come out fine in the end and I'm sure everything will have been worthwhile :sunny:

[vienna]

If it's any consolation, yours is not an uncommon situation. Many other people I know have been through similar, if not worse, delays in closing a home sale. I think the worst was the case of a former co-worker, who bought a rather pricey home, and, on the advice of well-meaning relatives, decided to involve a lawyer in the purchase process. This move prompted the seller to invoke his own legal counsel. The whole matter escalated and dragged on over several months. It became a bit of a "Bleak House" situation that seemed to be unending. The co-worker finally did close his purchase, but I think the whole experience ended up costing him more than it should. Here's hoping your closing will be much less tiresome...

<O>

[frau kaleun]

Well as of a few hours ago we had confirmed a closing with the title company for tomorrow afternoon. This of course was pending their receipt of final documents from the bank, after which they said they would get closing documents to me by the end of business today. The loan officer was getting copies of all the relevant emails but so far I've not seen any response from him at all. This doesn't mean that the bank hasn't taken care of it but it would be nice if they could confirm that they've been contacted and are providing what's needed.

It was about this time yesterday that they suddenly put the kibosh on today's closing so I'm kinda sitting here holding my breath and my boss is waiting for me to tell her whether I'm going to be here tomorrow or not. At least I work for a place that is very flexible about this kind of thing.

What really ticked me off yesterday was that if they had just called me and said "oh hey go ahead and do this now and fax us over the docs because we need those to finish up here and get the closing set" I could've taken care of it in five minutes, but instead it was presented to me at the very last minute as "you should have done this, why haven't you done this, YOU'RE HOLDING UP THE PROCESS, get it done now!"

And as my agent pointed out, this stuff that's been holding things up - it's not unusual stuff, not specific to this purchase. It's the standard stuff that MUST be done prior to closing and in most cases should've been done either by them or by me at their request days or weeks ago. Not two days after the loan officer tells us to go ahead and schedule the closing because he's been given the green light on it. :nope:

[frau kaleun]

The loan officer was getting copies of all the relevant emails but so far I've not seen any response from him at all. This doesn't mean that the bank hasn't taken care of it but it would be nice if they could confirm that they've been contacted and are providing what's needed.

It was about this time yesterday that they suddenly put the kibosh on today's closing so I'm kinda sitting here holding my breath

Oh wow what a surprise, my agent just emailed to let me know that the title company had to call the processor at the bank because I guess they weren't getting any response after having notified the loan officer that we had a closing scheduled for 2 PM tomorrow. The processor told them there was no way we could do a closing then as the closing documents will not be ready until noon tomorrow. So either the loan officer didn't bother to let them know we had a closing scheduled, or they didn't bother to let him know it couldn't be done then, or else they all just couldn't be bothered to let us know that they woudn't be ready in time for it.

So now we're looking at a late closing around 4-5 PM, with me presumably getting the closing documents around lunchtime to review beforehand. If they can't manage that we're going to have another problem as I will have to leave work at least a couple hours early to get to the bank and then to the closing on time. So there will only be a 2-3 hour window between when they've promised me the documents and when I will have to leave to get there and, for some reason, I'm not real confident about that. :shifty:

[geetrue]

This could go down as the thread of the year award :yep:

if it wasn't for August railroad train hobby thread or Kiwi's nasty brain tumor thread that is.

"I think I found my new home" could be voted number one :up:

but the gun thread merged would probably beat you out, unless of
course you moved next door to the next mad bomber that uses WMD
sprayed on his yard to stop the postman from delivering junk mail :wah:

Seriously frau kaleun (I had to look up how to spell that one)
I was just having fun of course, but seriously this is the best advice I can offer ...

get a new toilet seat cover, one of those cushy ones, or better yet a whole new commode would be even better.


http://ts2.mm.bing.net/th?id=H.4646902207152773&pid=1.7&w=120&h=135&c=7&rs=1


it will make you feel better and when you add up how many minutes a week it comes to ... :know:

you would be surprised at the cost per setting or is it seating :woot:


http://img.myshopping.com.au/rsz400/cache/2287/22/48B095C5C34217D672B90B634EC63C93A13979.jpg?aHR_cDo vL1AubGVmdXguY07tLzYxLzIwMTExMjIwL_EyMTQ_MDAwTEQvd G7pbGV_LXNlYXQtY070ZXJzLWZhbWlseS-jb1JkdXJveS--LTM2NTU3MjMtYmlnLmpwZwkvMjI2Ny6yMi6_OEIwOTVDNUMzND IxN_Q0NzJCOTBCNjM_RUM0M_M3M_ExMzk1OS3qcGcA

[Webster]

So now we're looking at a late closing around 4-5 PM, with me presumably getting the closing documents around lunchtime to review beforehand. If they can't manage that we're going to have another problem as I will have to leave work at least a couple hours early to get to the bank and then to the closing on time. So there will only be a 2-3 hour window between when they've promised me the documents and when I will have to leave to get there and, for some reason, I'm not real confident about that. :shifty:

its for the best really, its bad timing to start drinking early in the afternoon and now you can do a late close and pop the cork In the evening :woot:

congrats

[frau kaleun]

If we're going to have closing today at 5 PM, I have to leave the office in 45 minutes. Guess what I don't have yet?

That's right. STILL no closing documents. The loan officer claims they sent everything to the title office shortly before 10 this morning and haven't gotten anything back and have been trying to contact them with no luck (of course they waited until about 12:30 to do that, when the place was closed for lunch).

Now my agent is asking the LO or his processor to call her right away. I've already told them that I had to leave the office in less than an hour to make this happen, so is it going to happen today or not? And I have no idea what's going on.

I bought FIVE houses in Skyrim and it wasn't this stressful. All I had to do was kill a dragon, destroy an evil resurrected sorceror queen and her countless undead minions, clear out a couple encampments of bloodthirsty savages, take down a vicious drug cartel, and win a civl war.

Edit: just got off the phone with my agent. Turns out the problem was that someone at the bank sent the documents to the wrong email address at the title company. That person forwarded them on to the correct person, but because the attachments were "secure" documents that person couldn't open them because she wasn't the recipient of the original email. So they've been trying to call the bank to get the documents sent directly to the right person, leaving messages with no response. Meanwhile the bank claims they've been trying to contact the title company with no results. Um... yeah. Whatever.

But according to my loan officer they have just resent the docs directly to the correct party so she can open them and do what she needs to do and get the results back to them and to me. According to my agent that should only take about 15 minutes IF the correct person at the title company actually has received the documents, and she is calling them immediately to verify that she does have them.

What kills me is that the LO said in one of his emails that he thought the closing was at 2 PM... so he waited until almost 1 PM to start questioning why the final paperwork hadn't been done yet? Did he think I was just gonna show up at the closing and pull a cashier's check for the right amount out of my backside? Sheesh.