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The Bumpy Road to Home
I have news! Our closing date is set for June 16th. If we do, in fact, get to close the deal on that date, we will be moving the week of the 23rd.
There is a slight chance that we won’t be able to close that date, however.
After getting back in town on Tuesday, my Fantastic Realtor asked me to follow up on a few things. Mainly, we needed to know how the appraisal came back. Now I knew that our original loan officer was out of town until June 10th, but I needed to find out something ASAP. Fortunately, I was able to talk to one of her colleagues. Unfortunately, she did not have good news for me.
Our appraisal came back lower than the price that we offered for the home. Significantly lower.
Our Fantastic Realtor, Dr. D, and I were all stunned. We (well, actually the Fantastic Realtor) parsed through the appraisal report, scrutinizing every minute detail. The three of us were completely unsatisfied with the report. After calling the bank to request another appraisal, having that request denied, and crying a little, we are back on track. They are allowing us a few days to try and get the appraisal report amended by the original appraiser. If he is unwilling to redo his analysis, we will be switching lenders and getting another appraisal.
How do I feel about all of this? Tired. Dog tired. I’ve been on the phone with too many bankers this week. Our deal is not dead, but it is on life support. It may temporarily flatline next week, but if that happens, we’ll just revive it by moving to another bank! I just have to hold out and be patient until Monday. Do you know how hard that is?
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Reader’s Choice #1
Since I put out a call last Sunday for questions, I have received a few that I am willing to tackle. My answers have been on my mind, but I haven’t had much time to sit and actually write about them. As luck would have it, Ladybug and her two cousins are all three napping together at the moment. I’m in the other room with my feet propped up relaxing in a comfy chair.
Ok. Here’s the question!
Beth (who never leave a website, but is a faithful commenter) writes: “Here is my question: Where do you think you’ll end up living when Dr. D has completed all his training? Will you go where the best opportunity is, or will you head back closer to home?”
Well, Beth. That’s a good one. To be quite honest, I’m just not sure where we will go! Dr. D has yet to determine exactly what area of Psychiatry that he would like pursue for his Fellowship, and that could lead us to a different city for a short amount of time. (A Fellowship is shorter amount of time than his Residency will be.)
Now, when he is completely finished with his training, I would like to go back closer to where our family lives. Unfortunately, I just don’t see that happening. I have a feeling that we are going to be the “Black Sheep” of the family. You know, the ones that move far away and never come back “home” to live.
I never would have expected my little family to move to Michigan. If you had asked me 10 years ago, I would have told you that I would be living in Little Rock, Arkansas. I have always loved to travel and see new places, but I was very content with my little corner of the world. I had all of my friends and family nearby where I could see them at any time. I was comfortable–perhaps too much so.
I can honestly say that I am glad that we moved. I really like the town where we are currently living, and once we get a new house, I think that our living situation will be greatly improved. I don’t regret this move one bit. There are days when I loathe the fact that we are so far away from our family, but I have never been just down and depressed because I have regretted moving out of my comfort zone.
For those of you “rules sticklers” out there, I know that I didn’t exactly give an answer to the question. But the truth is this: I just don’t know. We could move back to Arkansas, or we could stay in Michigan. Or we could move somewhere equally as nice. I just don’t know!
The House that Haunts Us.
A year ago, our awesome realtor took us to look at this house. We had already been 10-15 homes in the area trying to get a sense about what was on the market. There are a few different floorplans here that we weren’t familiar with, not to mention the completely new concept of a large basement that functions as living space.
Fortunately for us, our realtor was able to quickly (and I mean SUPER FAST) learn what we liked and didn’t like. She was able to also get an idea of what our “dream” situation would be. Even more fortunate for us was the fact that she knew the people that lived in this house. How you ask? They were clients considering buying/selling with her!
After going in the house the first time, Dr. D and I were hooked. It is in wonderful condition (or so we think), it has tons of space for us and our junk, and it is in a nice little subdivision with sidewalks and mature trees.
And check out the deck. It has an awning that rolls out over it if you don’t want the sun!
And a HOT TUB!!!!
Aside from all of the posh outdoor features, the inside is pretty awesome too. The Master Bedroom has it’s own fireplace, and sitting room. Not to mention a closet that is big enough to be a nursery!
And then there’s the basement.
See the drawers? They are refrigerated drawers! There’s a sink to the left, and a dining area to the right.
While we were in the process of falling in love with the place, we knew that this house was out of our price range. We kept running the numbers in our head, unable to make them work at the price that the owners were wanting.
Unfortunately for us, we had already been in the house! We knew that it would be a great home for our family. Every time we would talk about things like getting new furniture or a new TV we would start hypothetically talking about where we would put that item in “the big house”.
A year has passed and we are still talking about this house. We drive by it occasionally. (Ok, not occasionally. More like constantly. I’m sure they think we are stalking them!) We have started eating and shopping in that area to get a feel for the community. I even drove over there this winter “just to see how they cleared the snow from the streets”.
The house has been haunting us. The fact that we knew that it would be perfect for us wasn’t helping. Neither was the fact that we had sold our house in Arkansas. We are just dying to move out of this place!!
So, we made an offer on it last night.
Yep. You read that correctly. I am so giddy with excitement that I can hardly contain myself today. The market here has gone so soft that we are (hopefully) going to be able to get the house at a much better price point for our budget than it was a year ago. It is still not “on the market” but they are actively seeking a bigger home (they just had their 4th little girl). We should know their answer by tomorrow.
While it is hard waiting, I have tons of paperwork and errands to help me pass the time. Ladybug starts preschool on Thursday!
It has been a super busy week so far, and it’s only Tuesday. Don’t forget to check out the Day 1, Day 2 and Day 3 Giveaways, and check back tomorrow for another one!
A-Hunting We Will Go
I am a woman on a mission. We left ladybug back in Arkansas for a few more days so I could do some intensive house hunting while Dr. D is at work. While I took yesterday off to recuperate (still not feeling 100%), I spent the majority of today driving around town in preparation for my afternoon with the realtor.
Tomorrow, our wonderfully patient real estate agent will schlep me from home to home on a grand marathon of lookie-loos. We have been working with her for over a year now (isn’t THAT crazy?!), and I couldn’t be more pleased. She has learned my tastes, predilections and general eccentricities, to the point that she is able to direct me to properties that she knows that I will like and steer me away from ones that I won’t. I can’t stress how wonderful it has been working with her.
Wish me luck!
Houseless
Well, it’s official. We no longer own a house in Arkansas! The papers are signed and sealed and we have paid all of the fees. The sign is gone, and the keys are on the counter.
Bye bye, Rock House!
(Ironically, I think that I am even more excited today than the day we bought it!)
The Rock House
I’m so tired of owning a house in a state where I no longer reside.
Over the last few miserable months, we have incrementally lowered the sales price fifteen thousand dollars. We have countered 3 or 4 offers that were incredibly insulting, and just this month we have had the whole house painted.
But…..
We are currently under contract. There may be a light at the end of the tunnel!
Home
We’re back, but it was It was crazy while we were there!
We partied hard and ate tons of pizza.
I got my fill of my favorite restaurant, and visited tons of friends and family.
But the sleeping accomodations felt like a Bed and Breakfast!
(Check out the slate!
—————>)
But now we’re back at our tiny duplex.
(Imagine it with TONS of snow on the ground.)
At Home on TV
Wow. I was just logging on to write about how cozy it feels to watch The Hogs in Triple OT. When I typed in my password to start the post, The Hogs had just made a 2pt conversion. LSU responded with yet another TD and they were on the way to trying for a 2pt, when the Razorbacks intercepted the pass. Arkansas Won, 50-48. All this happened by the time I could log-in and get to the “Write a New Post” screen!
While it feels awesome for “your team” to win, part of the thrill is just the familiarity of watching names and faces that you know. The sea of Razorback Red and the familiar building sounds of the brass cranking out the Arkansas Fight Song are two things that bring comfort to me even as I watch from a distant different State. A State that is not even in our conference! (Ok, so that actually works in my favor..I can root for another home team without feeling like I am cheating!) So when The Hogs are on TV, it’s like a little piece of Arkansas right in my living room–minus the screaming family and friends yelling at Houston Nutt!
Go Hogs! Woooooo Pig Soooooie!
(And go vote for Darren McFadden for Heisman!!)
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