Moving forward...

It has been so very nice to not have house related bills to pay this month. In light of finally separating from Texas with the sale of the house, I'm moving forward with the adventure in Maryland. That has involved quite a few things.

The biggest decision was deciding to sign a new lease at my apartment. Yes, I decided not to move. I looked around and found several that were probably "better" than what I have, however, when all was said and done, the bedroom sizes weren't bigger and in one case the living area was smaller. Found several really lovely kitchens, but the trade-off wasn't really worth it. In the end, not one that I saw said "move here!" That coupled with the fact that the thought of moving just curled my toes led me to the conclusion that I should just stay. A decision which just seemed even more right when I was offered a very nice discount to renew the lease.

When making this decision, I decided if this was going to be home for awhile, then I'd make a few changes. So far, the biggest changes are in the bedroom. That room does not heat or cool well at all. Trying to help this out, I've hung insulated curtains in there, though not over the whole window because I enjoy the view. I had to hang rods from the ceiling because the windows are literally wall-to-wall. So, If I'd hung curtains over the whole window, it would have been funky and would have taken most of my view. Kitty Cat seems to enjoy lounging behind them.

I also had a ceiling fan installed in the bedroom. I was told I'd have to pay for the installation, but figured it would be worth it. I selected a nice one from Home Depot. Nice in that I like it; it was one of their "lower end" models but a reasonable price. Three globes and it came with three CF light bulbs. It took a bit to connect with the electrician, but he was a really good guy. Since this building is old (40+ years) and there was no light in the bedroom, the wiring had to run up the wall from a junction box placed on one of the outlets, over the ceiling and to the fan. It doesn't really look bad, but I wouldn't care if it did. I love having the fan in there and having an overhead light is just so very nice in the morning. The electrician also provided a remote for me. So far, I haven't been billed. I don't think I will. The apartment complex has vacancies and I think they are throwing this in since I signed another lease and also because I'm trying to find a way to cool that room down. I'm not questioning it.

The other big thing I did was finally getting new furniture. I'm excited. I'm getting a new love seat and a recliner. I'll donate my current furniture to a local charity. Because I selected the fabrics, I haven't received it yet, but I think I'm only about a couple of weeks from it coming in. As much as I love my current furniture (love seat, over sized chair and ottoman), the new furniture will be much more streamlined and will really open the room up.

Since I've been here a year, I'm starting to see ways to re-arrange and re-organize, especially my office. That is the next project.

Sold...again....

And, this time it's final. The closing was last Monday. I did lose, however, I didn't owe anything at closing and for that I'm extremely grateful. Basically, within three days of re-listing the house, we had two offers. This was a bizarre experience. Offers were coming in above asking with the request that we pay closing costs. However, these were first time buyers, going FHA, trying to get the $8,000 credit. Apparently, closing costs or very little closing costs, can't be rolled into the loan if you want the credit. The house appraised below what they offered. No big surprise to be, it appraised where I thought it would. So, offer became the appraisal value. But, the first buyer (the one that backed out) still wanted me to pay basically all of their closing costs. Ummm... no. The second buyer wanted EVERYTHING, including the payment of the HOA dues (not the HOA transfer fee but the dues). I wasn't that desperate. Turns out when we said no and told them what we would do, his agent agreed. Seems she always asks for everything. Umm... big turn-off especially when the other offer was serious from the get go. They truly only wanted the refrigerator and a portion of their closing costs paid. That was it. Their offer was $1, 000 above the appraisal and FHA didn't buy that. So, it came down. My awesome real estate agent and friend, said then $1,000 less on the closing costs and they said okay.

There was a hairy moment or two with the inspection, but it was basically stupid stuff. I'm sorry, if the light bulb is burned out, replace it. This wasn't the buyer, but the inspector. Apparently, they couldn't be there during the inspection, which was news to me. I thought you could. At any rate, all was well. I had re-turned on the electricity and water, but not the gas, so I had to do that to finish it off. Big pain, but I'd want to make sure the gas worked too.

Then the papers got to me the Friday afternoon before closing. I noticed something amiss with the closing statement so I went through it with friend and real estate agent Friday night (I was right), then took it to the credit union for notarizing where needed, then stuck it in FedEx for overnight and prayed it got there before the 9:00 am closing. It must have, because by Monday afternoon I was no longer a home owner. Big Sigh.

I then had to make sure all utilities were disconnected, call my fabulous yard guy (we did pass on his info to the buyers) to discontinue the service, and cancel the insurance policy. I still have final bills for those left to pay, but then I'm done. I can now manage just one household.

We did it just in time. Three more foreclosures have occured in the neighborhood, which brings the value down further. More rentals. Friend says he's glad I'm out of there. This time I trusted my little voice to sell and while I didn't make money, it was the definitely the right thing to do.

Bummed...

The house is NOT sold. The appraisal came in at less than the offer, which wasn't a shocker for me. Buyer made the new offer, but still wanted me to carry all of the closing. I offered to carry three fourths of the closing. Apparently, with a family member facing foreclosure (more information than I needed) and prices down, she decided not to buy at all. So we're told. My real estate agent thinks there's a good chance the buyer will come back in about 30-45 days with an even lower offer. Which is so not right.

So, we're dropping the price. The appraisal won't change so there's no point in leaving the asking price where we put it. We'll see what happens. I hope I get another offer, but this has been rough. Last week I thought I was done and now I'm back to where I was. I believe things happen for a reason, but the reason for this is just hard to see.

Sold!

I'm happy, sad, a bit nostalgic and a bit shocked. In exactly one week, my Texas home sold! Closing is this Thursday. That means the last house payment has been made and tonight I had the pleasure of canceling the utilities. So, one bill left for each of those. That will make bill paying, among other things, so much easier. I love to watch the shows on HGTV and worried that the house was empty. They say houses that have furniture and/or are staged sell quicker. I guess not in Texas, which is totally fine by me.

I was also pleased that the offer was fair - I didn't get taken to the cleaners. I'm actually coming out okay. A little loss, but nothing really hurtful, plus I figure in the long run I'm coming out ahead. No more property taxes to pay, pest control to do, lawn care to arrange, HOA fees to pay, or anything house related. Right now, I'll just enjoy renting. One day I hope to have my own house again, but I have no idea where or when and I'm okay with that right now.

It's been a long road, but I'm at the end of it now. I'd wondered off and on (especially after bad manager stepped down) if I shouldn't have hung out a little longer at the job. I'm taking the quick sale of the house as a sign that I shouldn't have - that I made the right decision. Now, I can just move forward.