Friday, January 29, 2010

Friday Feature - Living in Limbo

First - in another clone moment, I'm at Elizabeth Spann Craig's blog, Mystery Writing is Murder, talking about writing, so be sure you get over there for the 'meaty' stuff. Since I'm talking writing there, it's going to be one of those "real life" posts here.

A slight change of pace this week. Sorry, but things have been crazy here. We signed a contract on our house. We're trying not to get too excited, because that's only the first step, and as our Realtor points out, we won't really know how it pans out until 10 minutes after we sign the closing papers. So, we're living in limbo. There are pictures, but not the usual sort.

We agreed on a price and signed and initialed a ream of papers. This afternoon, they buyers scheduled a house inspection. About an hour before they were due, two people showed up saying they were here to inspect and pump out the septic tank. Seems that was part of the inspection, although nobody bothered to tell us. Since the buyers ordered it, we let them at it.

The termite inspector showed up shortly thereafter, with the whole-house inspector on his heels. The buyers arrived, and a while later, so did their Realtor.

Mostly we sat around while the inspectors did their thing.



Bottom line: we have a few (very few, thank goodness) minor repairs to make.

But it's not over. It has to be appraised. Our county system says the bank submits the information to a pool of appraisers. Whoever's up next is charged with appraising the house. This means we could have an appraiser who is totally unfamiliar with our part of town. They rely primarily on comparable sales, and the rules are strict. (Yeah, I could tie it in to submission rules here, but sometimes it's about life, not writing, and besides, I'm talking writing over at Mystery Writing is Murder.)

Trouble is, there have been very few sales within the allotted time frame for the radius they're allowed to search, and even fewer that are "matches" for ours. They can't compare oranges to tangerines. Can't use a house with a pool because we don't have one. We're not in a gated community so they can't use those. Eventually (we hope) they arrive at a number that matches our selling price. Because that's it. Their word is final. If it's lower than the price we've agreed on with the buyers, we either walk or take that figure.

So, stress levels are high. We have to be ready to close within 30 days, but that's 30 days from the day we accepted the contract, and between now and then any one of a multitude of things could arise to negate the deal. So, we need to start culling "stuff" again, but have to be prepared to deal with the limbo factor.

So, this is the process:

Your house as seen by yourself:



Your house as seen by your buyer:



Your house as seen by your lender:



Your house as seen by your appraiser:



And, your house as seen by the county tax assessor:




Have a great weekend, everyone. See you Monday!

12 comments:

T. Powell Coltrin said...

Hi, Terry, my first time here and will return. Great post over at Elizabeth's place.

Good luck on the house. That is very exciting!

Linda Poitevin said...

lmao at your picture-explanation, Terry, but really?!? The appraiser can actually lower the price you get?!? I had no idea the laws between our countries were so different...yikes. Here in Canada the amount of the mortgage is based on the lender's appraisal, but not the actual price of the house. Wishing you all the very, very best with this sale...and hoping the appraisal works out in your favor!

Warmly,
Linda

Terry Odell said...

Journaling Woman-WELCOME! I hope to see you again.

Linda - yep, and the bank isn't allowed to talk to the appraiser. Apparently there was some "trouble" with appraisers and banks collaborating, and appraisals being out of line, so the pendulum is now way at the other end of its swing.

Elena said...

Don't forget to keep breathing - as you say a lot can happen in 30 days, and much of it can be contradictory.

Best wishes

Elizabeth Spann Craig said...

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you, Terry! I know the process has been brutal--I hated having strangers come through my house on a whim! Hope this works out...and too funny with the pics (but true.)

Thanks so much again for guesting at Mystery Writing is Murder today...

Elizabeth

Carol Kilgore said...

Priceless!
Congratulations and good luck.
Fingers, toes, and everything else crossed for you.

Terry Stonecrop said...

Love those photos! So, so true:D Especially the tax assessor.

My fingers are crossed too. Lovely home by the way.

Terry Odell said...

Well, we spent much of the day dealing with one of hubby's priorities for the move. Swapping out his 2WD pickup for a 4WD one. If there was a possible SNAFU, it happened, starting with the sales rep saying, "I know I parked your truck right over here. Wonder where it is."

But we're home, WITH vehicle, and I thank all of you for stopping by.

Elizabeth - being your guest has been my pleasure.

Jemi Fraser said...

Great photos and oh, so true!

Anonymous said...

What hilarious pictures. Good luck, Terry. Try and keep the stress levels low. We're 18 months AFTER-the-move, and now it all seems like a blur. Thank goodness.

Terry Odell said...

Drue - thanks. Limbo isn't much fun. But I'd rather be at this phase than at the constant red alert for showings.

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