Keeping busy

Things haven't completely calmed down just yet. The broker my son is using for this transacton is a bit of dweeb in my estimation. C noticed a couple of discrepancies in the paper work he forwarded to him for his signature and asked me to look at them. (He's nervous about buying his first property, I get it). I absolutely agreed with his concerns, and though he sent an e-mail to the broker on Wednesday, the corrections weren't made until Friday morning. It shouldn't be an issue, as the mortgage has been approved, it just has to go to an underwriter for completion and the issuance of a letter confirming the financing. 

In the meantime, I've been packing. Oh, I know we haven't had the house inspection yet, and I'll still have just over a month to get it done, but I'm using the packing to go through the rooms, sorting, tossing, donating or packing. Anything that we won't need in the next few weeks is fair game. For example I have a set of dinnerware we don't regularly use, so that's been packed, but the winter jackets in the front hall closet will stay there...who knows we may have snow in early November. 

I had spent time doing some sorting in July and August and had a pile of items for a possible garage sale. Well, the rain in the forecast and cooler temperatures had me re-thinking that idea. So on Thursday, I loaded the trunk and backseat of the car with items to donate. That task only cleared out the closet in the spare room! After I dropped off the donations at Salvation Army and Value Village, I returned home to re-fill the trunk and backseat with more items I had stored in the garage. I haven't dropped those off, but will do so early next week. 

In addition, as I packed boxes, I moved them into a central area. The boxes in the basement are in the mostly empty room with C's computer. He didn't even notice them at first, :).  There are still a few partial boxes in the craft room that need to be filled and closed and a few empty totes (maybe I bought too many). 

Upstairs the boxes are stored in the spare room. I'm not nearly as far along packing the upstairs, but that's because most day-to-day items are kept there. But I've made a dent by filling a wardrobe box with clothing that I don't regularly wear (a few dress clothes and cruise wear mostly). As I mentioned dishes that aren't used regularly have been packed, and I've started a box of extra glassware and mugs. 

My brother came by on Thursday too, to check out the "loose" beam. He used a rubber mallet in an attempt to raise the beam from below. He said it was jammed in there so tight, it took a lot of muscle to move it a mere 1/4 inch. (We can see a slightly different paint color on the wall). He also affixed the bit of cladding with a couple of brad nails. It still doesn't completely line up with the roof line, but the gap is smaller and that beam is going nowhere. To satisify the sellers, we created a receipt that read, "No structural damage, decorative beam is solid. Brad nail one piece of cladding. No charge, minimal work required." I passed on this document with his comments to my realtor. I didn't hear anything further, so I assume this satisfies the buyer.

In between bouts of packing, I've been watching curling. Oh yes, I'm in my happy place! The PointsBet invitational is being held in Oakville, Ontario and aired on TSN. The event started with 16 men and women's teams, with 8 in each bracket. It's win or go home event - it started on Wednesday and will finish today. I've checked and I don't see any other events being televised in the near future but I'm sure some will be live-streamed. There's also baseball and football to keep me amused.

And finally, this to make me happy!

Have a great week ahead everyone.

Friday Funny

 

The sky is fallling....and my happy dance begins!

Two posts in one day! That's a record for me, but as suggested, some clarity is in order.

The first photo was taken on Tuesday morning, as I battled with a GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter) plug. My realtor had been told that the house inspection on Monday had identified this plug as an issue in the basement bathroom. The inspector tripped the circuit and wasn't able to get the power back on in the bathroom. They/we assumed it was the fault of the plug, so on Tuesday morning I headed over to Home Depot to buy a new plug. 

Now, before I go any further, let me tell you I am terrified of anything to do with electricity. Although I was only a small child when it happened, I remember the family story about a first cousin who was electrocuted. He was driving a road grader, hit a power line, and stepped out of the grader to identify the problem. Sadly, he died on contact with the ground. I realize that replacing an outlet or light switch is in no way equivalent but I still approach these tasks with some trepidation.

Back to the bathroom, I made sure the power was off, set up my phone's flashlight, and took the old plug out. That in itself was fun, as it had been painted over several times and removing one of the screws had me coloring the air blue. I took the plug with me to the store...because who knows if there are different kinds and sizes, right? Apparently there aren't and the plugs are pretty much standard. 

At home, I used the photos I'd taken of the old set-up to place the wires, but it would not work.  Turning to the instructions I learned there are two screws for the line and two for the load. Alrighty then - not knowing what that meant, I watched a couple of Youtube videos. The first one had four wires plus the ground, I had only two and the ground. Trying a search for two wires, I just got more confused. I tried a couple more times and still nothing. So I gave up and called an electrician. 

The young man (Will) showed up shortly after 4 p.m. and within five minutes had determined that the issue was not the GFCI plug in the bathroom, but a separate one in the furnace room next door. These were both on the same circuit, which he explained to me should not have been done. He removed the one in the furnace room, put in a regular outlet, connected the new one I'd bought, and in less than 15 minutes everything was working as it ought to have been. 

I texted my realtor to advise, and he let the buyer's realtor know, and sent a copy of the invoice as proof of the work completed. Apparently, the buyer's realtor was quite impressed with this. Did she think we'd live for another six weeks without working lights and fan in the bathroom? 

Life got a little more interesting that evening. The second photo is a picture of an issue identified by the inspector. In my living room, I have a non-structural decorative beam that has been clad with oak. At one end of the beam, the decorative cladding has come away from the ceiling. According to the agent, the inspector saw this as a safety concern as it might "fall on someone's head". Initially, I was told that the beam was loose, when in fact, it was just about 3 inches at the end of the beam. The rest of the beam is solid - my son climbed up on a ladder and tested it to be certain.

As my realtor said, if it had been his client, he would have suggested they climb on a ladder and hammer a couple of nails into it themselves, but apparently it was enough of an issue that the buyer was hesitant about the purchase. In some ways, I get it, she's a first time buyer (likely) and is taking the inspector at face value.

It was interesting seeming some of his comments in the report. Inspectors are not supposed to address cosmetic or aesthetic issues, unless it would be a safety issue. Included in the report was a comment that a lightbulb was burned out in one of the hallway lights (except there wasn't), there is a small hole in a door in the basement - it's been there since we moved in 13 years ago and doesn't affect the function of the door, and one of the basement bedroom closet doors was of the track. 

However he also noted that neither the main nor master bathroom have GFCI plugs and these should be replaced. As my realtor said, if an entire house is inspected and this is all he could find, and then you expect the seller to pay for it....  He spoke with the buyer's realtor this morning and advised I would not be replacing the regular plugs, as I'd already spent $200 to fix an issue their inspector caused.

They are, however, expecting me to fix the beam. My brother has agreed to do the work, as he has the necessary tools. Since they insist there be a receipt, he will provide one indicating "no charge, minimal repair required". 

Then I waited, and waited, and waited some more. Finally at nearly 7 p.m. the document arrived to remove the conditions and the house is officially sold! Cue the happy dance!

Wordless Wednesday

 

The finish line is in sight

No, my son did not buy the house from Wednesday's photo. In fact, we didn't even view the property. I had contacted the realtor about it to ask if he'd check with the seller's realtor with some questions. He offered to tour the property himself, as he lives and works nearby. The photo was one of several he sent me. His comment "It's a house of horrors. Lot value only." I suspect it may have been tenanted, or alternatively the property owner passed away. One of the photos clearly showed dirty laundry on a bed, in another it appeared the toilet had not been flushed, and in one there were cracked and broken windows. The property is listed at $275,000...lot value would be around $130,000. I sincerely doubt it will sell. Oh, and it comes as-is, where-is so whoever buys it would have to deal with the contents too!

We did see a few more properties Sunday and Monday. None had what C was looking for, so the hunt continued. We saw another two properties on Wednesday. Both had been on the market for some time, but appeared to be more what he was looking for. Sigh...appearances can be deceiving. Both had badly completed DIY renos, both basements were disasters, and in the second property the front door was sticky to open, while the back door could not be opened at all. Can you imagine how much that house had shifted on it's foundation?

I went to Stitch and Chat on Wednesday, with five of us in attendance. C hasn't been there since last fall before she left for Arizona. Sadly, her mother passed away in the spring, just before she returned to Canada. She's spent the last few months clearing out her mother's 4 bedroom house. According to her, it was full of stuff. They did sell it in August and most of the possessions have been disbursed. Some to family members, some sold, donated, or tossed. 

We'll soon say so long for a few months to C and to B as they are both planning their departures for Arizona at the end of October. S is still deciding when she'll leave, as her daughter and son-in-law will be driving down to stay with her. They've just retired. That will leave I and myself - her husband R is currently undergoing treatment for cancer, so I suspect her attendance will be infrequent. Hopefully some of the ladies who dropped in last winter will return. I've no plans to travel until February at the earliest, and that is dependant on my friend S and her husband. They are scheduled to be in Yuma for a month, and I've invited myself to join them for a week if I can make it happen. Their plans, however, are up in the air at the moment so it's not a certainty.

I haven't yet booked my hotel in March for my cruise but I have flights booked. I'm planning on flying in three days ahead of the cruise...I don't a repeat of last January! Even flying in a day early, almost wasn't enough due to storms and cancellations. Of course, it takes a full day to get there from here so I'll arrive late on the first day and have two full days before I board the cruise ship. 

Of course, I can't help looking at cruises especially when a sale is offered. Princess had a 50% off, 50% deposit sale recently for certain 2023 and 2024 cruises and I've booked a 14 day British Isles cruise for late August 2024. If you've been here for long, you might remember that I had a similar cruise booked in June, 2020...we all know what happened with those plans! I e-mailed my friend J and she's offered to have me stay with her for a few days before and after the cruise. (Thanks J! I'm so looking forward to visiting with you and a return visit to the Gardens for certain.)

Because we've had such bad luck with viewing properties with the realtor, C and I took a drive on Thursday evening to look at a property. We figured there would be no point seeing the inside if the neighbourhood wasn't great or the exterior was a mess. It wasn't either of those things, so I called the realtor to ask if he could show it to us on Friday. We made arrangements to meet later in the afternoon.

On paper, the property was perfect. A decent size with three bedrooms up, a finished basement, and a large garage (which means a smaller back yard). We arrived ahead of the realtor, and spent a few minutes looking at the exterior. Shingles look good, there is a small patio out front, and a raised flower bed. 

The realtor arrived a few minutes later and we made our way in the front door. The house is about 1040 sq ft on the main level. On entry there is a closet and beyond that to the right is a decent sized living room. To the left is a large dining area with a galley style kitchen in the center. It's a bit of an odd layout, as you can reach the hall from either the living room or through the kitchen. Off the hall at the back of the house are three bedrooms and a recently renovated bathroom. One of the bedrooms is set up as a laundry room. As you'll see in the photo above (stolen from the internet) there is a ramp on the front exterior of the house so I assume the laundry set-up is for the convenience of the current owners. Back in the dining room, there is a door that leads to the side entrance and down to the basement. 

In the basement there is a den with a large closet, a living room space, a three piece bathroom with a stand-up shower, and a large storage area (which also contains the furnace, hot water heater, water softener, and built in vac). That storage area also has the hook-ups for the laundry, a set of kitchen cabinets and sink, as well as a small freezer and fridge. At some point, it would be an easy conversion to set up a separate suite in the basement for rental, though some work would be needed to update it. 

Out back of the house is a patio area and beside the garage a sadly neglected garden space. It would take some work to get that in order but I told C that would be my project. But the pièce de résistance is the garage. It is huge, the interior insulated and finished with lots of room to park two vehicles plus a space we assumed the current owner is using as a "man" cave. My son was excited about that - he could do something similar and have a space to hang out with friends. We learned later that the garage is actually rented to someone who runs a business out of the space.

The offer was written and submitted about 5:30 p.m. and shortly thereafter we learned another offer had come in. As a result, C's offer was revised a bit, and resubmitted at 6:24 p.m. His offer was accepted at 7:42 p.m., although they could have held off until morning. They even agreed to a move-in date of November 6. And btw, he paid less than the asking price of that dump from Wednesday's photo. It just goes to show that house prices are just made up numbers. 

In the meantime, there are still the conditional periods on both properties to get through. The conditions on my property are to be lifted by next Wednesday, for C the date is the following Wednesday. He'll have a busy week ahead, meeting with the mortgage broker to finalize financing and arranging for a house inspection, as well as working. 

The property isn't perfect. But it is above and beyond everything else we've looked at. The size is great, the basement is finished and would offer a space for me and allow my son his privacy, and the garage is especially a bonus. When I'm travelling, I can park the car indoors and leave it where it will be safe. There are a couple of pink walls that will need to be painted...funny, my son doesn't care for them. The back and one side fence need to be replaced/built. The back garden space is a project as it has been covered by landscape fabric and leaves and debris allowed to accumulate. It is, however, move-in ready and the work I've mentioned can either be completed over the winter or wait until spring.

Oh, one other thing - out in the front flower bed in front of the small patio on the right), are a few lilies. Back in 2018 when we were looking for my daughter's place, we found a bed of lilies out front. My mom loved lilies and had a large flower bed with numerous varieties. We always said the lilies were a sign of her approval. Apparently, it has happened again.

Today, I've got some yard work to get done. It's time to start pulling the annuals and cleaning up the containers. The house needs to be tidied a bit in anticipation of Monday's inspection. There is baseball to watch, and curling has started too (You-tube) so I'll keep myself busy. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

Where do I go from here?

I really do enjoy baseball, but I'm getting pretty tired of the curve balls that life seems to be lobbing my way these days. I'll admit I was quite upset on Tuesday morning, when the realtor called to tell me that the back-up offer buyers had changed their minds. He said they were nervous about the potential of losing the offer, since they have to buy on or before Oct. 5th. I get that, but I can't help wondering if they haven't found something else in the meantime.

So I went shopping! The colorful flip flops from Wednesday were my treat to myself. They were on sale at Walmart, 50% off the last price tag - I paid a whopping $2 for them. And yes, I'll take them on my Caribbean cruise in March. In the meantime I'm wearing them inside the house because they make me smile when I look down at my feet. 

I spent Wednesday morning cleaning house, in the expectation that this original deal would fall through. No more leaving the bed unmade or doing dishes once a day. Back to the keeping it as clean and tidy as possible in the hopes there will be showings. In the afternoon I went to stitch and chat; it was good to talk about something other than this damned house. B had brought three quilt tops she's made to show us. They were all different, and all so lovely. I wish I had the ability to cut and sew straight!

Thursday, I did more cleaning before leaving for an overnight visit with D and Eli. I sent an e-mail to the realtor letting him know I'd be away, but if by chance, someone wanted to see the house, they could do so. I did mention Saku would be in the house, and would likely hide from anyone coming in, but they should not try to touch him nor let him outdoors.

Later in the day, I heard from him that one of the realtors who had been talking about a possible back-up offer wanted to see the property at 12:30 on Friday. He also let me know that the idiot realtor for the first buyers is still hedging and won't commit to a fall through or a lifting of the final condition. He told my realtor at 9:30 p.m. that they would decide on Friday. I wondered, would he make us wait until midnight?

I left D and Eli's early on Friday, and was back at home by 8:30 a.m. After a short sit down, the basement floors got washed, the cat litter cleaned, and I did some edging of the back lawn - I'd mowed on Wednesday.  Meanwhile another request for a showing at 4:30 that afternoon came in. Again, it is a realtor who has shown the property previously, however was not one of the ones considering a back up offer. Both parties had seen the house previously, so it was simply a matter of whether or not to offer.

However, another wrench was thrown into the situation when one of my idiot neighbour's listed their property on Friday at a amount nearly $50K less than mine. It's a two story with a smaller basement and a two car garage, while mine is a bungalow, full finished basement and two car garage. The other big difference is the size of the back yard. While they have a deck, I have the sunroom and two decks which reduces the lawn area. This new listing is at the junction of the crescent and the cross street, while I'm in the quiet end of the crescent. Whether potential buyers would recognize that, I couldn't be certain. Either way, I was concerned that any offers I might receive would not be in my favor.

We finally heard from the orginal buyer's realtor about 6 p.m. on Friday, that they were withdrawing their offer.  In reality it is a fall through as the conditions were not met, but this guy doesn't seem to know much about being a realtor. Can I say I'm happy he won't be getting a share of the commission on the sale of this property?

By 7 p.m. I had a new offer in my hand. It's a clean offer with no unusal conditions and no odd dates to work around. In fact, it was slightly higher than the original and the back-up offer. We still have to get through the 12 day conditional period, with a home inspection to be done. (Too bad they can't get the one the other buyer had completed). The buyer sent along a letter with the offer - she's a young professional woman with a one year old dog, with family in the area including three young nieces. Apparently she'd seen the house a month ago, and was disappointed she hadn't acted quickly enough. The things that sold her on the house were: the sun room, decks, and back yard, and the craft room! All of the things that put off so many others.  My realtor said to me, there is a lid for every pot. I'm not quite doing my happy dance just yet Jackie, but I'm sure it won't be long now. 

The next hurdle is finding a house for my son. We've looked at close to a dozen properties, and with the exception of the one he lost out on, nothing has really fit the bill. There are three more properties, that we'll try to see this weekend and we'll have to keep an eye on the new listings as they come out. There was one I saw Friday morning, that just came on the market the day before, but by the time C saw it, and we contacted the realtor, it already had an offer on it! It's hard to believe the market is still so strong with interest rates as they are, but the good houses go quickly.

When I started this post, the title was written in frustration. Now, as I end it, the question really is, "where do I go from here?" I've no doubt we'll find something my son will love. Mom has to remember, it isn't my house so I may not. All I can do is offer my support and encouragement through this process.

I'll end this with a short video of my goofy grandson. I remember doing this at my grandparents house when I was young. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

It was good while it lasted

Edited: The back-up offer was rescinded today.

I am so tired of the rollercoaster. 

*comments off

In just 48 hours! Shortly after I hit the publish button on my last post, I had a text from the realtor. I initially assumed that it would relate to the viewing we had scheduled for the afternoon. But, it wasn't....we had a back-up offer!

The realtor sent over the paperwork for me to review. It was a low'ish offer, which I knew I would counter since the orginal offer was higher. I'm certain the potential buyers were testing the water to determine what the other offer might have been. The sticky part was the possession date; Oct. 5th! That's a mere 3 1/2 weeks away!!

We met the realtor shortly thereafter at the house (more on that later), and he and I agreed, I'd counter at an amount slightly higher than the original offer with a possession date of Oct. 24th. 

There was some back and forth later in the afternoon, as the buyers were willing to pay slightly less than the counter, but the Oct. 5 date was a must so they can take advantage of a locked in mortgage rate. After some discussion, it was agreed they will take possession on the 5th and I will lease the property until the 24th. The nominal rent I will pay is worth the peace of mind of knowing, I'm going to have the time needed to pack up for the move.

Should the first buyers manage to come up with the funding, we could be moving by the 16th. Either way, it's time to get some boxes, and start the packing process.

Onto the property we viewed. I'll refer to it as the Stinky house. And when I say stinky, I truly mean odoriferous. Entering the front door, one is almost overwhelmed by the sickly odor of sweaty, dirty socks. It is worst in the living room, but prevalent through the bedrooms, bathroom, and kitchen/dining room area too. We headed down to the basement first, as we wanted to ensure it is a solid basement. While we could only see one portion of the concrete wall, it looked good. There were no doors that swung out/in when opened. All good signs. There is a couple of areas, one with a couch, one with a dining table (poker table perhaps), a room that likely was used as a bedroom at some point, and a renovated small bathroom ensuite. There is work to be done down there; removing the panelling on the walls, insulating and adding drywall could be done over time. 

Upstairs, the u-shaped kitchen is dated but functional, the dining area opens out through sliding patio doors to a small deck, two of the three bedrooms are a reasonable size, and the third would make a good office space for C. The biggest issue is the odor, which can be resolved by removing all the furniture, carpets and flooring, window treatments, and repainting the entire main floor. 

Out back are two decks, the smaller deck and a lower deck currently holding a metal gazebo form. The lower deck truly needs to be removed, it's in rough shape but the smaller deck simply needs to be sanded and either stained or painted. There is a large garage (20 x 33 ft) that will easily hold both vehicles with lots of room for storage too. The yard needs some work, especially back beside the garage but for now, a lawn mower would keep the weeds down. 

It's a project house for certain, and I wasn't sure what my son would think as he's been more prone to lean towards houses that are more finished. BUT, he loved it! We went home and talked about it, and he decided to put in an offer. After some discussion we decided on a price with a possession date of Oct. 10. That would give us either a week or two before we'd have to be out of this house, depending on the successful buyer. The offer was open until 6 p.m. on Sunday.

About 2 p.m. Sunday, he got a text from the agent, that another offer had been received. The seller's agent had asked if we wanted to change the offer at all. Again, after a brief discussion, C revised his offer to a few thousand dollars below asking. Then we sat and waited...and waited...and waited until the 6 p.m. deadline, when the realtor called to say that he didn't get it. We have to assume the other buyer gave them the full asking price or above. It was disheartening to say the least, but we'll regroup and start looking at other properties. In fact, we've got another viewing set up for this evening. Time is of the essence.

Wish us luck!

Sun, blowing smoke, and still waiting

Wednesday's photo is of a mourning dove, which had been posing nicely in the sun at the top of the small shed. However it decided to fly down to the bird bath just as I took the photo, resulting in the shadow. I didn't want to move from my chair to take another photo as I was certain it would fly away. It splashed about in the bath for a minute so and then did just that.

Before I get into the house sale and weekly round-up, I'll share this photo of the sun one evening.

It was taken about 6:30 p.m. when I happened to look out as I was doing the dinner dishes. We've had a lot of smoke in the air this summer. According to a local news outlet, we've had 223 hours of smoke so far this year, and have been under special air quality statements many times as a result. On this day, the air quality index was a 10+ (7-10 is considered a high health risk). On those days I keep the windows closed in the house, and try to avoid being outdoors as much as possible. Thankfully, I don't have asthma or allergies, but find that my throat often feels irritated from it. The provincial authorities are saying that the fires in British Columbia and the Northwest Territories could continue until the snow falls. I'm beginning to think that winter will be a good thing...at least this year.

Back to the continuing saga of the house sale: Sunday's showing was short and I assumed the worst, that they had smelled cat, or decided the yard was too small, or for some other reason. My realtor touched base with the other realtor on Monday and discovered, despite the short period of time, the party did like the house. He was returning to Calgary and would know for 100% certain whether he would be moving to Regina by Friday. The other piece of good news was they were considering whether to make a back-up offer.

In the meantime, the current buyers were running out of time to get a conditional offer in place to meet the deadline of September 15. My realtor received a message back from their realtor, stating "we have had lots of action and offers that have not worked out yet. Did an open house yesterday (that would have been Sunday) and some possible activity from that tomorrow." We both had a good chuckle over that text, as he would have notified my realtor had their truly been an offer. In any event, Tuesday came and went with no indication they had "activity" from the open house.

I spent Tuesday morning grocery shopping with a trip to Value Village and the Salvation Army thrift store. I did well on the groceries, most items were on sale and I was able to find everything I needed. V.V. was a bust, it was Senior's day, and I suspect someone else beat me to the bargains that day. The S.A. store offered up a rubber tote, a watering can, and a book for $15. I've been gathering up the totes to use for packing, especially for craft materials and decorative items. The watering can is plastic and a much needed item as I managed to trip on my old one, ending up with my foot in it and breaking the top of it. I've continued to use it, with less water in it, but I'm happy to have this newer one that is much bigger.  

The book is a novel written by Lisa Scottoline,"Every Fifteen Minutes". I've read several of her novels and this one looks quite frightening to be honest. It involves a psychiatrist who has been targeted by a psychopath. This appears to be the overarching story line, though there is also an ethical decision to be made regarding a patient who is obssessed with a young girl. I likely won't be reading this one late at night. :)

I spent the afternoon out in the backyard reading in the sun. It wasn't particularly warm, only 16C (61F) but in the warmth of the sun it felt terrific. I finished reading Jeffrey Archer's "Paths of Glory", a fictionalized story of George Mallory and his life long goal of climbing Mount Everest. It's a good read, and though we'll never know if he actually reached the summit, one can't help but hope he did.

My realtor called that evening to tell me about a second potential back-up offer that may be coming our way. However, nothing was forthcoming and I spent Wednesday feeling sorry for myself. I didn't make it to stitch and chat, just hung out on the couch and watched baseball. 

On Thursday I went out and did some yardwork - picking up pine cones, deadheading flowers, and pulling up the petunias. The latter were looking past their prime, dying back, and straggly. I managed to get things cleaned up before the green bin was picked up that afternoon. Just being outdoors made me feel good.

I spent the rest of the afternoon out on the front patio reading my new book. While I was out there, my realtor texted to say the current buyers have lowered their asking price on their property "too little, too late". He also let me know that the fellow from Calgary hasn't let the realtor here know yet what his plans are. However the second realtor has requested a copy of the PCDS report (property condition disclosure report), which may be a good sign. And now, a third realtor has popped up indicating he has clients who may be interested. 

Later in the evening, I had a text asking if the third realtor could bring his party through on Friday at 5:30. Of course, I said yes. Fingers crossed and all that. That meant housework was a priority on Friday. I hope I'm not giving the impression that I don't keep the house clean and mostly tidy in any case, it's just not necessarily ready to show. The items that stay out on the counters or end tables are put away, and I also make sure that the rugs are freshly vacuumed, floors are washed (or spot washed depending on when I last washed them), clean towels are put out, laundry is done, etc. I mean, who wants to find someone's dirty laundry when one opens a closet door? I also walk through the whole house checking for evidence of the cat (think hairballs). After that experience of spilled water that the agent/clients assumed was cat pee, I don't want or need any more surprises.

The showing started on time and unlike so many before, they were in the house for at least 35-40 minutes. We'd returned home, and I'd brought Saku into the house and turned the oven on to cook a pizza, when my phone rang. It was my realtor - they were interested in the house, but aren't certain if they'll be making a back-up offer or simply wait until the 15th. He reminded their realtor that a back-up offer would ensure they'll be first in line. However, no back-up offer was received by the time I headed for bed. 

Today, we're meeting the realtor at a house that just went on the market on Friday. It isn't perfect (nothing is in my son's price range), and it would need new flooring throughout the whole house. But the price looks reasonable, and with a little help from mom, I know that C could get the work done reasonably quickly. It has three bedrooms up, a full basement (partially finished) with a newly renovated bathroom downstairs, and an interesting garage. I suspect the owner was a backyard mechanic, as there are doors at either end of the 20 X 33 ft. garage. This could be a good thing, as I'd have indoor space to park my vehicle when I'm travelling. One thing we'll be looking at is the basement to ensure it is solid and dry. The one possible drawback is location. It backs onto commercial property, though there is a fence between that property and the back of the house. 

Now that we have three potential buyers in the wings, and despite not having a back-up offer (yet), I'm feeling more positive that the house will sell soon. It's less than a week from the last deadline. Patience is a virtue I don't necessarily have much of, but I'll just keep busy - perhaps even start some packing this week.

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Friday funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

A slight reprieve

The paperwork was finally completed on Tuesday, after my agent received the back-dated document. Initially, I had decided not to sign it, and let the deal die, but after some discussion about the legalities, it was decided I'd best sign and let the matter run its course. The buyers have until September 15 to sell their house - which means they'll need to have a conditional sale agreement no later than September 8. If they don't they won't have enough time to complete the process. 

C did not make an offer on the house we saw on Monday, as he'd found another place he wanted to see first. It was a smaller house but with a basement, with a yard that would require less work, and space to build a garage. He contacted the city on Wednesday to verify that a garage could be built in the future. We went to look at it on Thursday and discovered two things: it has a concrete block basement and the furnace was originally installed in 1995. Although it was cute, it was a no go. He's decided against the other property too, now that he's seen that the funds he has can get him something nicer. Unfortunately there isn't anything in the area he wants to live so we'll continue to keep looking.

It's been a quiet week with no showings. I've been keeping up with the housework, watering the containers, and doing a bit of knitting. I pulled all the tomatoes this week as they were looking past their prime, and cut back the ferns in the front flower bed as they were dying back. One can readily see the hostas now, though the bergenia takes center stage. 

I did get out to Stitch and Chat on Wednesday, there were just the three of us there. I took along a small plate of zucchini loaf. My SIL had given me a small zucchini and a cucumber on the weekend. I grated up the zucchini and made the loaf earlier this week. It tasted so good, that I was eating far too much of it, so I thought I'd let the other ladies help me with it. (They didn't eat much agreed it tasted good.)

After the disappointment of Thursday's viewings, C had spent some time on the realtor website looking for other options. He told me about one property that would need quite a bit of work - mostly painting, but is a decent size. He couldn't recall the address though, so I spent an hour Friday morning, looking through the various listings. It took me awhile but I found it, along with several other properties. 

I decided to do a drive by the list of ten properties, and was able to cross off five of them for various reasons, either a bad location or too run-down based on the exterior. In a couple of cases, both issues were true. He and went through the remainder and reduced the number to three or four.  Of those, I think we'll try to see a couple next week. It's the long weekend here, and with the need to wait on the buyers for my property, waiting a few days won't likely be an issue. As three of the properties have been on the market for over 90 days, so there might be a deal to be had. We'll see.

Earlier in the week, my realtor had mentioned about talking to other realtors who had clients who had been through the house, or who were interested in seeing it, in the hopes of a possible back-up offer. Basically, that simply means, if the first deal falls through, whoever has the first back-up offer in place has first dibs. I didn't hear anything more, so assumed that wasn't likely to happen. However, on Friday evening, he texted me to say a couple from Calgary would be in the city this weekend and wanted to view the house on Sunday afternoon. Of course, I said yes! Apparently they lived in Regina previously, in a house with a similar lay-out. I'd love to post on Monday that we have a back-up offer, but there is no guarantee. Their nostalgia for another house may not translate into liking this one enough to make an offer that might never come to fruition. Time will tell.

This morning, I've got more housework to do, a lawn to mow, and a good watering of it to be done. We're back in the heat (33C/91F) today and only slightly cooler on Sunday. I'll do the outdoor chores early this morning before the heat gets too much for me. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Friday Funny