All In The Name of Progress

Things are clipping right along over here as we approach closing, so I thought it was time that I give an update on our progress.

We close in 10 days! Whew, a 25 day escrow sure does move fast! We passed all of the inspections - home, water, city, soil - as of last week. And the terrific news is that the house appraised at well over our accepted offer amount. So even though it feels like we will be in the red in ten days, really we will be in the black. Gotta remind myself of that when we starting writing out those mortgage payments.

Should the picture, courtesy of http://montrealrealestateblog.com/understanding-the-home-appraisal-process/, be the other way around?

We will be signing the papers with the title company at the end of this week, the property should be recorded by the middle of next week, and we can pick up the keys on Friday. Craziness! Just to add an extra layer of insanity, I will be in Southern California at a conference on the day we close, so the hubs is going to have to get keys.

That weekend, while all of you are doing this:

www.nfl.com

We will be doing this:

Image courtesy of Habitat for Humanity

Only picture Ryan and I.

Once the yard is ready to handle 200 pounds of fur and wagging tails we can move in. We are shooting for the weekend of the 12th. I don't know how the stars aligned for this one, but our slated moving weekend AND the following weekend are three day weekends for me. Thank you, dead presidents!

In packing news, I have three pretty sizable boxes packed. I know that doesn't sound like much, but it is all the kitchen items we won't need in the next three weeks, as well as all our china and about half our stemware. I was hoping to be farther along by this point, but meh, what can you do? I gotta keep my day job. I'll try to update with some pictures of our dining room where all the packing is going down. It looks like a tornado hit!

Lastly, our little rental has found new people to house. I am so happy that our first casa together has a new couple to love it as much as we did in our six + years here. And so the cycle continues...

We Passed With Flying Colors

This post will have to be brief since I spent an hour and a half last night scanning and uploading documents for our lender and didn't get to any of the work I had hoped to tackle. Oh, well! I am cheerily reminding myself that...

Image courtesy of EmersonMade

But the whole night was not a loss because we passed our home inspection with flying colors! Can I get a whoop, whoop? The are a small list of things that need to be fixed. And the only surprise is that there are not more problems considering the house is 51-years-old. The punch list mainly involves electrical issues like re-servicing outlets that don't work - one of which powers our dishwasher! - and some other miscellaneous things like strapping the hot water heater into a stud instead of drywall. The biggest item on the list is that the roof will need to be redone sooner rather than later, but this was not a shocker. Just check out the pic below if you want some proof. 

I am looking at it as a great excuse to bump up the curb appeal and get rid of the weathered dark brown composite in favor of something a little easier on the eyes. 

On deck for today are our appraisal and the water district inspection. The appraisal is really the last hurdle that we need to overcome before we remove the contingencies and cruise on into closing, so please keep your fingers crossed that the house appraises at our asking price! 

It's BACK On Like Donkey Kong

Well folks, we got a surprise text yesterday. The offer that edged us out on our first love fell through, so our runner's up offer was accepted! There I was, grading away in a coffee shop, when I got the news. Of course I ran outside immediately to call the hubs and the parents. I could not have been more excited; my voice wavered so much that Ryan asked if I was crying - which I wasn't - but there just might have been some hopping and twirling involved. People told us not to lose hope, that offers often fall through, and that this is how they got into their homes - I just didn't believe them.

So the whirlwind begins. Our agent is actually out of town until Friday, so her boss is filling in till she returns. There are papers to sign with them, and then we meet with our lender this afternoon. We are both a little super nervous about crunching the numbers and meeting a mortgage every month, but we figure there is no time like the present (before we have kids), and so we are going for it.

It is a 30 day escrow, so things will move swiftly once we get the green light. There are a slough of inspections to arrange and pass, and a mountain of paperwork to get through before we close. So it is definitely not our casa yet. Anything can go wrong at this point. But no matter what happens, I am chalking it up to a learning experience. And I will share these teachable moments along the way. Any advice for us newbies?

You Can't Lose What You Never Had

Our offer was the runner up. It stings a little bit to realize that we lost our first bid, but I just keep reminding myself that our house is out there, and we will end up where we are supposed to. Although it's so early in our house hunt and I truly believe this, today I am a little sad.

Here's what I keep wistfully thinking about: The light filled and totally open living/dining/kitchen combo.

The loft. (I didn't get a picture of it, but the second pic above is taken from it.) The views from the backyard. The pic doesn't do it justice. Really, it's 180 degree views. Swoon.

All the space: 3 bedrooms and 2 full baths, plus TONS of closets. Oh, and what about all those stuck-in-a-bygone era -1950's-1980's to be exact - elements that needed some serious modernizing? I stay awake at night just dreaming about the upgrades we could do, and surprisingly, so does Ryan. (Well, I don't know if he stays awake at night, but he definitely has opinions and ideas.)

But the house certainly wasn't perfect, and there were a few things I am not bummed to leave behind.

The (lack of) curb appeal, for instance.

The small yard and bathrooms.

The master bedroom that used to be the living room before the 1980 addition, and which is right off the front door. Yep, that's the master. (We'd prefer a master in the back of the house, especially with those views.)

The narrow and viewless entry (which I failed to get a pic of). And I know Ryan would LOVE a two car garage for all his projects and to use as a man cave.

The bottom line was we have a better idea of how to be competitive with REO's - move quickly and start with a serious offer - and we now have a clearer and shared sense of what we are looking for. Any lessons to impart? Any thoughts on this place?

We plan to continue to look in this area and see what pops up in the weeks/months ahead. I'll keep you posted.

The Waiting Game

We were supposed to hear back about our offer by 5 pm today, but that deadline just passed us by, and still no news! I have been a wreck all day and have been running errands, cleaning, and organizing to try to keep myself occupied. The fridge and freezer are stocked. Our bedroom is as clean as it can be until my appointment with The Wardrobe! I can't really clean anything else because the vacuum refuses to do its job.

Cooking helped me pass the time last night, and today I brined two chickens so I can make the hubby some homemade chicken salad sandwiches. (Why not spoil him while I have the time?)

Last night's dinner was so good that we will be eating the leftovers again tonight. Here's the recipe, courtesy of Giada.

Saffron Orzo with Shrimp

4 c chicken broth (I use free-range organic broth)
1 t saffron threads
1 lb uncooked orzo
7 T extra-virgin olive oil, divided use
1/4 c chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Juice of 1 lemon
3 t salt (I tend to cut this in half since I don't use reduced-sodium chicken broth)
2 t black pepper
1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined
Capers to taste (optional)

In a large pot, bring the chicken broth to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low simmer and add saffron, stirring and simmering until saffron has "bloomed," about 5 minutes.

Return heat to medium and add orzo. Bring stock to a boil and cook orzo for 9 minutes (or until tender but still firm to the bite), stirring occasionally.

Add 4 T of olive oil, parsley, half the lemon juice, 1 t each of salt and pepper, and capers (if using.) Combine thoroughly. Set aside.

In a large bowl, toss shrimp with 1 t of salt, 1 t of pepper, and remaining lemon juice. Heat remaining 3 T of olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp in a single layer and cook until shrimp are just turning pink, about 3 minutes per side. Take the tail off the shrimp and chop into bit-sized pieces.

Add shrimp to orzo and enjoy!

Happy eating! I will keep you posted as soon as we have an update!

Give 'Em Your Best

Well folks, it turns out that we are in the middle of a bidding war. I know some people love the thrill of an auction - whether live, silent, or just ebay - but I am not that person. We got a call from our agent today explaining that there are two other offers on the house, and we needed to submit our highest and best offer by 3 pm today for consideration.

"Okay, we're still in the running," I thought. "No problem." Not quite. Turns out that Ryan did not answer his phone or respond to my panicked texts for 45 minutes. And we only had two-and-a-half hours until the new offer was due. So what's a girl to do? I drove out to his job with two possible counter offers in hand. (Thank goodness he had told me where he was working; he is a carpenter, so his location can change daily). He was up on the roof and looked more than a little surprised to see me.

Long story short, we agreed on a new figure and got the paperwork back to our agent with a half hour to spare. Now the waiting begins...

How about a closet update? I pulled about 50 items from my closet. 15 or so I am going to donate to Goodwill, and the rest I am going to consign at The Wardrobe. I even already called and made the appointment! They take 25 in-season items at one time and split the profits 50/50.

Here's my pile of winter items to consign all ready to go for next Friday's appointment: 2 leather jackets, 2 suede jackets, 2 sweater coats, 2 dresses, 2 pairs of black boots, 1 purse, 4 skirts, and the rest are sweaters, shirts, and tops.

I also have a pile of spring/summer clothing just waiting to go to The Wardrobe when the seasons change. (Found in the bags in the basket in the first photo.)

I didn't take a before photo (too embarrassing), but here's what the closet looks like now.

There's still much to purge, but 50 pieces was a lot for one day! Not sure what's up next for the great purge. Any suggestions?

Enjoying the View

Christmas, a distant speck in the rear view mirror by now, left us largely unscathed except for a stomach bug I can't seem to shake. (Could it have anything to do with the massive amounts of food we have been surrounded with? Perhaps.) Santa was quite good to us this year. I kept telling family that we are not wanting for anything, except a house...

Well, there's exciting news in that department as well! We went to look at five homes on Christmas Eve, and we were quite taken with the last house we saw: a 3 bedroom, 2 bath 1950's ranch with a 1980's addition. It's up on a hill with stunning 180 degree views from the living room, back bedroom, and porch. 

In a move that shocked me, my stoic guy - who is deliberate in every move he makes - decided he wanted to make an offer! So we did yesterday. We will not hear back about our offer until Wednesday at 5 pm, and until then I will be a nervous Nelly. We are thinking it will go to some all cash buyer who will update it's stuck-in-the-70's look, but we are holding out a little hope that it could be ours. I just keep telling myself, "If it is meant to be, it will be." Literally. It's my mantra right now. 

If by some miracle our offer is accepted, things will move quickly; it is a 30 day closing. I am having a seriously hard time wrapping my mind around the fact that there is a (slight) possibility that we could be moving in a month's time. We have been in our current house in 6 and a half years, and while we moved in with almost no furniture or stuff (besides way too many clothes), now we are packed to the gills. So, since I have another two weeks off work and since the new year is approaching, I have made it my mission to purge. Yesterday's project: the hall closet, specifically the shelf that houses our wrapping paper. (I did not think to take a before pic. I will try to get an after shot up today. It will still look sad.) Today: my closet! Wish me luck.