T-Minus 3 Days

It's a start to a big week!  On Tuesday morning, we have our final walk through of the house to ensure it is in the same state it was presented when I first made my offer on the place.    There have been repair people in the house so I'm hoping the floors still look decent.    Last Tuesday, the sewer was officially fixed so when we walk through in a couple days I plan on flushing toilets and having faucets run while we are there.    I know the sewer is fine now but it will still give me piece of mind.   It ended up costing the seller closer to 16K to fix the sewer.

The roof on the garage was completed on Thursday.    It too ended up being a bit more expensive for the seller but oh well.    The next part with the garage would be to add a garage door opener.    That will be Dan's task and Dan's bill though.  

On Wednesday at 3:30pm, I have my closing meeting with the bank to get possession of the house.    I also get to write them a large check for my down payment.  The meeting ends with me getting the abstract for the house and the keys.     I'll be getting a safety deposit box at the bank for the abstract.   If you lose it or it is destroyed it costs thousands to get it replaced.     We are also planning to get house re-keyed, new locks.    I'll probably do that during Spring Break.    I'm not super worried since the seller moved out a long time ago. 

Speaking of the seller....I got more of the story of why the house was vacant for so long.    Apparently the seller (in Australia) bought the house for their child that was supposed to attend ISU.    They tried attending but didn't even make it a full semester.    They left and went back to Australia.    So the house is in great shape because it was barely lived in even with this seller.    I'm still confused as to why such a big house was purchased for one person.  

On Saturday we'll start the move of Dan from Newton to Ames.    We are handling it with our own vehicles on Saturday and we'll have a box truck on Sunday.   Thankfully we have the box truck Sunday as it will likely rain all day.    He may be fully out of the apartment by Sunday and he'll have a couple weeks to clean well.    He is away behind in packing.   I told him that we are not coming on Saturday to pack for him.    He needs to be ready for us to put things on trucks.   

On March 9th, Dan has the day off from work so he'll be at the house all day.   He is having his Mediacom cable set-up that day and we are having our deep freeze delivered that day from Lowes.   Depending on cost and time, we may have a locksmith come that day too for changing the locks on the house.    I bought a deep freeze the other day as it was one of the "big" things I wanted to get for the house and get into our basement soon.    

I may move some things this weekend too but it won't be anything major since Gavin and I will still live here into May.    I may have some bookcases get loaded and things like that.    

Next "big" thing to do is get some quotes for tree trimming.    

That's the update!

Moving Closer to a Closing Date

Greetings:

I received confirmation that my mortgage has moved to the closing process.    I have officially done all the "homework" I needed to make the bank and underwriter happy.    Closing date is still set for February 28th. 

I found out that Roto Rooter is starting work tomorrow (Feb 13) on redoing the sewer line.     The garage roof will be done this week too but likely later in the week as it should be in the upper 30s or lower 40s so the snow should melt off said roof.    Either way, both processes need to be done by Feb 21. 

I'm not quite sure when I need to officially pay the down payment.   The money is sitting in my new Wells Fargo account.   State Farm still needs to come in and look at my fire place too.   Dan hasn't given his landlord notice yet either but can at any time.    I set the date for the electric, water, sewer to be put in my name for the residence.    We will put the gas in Dan's name because he's using the same company in Newton and just needs to change the addresses.    He's looking into options with his cable and Internet.    If there isn't a fee to just cancel the cable, we are going to do that.   But if there is a fee to cancel the cable early, we'll keep it for a bit.    Have to have Internet though.   

We have also picked a local garbage company too.    I feel like such an adult organizing all these utility services.    I'm used to them all being included with rent.   

Work is going quite well for both institutions.   I have 90 students turning in an assignment this Friday though so I'll start having digital piles of grading to deal with.   I'm also working extra hours for DMACC this month because our coaching classes weren't properly staffed.    I'm not thrilled to be working almost every weekend but hey, it's money. 

I have been working out almost every M, W, and F with the Exercise Clinic at work (ISU).    I am very pleased with my progress with weight lifting.    I'm making great gains with my upper body but do need to do more cardio.   I do end up working out on some Tuesdays and Thursdays too because of the class I teach for future PE teachers.    I've been making them try different group fitness classes.    I see the upcoming move as a workout too as there will be lots of loading/unloading vehicles and using stairs at the new house.    Functional fitness!   I'm more excited about it than Dan. 

Very excited to see some family this weekend and have some fun!

The Sewer on Grand Avenue....Not so Grand

Ah yes, much has transpired since my last blog entry about becoming a homeowner.     Had I written this a couple days ago, I would have been in more of a panic.   Alas, things are going in my favor so I'm feeling pretty good about the house.  

So on Friday last week, my agent sent a document to the seller's agent specifying we wanted the garage roof inspected as well as the sewer line scoped.     They had three days to say yes, no, or negotiate.   By day 4, my agent had to pester them a bit for an answer.   They agreed to have a construction company come to look at the roof and have Roto Rooter scope the sewer line.     The construction company checked and did a quote for the garage roof.    I was expecting to just do a quote for patching the hole but turns out the whole roof should be redone.    They will do so by the end of February.    $1600 covered by the seller.    

Onto the sewer....we didn't get an immediate answer about it.     My agent decided to contact Roto Rooter and thankfully the secretary was forthcoming about the news.    Sewer line = yikes.   We new about this for a period of time and the seller did not know we were aware of the news.    Finally on Wednesday night, the seller's agent communicated the news and told my agent they would be covering the full cost of replacement which is at least $14,200.  We are still rather shocked they didn't do something different but grateful for their decision.    We thought one of the following was going to happen:

1)  they try to negotiate and get me to pay part of the bill "if you want the house so bad, pay for half of the new sewer"

2) they could have pulled the house off the market, fixed the sewer, and put it back on the market for a higher price.    They may have offered to me first but it would have likely been out of my price range by that point.   

The bank ordered the appraisal of the house/property today.   I guess that happens in a two week time frame.  The new garage roof and sewer line are to be completed by February 21, a week before my closing date.   It's supposed to give me time to go and inspect the work to be sure I'm happy with it.    

My agent informs me that it is now the lull in the process because everything that needs to be done is not in my power.  I really won't be busy with things and meetings again until the end of February.  

Regardless of the recent drama, we are still on track for a February 28 closing date.    Dan hasn't informed his landlord yet about moving by the end of March but can likely do so soon.   

I am more than ready for my excursion to Osceola to take in The Thunder from Down Under.    Bronzed men dancing and alcohol.    Yes please.    

That's all with my update for now!