Finally in Texas!

This may be a long post since I haven't written in ages. I have been super busy.  I sold the house for cash so we closed within two weeks. My last day at work was October 4 and the movers came October 7. I had tons of help packing, my mom, my Aunt Rosalie, my niece Krista and her two little girls and my cousin Jackie but it was a huge undertaking. I was trying to pack up my house and finish up my work and train a replacement.  Nuts!

My sister and niece flew up to help with the move and I would not have been able to do this move with out my uber organized sis!! Also, I had wonderful movers, Foster Brothers. They are from Cadillac, MI and I would strongly recommend them to anyone. My mom and I drove my in my car and  I rented a Town & Country van for my sis to drive. We put the dog, cat and all my plants and any clothes I needed in the back of the van and left Michigan early morning, Wed., Oct. 9.

The trip went downhill right away. I had to stop, a lot, to go to the bathroom. By early afternoon I felt so bad I couldn't drive. We stopped in Bloomington, IL and I went to an urgent care. The nurse practitioner said I had a UTI, gave me antibiotics and sent me on my way. We decided to spend the night and get an early start on Thurs. morning. That plan went out the window when I was so sick in the morning I couldn't get out of bed. My sis and niece loaded the dog and cat in the van and took off for Texas. It took them 13 hours but they made it that night. I am very thankful they did because I ended up sleeping until noon that day before I felt well enough to drive again.  Feeling better, my mom and I drove to Rolla, MO and spent the night. I didn't feel great Friday morning but I thought I would make it. No such luck. I drove for about 2 hours, getting worse as we went. By the time we got to Springfield, MO I was looking for an emergency room.

I spent a little less than 2 hours in the ER and had lab work and an IV. They changed my antibiotic and sent me on my way!   My mom and I got in the car and hauled ass to Texas. It took us about 7 and 1/2 hours but we finally made it to Plano around 9:00 pm Friday night.

I didn't feel much better over the weekend and ended up seeing my sister's doctor Monday morning. After testing and a cat scan the conclusion was kidney stones! Not the best way to start the next chapter of my life!

 I am unpacking at my sisters and finding my way around. A job is next on the list. Stay tuned for the next exciting installment!!

Sold, Maybe!

I think I sold the house. After much angst about it not selling I decided to turn my house into a rental. This did not make me happy but the market in my neighborhood is still down and it was looking impossible to sell.  Seriously, I gave up. Last week, Rose, my Realtor,  called with not one but two cash offers! Cash meaning no mortgage. No mortgage means no appraisal. This was amazing news.

Now I wait. The buyers Realtor is young and seems inexperienced. They should have already scheduled the inspection and closing so Rose had to get after them to take care of this.  I think we are back on track, well, I hope so since I am packing!

I am having one last garage sale on the weekend of Sept. 13/14, plan to give my notice for my last day at work to be Oct. 4 and then get the movers the next week.

 "Man plans, God laughs" has been the theme of my life lately so I can't get excited yet... I will...soon....maybe...

The House Saga, cont.

I had three full price offers on the house the first week, all FHA. FHA lenders will only give mortgages if the appraisal is for the full price. This didn't happen. My house appraised for $25,000 less then what I owe! The problem is two-fold. The location and the market.

I am located in a city that is full of foreclosures, bank owned houses and rentals. There was nothing for sale in my price range for comparison. My neighborhood is nice but the surrounding blocks are starting to get run down (one of the reasons I am moving).  If I plucked my house up and moved it to another city in my area I could get $15k-25k more for it.

The other issue is the market here in the Detroit area. According to the Detroit Free Press,

"After a spell of dreary years, the metro Detroit housing market is finally regaining much of the value it lost in the crash. But many real estate agents and home sellers say the market’s comeback could be even stronger if it wasn't for what they consider overly conservative appraisals that lag the prices buyers are now willing to pay. No one is tracking how many deals are falling through because of low appraisals. But for some brokers, close to a quarter of their deals this summer have run into problems because the appraisal came in below the price that the seller and would-be buyer agreed upon, according to multiple agents interviewed by the Free Press.In a more typical “good” market, that figure is around 5% to 10%, they report.“The appraisals are really just killing things right now,” said Jason Matt, a Realtor with Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel in Plymouth, who estimates that 30% of the 113 homes his team has sold in 2013 have encountered appraisal problems.Because lending institutions generally don’t write mortgages above the appraised amount, an appraisal below the agreed-to selling price will scuttle a deal, unless the buyer can bring enough cash to cover the difference between the sale price and the appraisal."

So, there you have it. I am stuck in the middle.  My house is back on the market for conventional or cash only. I am giving it until around Labor Day. If I don't get a reasonable offer by then I will turn it into a rental for a few years. This isn't my favorite solution but it may be my only option! 

The On Going Saga

The inspection on the house was last week and went off without a hitch. The appraisal was yesterday and I may not know the amount for up to a week. This is making me crazy. If the appraisal is too low it changes everything. Crazy market here in Michigan means not being able to count on anything.  If for some reason I can't sell this house without losing my shirt I may turn it into a rental.

I really don't have any other news.  My life is on hold!

What a Week!

My house was listed Sunday. I had a showing Sunday afternoon and a full-price offer Monday morning. I had a showing Tuesday afternoon and a full-price offer Tuesday afternoon! I accepted the offer from Tuesday. Now comes the fun part. The person was supposedly pre-approved but my agent is still waiting for confirmation of that. Once this is confirmed an inspection will have to be done within 7 days and then an appraisal.  In the mean time I have a showing tonight! Keeping the house clean and picked up and worrying about the dog being home when the house is being shown is much more nerve wracking then I imagined.  The other issue is the appraisal. Houses are selling like crazy in my area but the appraisals haven't caught up to the market so I worry....

In other news. I am down 5 pounds and chopped off my hair!

Moving Right Along

Wow I didn't realize how long it has been since I posted!

 The house is going on the market tonight.  From what I have heard from realtor's houses are selling but the appraisals have not caught up to the market. I could get an offer soon but the house may not appraise so it's all up in the air.  The basement is cleaned out along with my closets, office and bedrooms. The moving company came last night to give me an estimate and by no fault of my own my work knows I plan on leaving. That in itself if a long story. Everything is on track so now I just need to get rid of the house!

Moving by myself is scary. I moved about 10 times in as many years but always had Bob as support. We thought nothing of just up and moving. Now I worry if I am making the right decisions. Well, the decisions are made so I guess I need to just get on with it.

I am considering giving my Bitsy cat to a good home. She is 12 and I worry about the trauma of moving, in a car, for 2 days, staying in a strange place (my sisters) with 2 dogs and then moving again when I get an apartment.  I am open to suggestions.

Wish me luck! I think I may need it for this crazy journey!

Updates

I have been riding my bike at least 3 times a week around my neighborhood. There is a lot of traffic so it's not easy but I try to go early in the morning on the weekend and later at night during the week. I don't enjoy it for exercise as much as walking but with my crazy foot I can't walk for exercise right now.  I also work out doing strength training for an hour a week and just bought new yoga and pilates dvds. I feel like I am getting in shape but....

...this would have been week 5 of the diet but I quit.  I was super careful about what I ate; measuring everything, exercising and only eating what I supposed to for over four weeks. I only lost a total of 4 lbs and that was during the carb-free portion of the program. I can't  live like this. It is not sustainable for me so I am modifying what I eat and still taking care to only eat "healthy" carbs.  I did blow it big time this week but I will stick to my new plan and let you know how it goes.

I am on track to put my house up for sale the second week in July. My sis is flying in next week to help me tackle a few of the bigger things that I need help with (can anyone say BASEMENT) and then I will call the realtor after 4th of July.  If all goes as planned I am hoping to move in September. I hope the house sells for a reasonable amount in a short time period but not too fast! I am not THAT ready! The biggest problem is my Invisalign braces. I was supposed to be done with them at the end of the month but my teeth are not cooperating. I now have until November!  It's a long story but the orthodontist and I worked it out a plan for after I move.

For those of you with father's or who are father's, enjoy your day!

Oh, the spellcheck button has disappeared! crud...