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I will continue to work on this as I have time, but it gives you a little idea, maybe, of what we're looking at and for.

Quiet

So I know that things have been quiet on here since the last post. To be honest, we haven't been doing much regarding house hunting. We've driven past a few houses and through a few neighborhoods...

There was one house that Stacy thought she saw was foreclosed on and was listed for approx. $55,000. The location looked decent, photos on-line looked pretty good, so we figured we'd drive by and maybe stop and peek in the windows. We did that and liked some of what we saw. I won't go into too much detail, because we came home and took a closer look at the listing on-line and found that the listing Stacy had seen was an old one. Someone had since purchased the house, made some renovations, and now the house is listed again for approx. $99,000. It's in our price range, so we may still consider it, but I think that we will likely find others that have more going for them.

We have been doing some looking on-line (as mentioned above) and I've created a map using Google Maps to help us see where some of the houses we are interested in are at. More in the next post...

Purchase Agreement Signed

We've signed and sent back the Purchase Agreement to sell our house in MN! I won't disclose the selling price here, but I will say that it was more than what we originally listed the house for. Praise God!

A little background: we put our house on the market sometime in April. We had several showings right away and over the next few weeks. Then things died down quite a bit; right around the time that we moved to Bowling Green, KY. We had a few showings here and there, but not much was going on.

Then, between this Monday and Tuesday, we received THREE offers on our home! All were above our current asking price! As I said above, the offer we accepted was higher than our original listing price. So, you can imagine our excitement!

Now, the buyers have a few weeks to have the house appraised and some title work needs to be done. Our closing date is scheduled for September 12th. We want to go back to MN for the closing and to supervise the packing of our household goods (my company pays to have a moving company pack us up and move our stuff), so we need to see if it will work to do this. It's hard to believe that in 5 weeks our house will be sold and all of our worldly possessions moved. Crazy!

Well, clearly God has been good to us through this process and time of transition in our lives. He has been faithful to see us through this tough time of adjustment and we trust Him to be faithful to lead us forward from here.

1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! 2 Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!

3 Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!

5 For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.

Psalm 100: 1-5, ESV

MN Home Updates

For those of you who may not have seen pictures of the updates we made to our home, click here to be taken to a photo slideshow.

If interested in seeing more information on our home, click here to be taken to our listing. If the link doesn't take you directly to our listing, our address is 135 Elm Street East and the MLS# is 3521385.

Joel

We May Be At It Again

Hello everybody! Okay, so I didn’t do a very good job of finishing out the account of our last home buying experience. Sorry about that. Maybe I can tell you all about it in the future some time. I’ll see if I can do better reporting the ride all the way through this time…

To bring you up-to-speed, we’ve been relocated to Bowling Green, KY by my company and have had our house in MN on the market for almost 6 months. We may be close to selling it now, so we are getting geared up for the house hunt again.

As time permits I will post some pictures and details of houses that we look at. This blog may be more of a tool for Stacy and me to keep track of our likes and dislikes of homes that we look at, but we invite you all to chime in with your comments, questions, and/or suggestions.

Follow along as the Hams go House Hunting again.

Joel

Trials

Well, here's the latest...

We got the report on the foundation from our contractor friend and it didn't say what we were expecting it to say. When he accompanied us to the house and talked to me about the foundation then, he said that it probably would not be a major issue in the near future. So, that's what we were expecting him to write in his report. Instead, he wrote that major damage had occured and recommended repairing the wall, to the tune of $2,500-$2,750. This means that a repair will definitely need to be made now and it's just a matter of when, how much, and who will pay for it. We immediately submitted an addendum to the seller, requesting that they pay and arrange for the repairs. Now we wait and see what the seller will say. Our hopes are that the seller will see a chance to sell this house that they have had on the market for some time and agree to the repairs. Besides, it still won't push the sale price below our original offer (not even close). The risk they run by rejecting us is that we will back out and they will again have to put the house on the market during inopportune times (winter & buyers market). So, PLEASE be praying about this.

We made arrangements for our homeowners (hazard) insurance. Not too big of a deal, but nice to get done and out of the way.

My employer has posted the new position, Loss Prevention Lead. I already had my Internal Application filled out, so I just had to print it, sign it, and slide it under my bosses office door. She said today, that she read it and was really impressed, so I think that is good. Now more waiting to see how long the interview process will take.

There will be more news to come real soon, so stay tuned...

Moving Right Along

Hello again! Sorry that I haven't updated the blog for a while. Life keeps us busy!

Thursday, November 2nd we had our FHA Inspection/Appraisal. Things went fairly well. Praise God! We only need to put an extension on one of the downspouts and submit a report from a general contractor on the condition of the basement wall that is bowing. The extension is not a big deal and we spoke to our contractor friend, who came with us the second time we looked at the house, and he agreed to do the report on the foundation wall. Originally, the loan processor wanted us to have a structural engineer report on it, but we talked them into letting us use a contractor. Good thing, because structural engineers don't come cheap! So, we believe that the Lord answered our prayers and made everything to go smoother than we were anticipating.

For some reason the bank (seller) has taken a long time to sign and return our paperwork. We've heard that it is now done, almost 2 weeks later.

We still haven't heard that we are approved for sure for our loan. I imagine that, after the report on the condition of the foundation wall is submitted, it won't be too much longer before we have a definitive answer. Please keep praying that all goes well on that front.

We have been able to schedule our closing. It will be at noon on Monday, November 27th. This will hopefully allow us some time afterwards to go to the house and start doing some cleaning. We'd love to be able to paint the living room that same day too, but we'll have to wait and see what the day has in store for us. More than likely, I will be at the house everyday that week, cleaning and doing whatever else I can to get it ready for us to move in. We are hoping that it will work for us to utilize the servant spirits in our church singles group to help us move in the following weekend (December 2nd). With their help, it will surely go fast and smooth.

The situation with my job is still in limbo. I did find out that they are eliminating the supervisor position and replacing it with a new position. Loss Prevention Lead, or something like that. The new position will have fewer responsibilities and will not be salary. The rest of the details remain unclear. I have heard that I am still the front runner for the position within our department. Now I just have to continue to wait for them to post the job. Please keep us in your prayers about this as well. I believe it will still be a great opportunity for Stacy and I.

Packing continues at our apartment. We've been able to accomplish a lot. Management has not contacted us to show the apartment yet, so be in prayer that God will lead someone looking for an apartment to ours.

Alright, I think I have exhausted my brain trying to think of any other news. So, until next time...

Waiting...Again

Sorry I haven't posted anything for a while, but not much has happened.

I had to sign another piece of paper...more legal/financial stuff.

Our apartment situation might be worked out (as best as it can be). We will still have to pay for it through February, if no one comes along and rents it before then. That's what we're praying for. We definitely don't want to refer anyone we know, because the management company is terrible. So, now we are starting to pack all of the nonessentials. Bright side: I get all the boxes we could ever need for free from work. We have our timeline for when we want to get each area of the apartment packed...it's nice to have a schedule.

I don't want to get too excited, because nothing is certain, but my supervisor has resigned. This creates an opportunity for me to advance, which is something I've been praying for. I have already filled out the internal application form for the position and asked my manager if she will sign it. She said that she would, but we need to wait until the position is posted before we can submit it. This opportunity is coming at, what I think is, a good time. I've been working on a big project that I developed from its beginning and it's starting to get close to happening. That has brought me a lot of attention and compliments from the right people. There are other factors that are working in my favor too, so we'll just have to wait, pray, and see what God has in store for me in my career. Praise God for the opportunity!

The FHA inspection/appraisal will probably be sometime next week, so I'll keep you posted on when that ends up being and what happens. Be in prayer that the inspector is merciful and won't require us to make a lot of repairs. This would allow us to put more money down, thus making our payment lower, which we really need.

Thanks & we'll be in touch...

Inspection

Our home inspection was today. I met our inspector, Denise, at the house at 11:00 a.m. She was very nice and seemed to know her stuff. We got right to it and here's what we found (from her report):

Items Not Operating

*Some exterior lights and garage lights (light bulbs burned out, more than likely)
*Plumbing was not turned on, so we couldn't check any of that
*Back left burner on the stove was not working (the rest worked fine)
*There are two exhaust fans in the kitchen. One in the ceiling (looks like the original) and one directly above the stove (newer hood style). The one in the ceiling appears to work fine, but she did not think that it was vented outside the attic. The hood is not working properly and appears that it is not vented outside the attic either.
*The radiator in the bathroom did not warm up and there is a small electric heater built into the wall by the sink that did not work either.
*None of the switches in the living room operate outlets, so there must have been a ceiling light, but no longer.
*Smoke detector (battery operated) in the basement not working (probably just needs a new battery).

Majors Concerns

*Peeling paint & what appears to be old moisture in the soffits.
*Leaking joints & corners in the gutters and missing extensions for the downspouts. Gutters need to be cleaned out and are rusting.
*What appears to be mold in the laundry room closet (more serious).
*Evidence of moisture behind the tile in the bath area of the bathroom.
*What appears to be mold in bedroom #1 closet (less serious).
*Evidence of old moisture on basement walls, ceiling, & floor.
*Kitchen waste water is draining to a floor drain in the basement.
*Excessive cracking on the basement walls & basement garage stair area.
*Water heater is missing the pressure relief valve and is leaking.

Of course, there is a lot of other information in her report and some of the stuff listed above is not as bad as it sounds. We found out what we wanted from the inspection and we verified what may be problem areas for our FHA inspection (unsure of when that will be). With a lot of work cleaning, repairing, & refinishing things, we should have a very comfortable home.

We also received our first round of paperwork from the seller that we need to read & sign today. Exciting stuff to be sure!

We're still waiting to hear how the financing portion of our home buying experience is going. I need to submit some more paycheck stubs, because my employer, in the Verification of Employment form, told the lender that my hours vary between 35 & 40 hours a week. What?! I told our mortgage broker that, if it's not overkill, I would be willing to give the lender every paycheck stub from the time I started working here (1 year & 5 months ago). He didn't seem to think that would be necessary. ;) Oh well, I'll do what I have to do to get it done.

As always, I'll keep you posted on any & all updates or revelations. Stay tuned...

Wait

It's hard to be patient and wait on something when you are so excited! I have so many things I'd like to do in, on, and around that house to start to make it our home! I know Stacy is feeling the same way.

I've been making lists. A list of things we would like to do in each room of the house, the basement, and outside (some realistic, some dreaming). A list of our needs & wants (lawn mower-need, dishwasher-want). A list of resources for how-to information (eHow.com, Lowes, Home Depot, New Yankee Workshop, etc.). A list of basic things we will need to do when we move in (switch utilities over to our name, USPS change of address, etc.). This has occupied me a little.

I e-mailed our realtor today to see where we stand with paperwork. She has been out of town and will have to wait until she gets home tomorrow to see if she has received anything. Stacy and I will be out of town for the weekend, so we will have to wait until Monday to do anything.

Wait, be patient, relax, don't be anxious...hard things to do at a time like this. Possible though, with the help of the Lord.

Matthew 11:28-30
28 "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version™
Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles,
a division of Good News Publishers
All rights reserved.

Craziness

This mornings meeting with our mortgage broker & realtor went well enough. I didn't walk away with any definite answers, but I'm sure that is usually the case when dealing with these matters. What we did accomplish was figuring out that USDA Rural Development, our first time home buying program, will most likely approve our loan amount. If they decide not to, we still have a down payment that they don't know about that will change their minds. The other thing we accomplished was notifying the listing agent that we would accept the banks counter offer. That brought about another set of circumstances. The listing agent told our realtor that they had already told the seller about the other offer, but had not informed them of what the offer was. In my play book, that is a foul. I always thought that when someone makes an offer on a listing, no other offers are accepted, especially after the seller makes a counter offer. It seems unethical at least. Oh well, it is what it is. So, we were at the mercy of the seller. They could choose to look at the other offer and possibly accept it. So, we waited...

Just a side note here. Evidently, the other offer did not come from the mortgage insurance company, but from another individual or couple. I'm not sure why the mortgage insurance company got mixed up in this.

Our realtor called me shortly after 2:00 and told us that we had gotten the house! The bank accepted our acceptance. ;) I called Stacy to tell her. We are both very excited, yet still grounded. We know that not everything is settled yet, so we shouldn't get overly excited, but it's hard not to.

I already called and made an appointment to get the house inspected on Monday. That will, hopefully, reassure us that the house we want, is the house we want & get.

As always, we need your continued prayers. Here's why. I called the property management company for our apartment this morning. I informed them that we were buying a house and asked about the possibility of moving out soon. Without pause, they said "I'm sorry, but you signed a Lease Renewal Form that says you cannot move out in the months of December, January, or February, so you will have to pay until February 28th." No "Congratulations on buying a house!", no "Let's talk this through and see if there is something we can work out." So, unfortunately, we chose the "wrong time" to decide to buy a house & move out of our apartment(wrong time according to the management company). We don't have any options here, only strategies. We just have to continue to trust that the Lord will provide a way. The only way we will be free and clear of the apartment after moving out is if someone rents it. So, PLEASE pray for someone to come along and rent our apartment in December. Thank you.

Well, that's all I have for now. I promise to keep you updated as I find things out.

Offer...Counter Offer

We heard back from our realtor today and the bank (the house is bank owned) made a counter offer. Unfortunately, it wasn't what we were hoping for and there was a twist. Evidently, the mortgage insurance company that insured the mortgage for the previous homeowner wants to make an offer now. Our realtor says that she has never heard of a mortgage insurance company doing this, but reassures us that she does not think that it's a scam (trying to get us to accept the banks offer for fear of getting into a bidding war with the mortgage insurance company). So, it's decision time (not like it hasn't been up till now). Do we make our own counter offer, thus rejecting the banks counter offer and allowing the mortgage insurance company to get into the bidding game? Or, do we accept the banks offer and pay more than we were prepared to pay? Another item to take note of: evidently, the bank can reject our acceptance of their counter offer (before we sign papers, of course) and still open the bidding up to the mortgage insurance company. Needless to say, we are glad that we can rely on the Lord for guidance and trust that He will put us where He wants us, when He wants us there.

So, please continue to be in prayer for us. I meet with our realtor & mortgage broker tomorrow morning to talk things over and decide where to go from here. I will update you all tomorrow, Lord willing. Thanks again for checking in.

Joel

NYA - Our Photos (1 of 16)

Well, here are the photos from our 2nd trip out to see the house. As I said before, our friend from church, Steve M., accompanied us to give us a professional contractor's opinion. We were very happy that we had him as a resource, because he saw some things that we probably never would have.

There was one small section of the foundation that was bowing slightly inward. There had been water (a little bit, not a lot) coming into the basement through windows or the wall (foundation). We found that while the house had gutters and downspouts, it did not have the part that carrys the water away from the house. It also looked like the basement window wells had not been covered previously. Making those small, inexpensive changes may make a world of difference. The only other problem that would need immediate attention is the bathroom wall where the fixtures for the tub/shower come out. It appears to have some rot, and will need to be torn out and replaced. What we do there will depend on how much work we want to do and how much money we will have to spend. The rest of the house appeared to be in good order and just needs cosmetic work.

Based on Steve's recommendation and the thought & prayers we had already put into this house, we decided to make an offer. So today, we met with our realtor and signed the Purchase Agreement with our offer and a proposed closing date of December 1st. Now we just sit back and wait to see what they come back with.

Your continued prayers are needed and appreciated.

Thanks for checking in. I'll update you when we hear something.
 

NYA - Our Photos (2 of 16)

Attached garage & door going into the kitchen

Front door & steps with built-in planter
Front of the house

 

NYA - Our Photos (3 of 16)

Back of the house
Backyard extends past the fence to the bushes

There are a few places where the paint is peeling that would need to be fixed before final inspection.

 

NYA - Our Photos (4 of 16)

Flooring detail from bathroom to the hallway
Ceiling detail in the bathroom

 

NYA - Our Photos (5 of 16)

Built-in linen closet & drawers in the bathroom
The bathroom contains a shower/tub combo
Beautiful pink tile throughout

 

NYA - Our Photos (6 of 16)

Bedroom #2 (11X12)
Bedroom #2 has one small closet
Ceiling detail of Bedroom #2
Bedroom #2 closet contains plumbing access for tub/shower in the bathroom

 

NYA - Our Photos (7 of 16)

Bedroom #1 (12X12) with 2 closets (1 lined w/cedar)
Cedar-lined closet
Floor detail in Bedroom #1
Ceiling detail in Bedroom #1

 

NYA - Our Photos (8 of 16)

Bedroom #1 (12X12)
Coat closet
Hallway closet
Laundry chute in the hallway