This Is A Poncho-Free Zone!--May 22-29, 2010 PTR (New PTR!!!! 5/31)

[klacey1]

Hang in there, Becky! I'll keep praying that you will find the home of your dreams. About your favorite house-- I would definitely look into working a cleaning/re-carpeting into your contract if you decide to go with it. I certainly wouldn't pay more than the appraisal price, either! Let us know what Brent thinks of it!

 

[BippityBoo]

Hi Becky! Feeling better about tomorrow??

Ok--was it possibly the assessment that you saw? If it is the assessment used for property taxes, etc. then it is not a real appraisal. Also, sometimes the assessments are under assessed or the last one was done years ago, putting the value at less than what the present value is. If it is, you can not really use that as a base for your offer.

If it was an actual appraisal, then it would be helpful to find out why it got appraised. Refinancing can sometimes bring in low appraisals because the bank does not want to really risk anything. It is good to know that an appraisal is really an "opinion" based on facts and is usually skewed depending on who they are written for.

I hope that helps. I am sure it is confusing. I am SURE your Realtor will be able to give you any information that you would need. Just thought that I could help ease your mind a little until you talked to her. Let me know how tomorrow goes! I will be thinking of ya!

 

[cdotla]

Oh Becky...sorry your 1st experiences aren't going so well. It is amazing the condition that some people leave their homes when they are on the market trying to sell them, isn't it?

I don't have any words of wisdom beyond what was already given, but keep your head up! Something will come. Better to stay put for now than to jump at something that you aren't going to love. Remember: you should be thrilled to be buying, not settling!

Sounds like you have a good agent...I am sure you will find your way to your dream home soon!

 

[LilAnn]

Hi Becky, Sorry to hear that you are feeling so stressed with the house hunting process. It does sound like you had a pretty typical first day out there though.

I agree with someone else about making the list about what you are willing to work on in the house. I know that wallpaper is just cosmetic and an easy fix, but when we bought our house, it was COVERED in wallpaper (from the 60s, mind you). Years later, we still have 2 rooms that need to be de-wallpapered and painted. But we are also not as industrious/or have the funds required to finish fixing up our home as fast as we would like. Life always seems to get in the way. So as current homeowners, I think you guys will know best about what you can realistically manage to fix in the new house.

Also, I agree about hiring someone to professionally clean or steam clean the hosue to get the smells out if you end up with one of the ones you mentioned. In terms of the county appraisal, from our personal experience, our house apprasied a LOT lower. However, it wasn't an up-to-date appraisal of the house. The appraiser has to be allowed into the home, so if the owner doesn't let them in, they might not know about any new renovations to the house. An appraisal of $20,000 less actually does not seem that bad to me at all. It seems pretty close.

Sorry, for the long post. Just trying to offer any help I can. Good luck with the search! And when you get stressed, switch gears and think of how excited the girls will be in two months in Disney!

 

[L*hd]

Becky, be patience.... don't go for the house if you are really NOT in love with it.... You will know when you find the Right house..... .. When I went house hunting in Chicago I looked into repo houses, and did not like them besides the fact it may take months before you heafr from the bank... fortunately there were some new constructions in the area we were looking for and for the same price as a Used one we could get the house brand new,,, only a couple of months,,,, I know you do not want to wait that long but if it is for the best you better wait......

Good Luck !!

Lulu

 

[Charlefours]

Katie's right--you can get smoke smell out a home. Our townhome in IL we bought from a smoker. By painting and replacing the carpeting, the smell went away. One thing I would suggest, have a primer specifically meant for covering nicotine stains so it does not have the chance to seep up through it. You can also wash the walls down with TSP (found at a home improvement store) prior to regular priming and painting--it does the same thing.

 

[swwake]

Hi Becky! I am sooooo late, but I stumbled on your PTR and I have to subscribe. I scanned the first post and realized you're from Memphis! That is my home town. I grew up there and moved to Austin in 2000. Many fond memories. What a beautiful family. I will have to somehow try to catch up on your PTR.

What day is your anniversary? Ours is May 16th

 

[aharbin88]

I've been gone forever! I've lurked a bit, but I need to get back to posting.

Good luck on the house hunt/sell! We have a house for sale in North Knoxville, and it's so stressful. It's been on the market for quite a while, and we may be looking at other options. It's so great that you are in an in-demand neighborhood. That will help a lot! I'm hoping we get some takers once the school year is over. I'm betting that's when families are most likely to move, and since we live near a new school, we figure families are our target buyers!

Keep us updated on the houses you like. I am like the other posters; I just love to look at houses! I like to get inspiration for my own home by looking at other houses and how they're decorated/furnished/designed.

Yay for less than 2 months! That's so exciting! You'll have to fill us in on your wardrobe plans. Any cute customs for the girls yet?

 

[swwake]

Ok Becky - this is just killing me. My daughter, Katie (now 17) wore the Tinkerbell costume when she was 5. Her middle name is Claire and she has those striking blue-colored eyes like yours. Education runs in my family (Mom was a teacher, then principal at Northaven, Barrett's Chapel, then Ellendale, sister was a teacher at Southwind Middle, then Oak), and my dad and stepmom live in Jackson. Dad owns a kennel and if your parents have pets, they probably know him

 

[Mommy2LittleVols]

Hugs Becky! I'm sorry to hear that your first day of house hunting didn't go very well. I agree, it is amazing the condition of some houses on the market! I'll keep my fingers crossed that you find "YOUR" house soon!! (Or that the one you liked works out!)

 

[MHTeacher]

Hi Becky! I've missed all your exciting house news during the past week.

Don't get too stressed out---I know you're feeling this pressure, but I agree with another post, the realtor works for you, not vice versa.

The right house is out there, it just may not appear by the end of April, and that's ok! A house is a huge investment, and you don't want to settle, you want the right one for your family.

 

[BippityBoo]

Anxious to see how your house hunt went yesterday

 

[racefanof88]

Hey Becky . I'm sorry to hear the house hunting isn't going well . It can be very stressful. I will keep you in my prayers. I know ya'll will find something that works best for your family .

 

[swwake]

Whew! I'm all caught up now. I love Ally's Cindy Lou costume! And I love your countdown chain. It makes me sorta wish we had small ones to share a countdown with. Sorry for your house-hunting woes. But just remember, anything worth it takes time. I know it's stressful, but remember that you don't have to be in a hurry. Even if everything doesn't fall into place before your trip in May, it will still be just ok. Things happen on their own time.

I'm not sure where you live, but I can assume. Although, I'm not sure if you want it posted here on the DIS. I lived in Cordova right before moving to Austin. My sister lived in Lakeland, and we have VERY close friends (and my husband's family) who live in Arlington.

I wish I knew someone who has a home in your market and price range. I have two friends who just sold their homes. One is moving to McVay Cove in G'town (where I went to high school). The other couple is staying in Arlington, not far from Barrett's.

Looking forward to hearing more, and hoping your house-hunting gets less stressful.

 

[Brave teacher]

Sorry to hear about round one of the house hunt. Something will come along. I wish you the best in your search.

 

[JenAusty]

Sorry your house hunting is sooo stressful! I can't wait when I buy my first home.. but at the same time I understand the stress you must feel. It's such a big decision and I wish you the best of luck!

 

[disney<333]

Sorry I've been MIA for a while Becky!!
Beauty and the Beast looks amazing! The girls are so cute in their dresses.
Congrats on deciding to move to a bigger home. That's excellent news. I'm sure you guys will be much happier with more space.
I'm sorry to hear the house hunting isn't going so well. It really is disgusting how some people take care of their homes.
You can probably get rid of the smoke smell but I wouldn't close on the house until the smell is 100% gone just incase it can't come out all the way. Before we moved to Coral Springs and we were living in Orlando in a townhouse we had neighbors move in who smoked a lot. The smell ended up getting into our house through the air vents or something. We let it go on for too long and Amy was having trouble breathing. The smell wasn't really bad but she was just a little older then Claire and it is much stronger on their little lungs. She ended up in the hospital with breathing help. We tried getting rid of the smell but we weren't able to 100%. You could still smell it a little and I knew it would be even worse for little kids. We were told by a company they could get rid of it 100% but we were ready to move down here to a bigger house. So I don't know if the smell ever went away all the way.
The perfect house is out there. Just keep searching!! Don't buy with something that you are just o.k with. You want to be there for a while and not move out after just a year or two. Don't feel like you need to hurry up and buy something before your Disney trip.
Also, I think this is the most important. DO NOT close on a new house until yours is 100% sold. We were planning on moving to Atlanta a few years ago back when selling homes in Florida was next to impossible. We got an excellent offer on the house in less then 10 days of it being on the market. We were ready to close and we had placed an offer and were going to be closing on the new home in Georgia the next day. Something terrible happened to the family and they never showed up to the closing. I was so glad we hadn't closed on the new house because we were never able to sell our house. I could not imagine buying a new house and not being able to sell the old one. Two houses in places where people are not buying? I could not imagine!
Hope this helps.
Have a great weekend.

 

[wdwgirl03]

Hey Becky, you are Bama fans right? I just got this email from Disneyshopping.com and thought you and your family might appreciate these shirts. They've got them for the whole family!

http://www.disneystore.com/new-arrivals-vee-neck-university-of-alabama-mickey-mouse-tee-for-women/p/1263596/303200/

Soooo jealous they don't have Michigan...I think I am going to write and complain. They are adorable.

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

Hey Becky! I hope the house-hunt is improving since your last update

 

[aharbin88]

Hey Becky, you are Bama fans right? I just got this email from Disneyshopping.com and thought you and your family might appreciate these shirts. They've got them for the whole family!

http://www.disneystore.com/new-arrivals-vee-neck-university-of-alabama-mickey-mouse-tee-for-women/p/1263596/303200/

Soooo jealous they don't have Michigan...I think I am going to write and complain. They are adorable.

OMGoodness! Those are so great! I can't believe they don't have Tennessee! They have just about every other SEC team. Maybe they're testing to see how well these do before adding more. I bet if several people wrote in with their requests they might add more to the line. I think a Disney-themed sports team collection would do VERY well!

BTW- I'm also very surprised they don't have Michigan, especially since they have Ohio State. I bet that burns you up as much as it does me that they have Bama and Florida and no Tennessee!