I’m deviating from my usual topic of health and fitness to share some exciting news. My husband and I just closed on our new home! Under normal circumstances, you might think, gee, that’s great, Lynda. And? And, the circumstances behind this particular house sale were anything but normal. Please allow me to explain:
Our story begins in August of 2010 (no that’s not a typo) when my DH and I walked through a house on Simons Drive in northwest Reno. The house had a number of challenges, including a gutted kitchen where the built-in appliances had removed and a color scheme from hell. (Orange vaulted ceiling in the master bedroom and lime green with black trim in the master bath. *shudder*) The landscaping was past dead—except for the weeds, of course—and some of the fencing had been vandalized. However, this house was also over five hundred square feet bigger than our current residence with an open floor plan and (be still my heart) seven closets. It sat on a third of an acre; more than enough room for our puppies to run and play. But it was the spectacular 180 degree view of the eastern Sierra mountains which captivated our hearts. We were in love and thus made a short sale offer on August 30th, 2010. Again, that’s not a typo.
DH and I were thrilled. We started planning what we would do when. How we would finally have truly matching furniture. How DH would finally have a whole man-cave room to himself. It was just a matter of time….Uh. No.
We knew we were in for a bumpy ride when it took the sellers—who live in Colorado—almost a month to accept our offer. No problem, we thought. Everything will be fine. But over the course of the following months, when we heard nary a word from the sellers’ realtor, which was very unusual for a short sale, our angst increased. Our realtor, who’s a totally awesome lady, stayed in touch, keeping us apprised of the progress, or lack of progress. She made it known that she was ready to show us any other listings that caught our fancy, but none did. Any other house was compared to Simons; the floor plan wasn’t as roomy, the yard not as big, the view not as stunning.
I won’t go into blow-by-blow detail of all that happened like the sellers filing bankruptcy or their agent losing the listing or the bank ignoring our realtor’s request for a foreclosure sale date. (We weren’t sure what that meant either.) It suffices to say we were frustrated beyond words that nothing was being done and that we were helpless to change the situation.
Finally last summer, we started looking again. Still, Simons was the house of our hearts, our “Charlie Brown Christmas Tree” house, as I like to call it. Yet we continued to view other listings. But we came only kinda close once to considering another house. It was a pretty sad time for us.
Then our realtor (have I mentioned how totally awesome she is) sent a letter to the sellers in Colorado asking if they would consider notifying the State of Nevada that their former home was vacant. Hopefully that would prod the bank to set a foreclosure sale date. Her letter went unanswered. So what did our totally awesome realtor do? She resent the letter. The sellers (who must not have received the first letter) then contacted her and we were able to move forward with the short sale.
This happened at the end of September last year. Since then it’s been a whirlwind of preapproval papers, loan docs, inspections and appraisals. Now, almost eighteen months from when we made our initial short sale offer, the keys to our new kingdom are in our hot, little hands. The next month or so will be filled with cleaning, painting and remodeling with the hope we can be fully moved in sometime in March.
So, that’s our “birth of a short sale” story. Thanks for letting me share. Post a comment or send me an email (Lynda@lyndabailey.net) and you’ll be entered to win a PDF copy of one of my erotic short stories, featured above. Share this blog with a friend or family member and if they post a comment, you’ll both be entered to win an advance copy of either my erotic novella, Boy Next Door, published through Sybarite Seductions, or my sexy contemporary, Battle Born Love, which I’m indie-pubbing. Both should be released sometime in February. (Remember to have your family/friends drop your name in the subject line if they email me. Otherwise it won’t be opened.) The give-away will end February 1st.
Again, thanks so much for letting me share my news! Have a great rest of your week. I know I will.
