I realize land is like anything else in that it's value is only as high as a buyer is willing to spend and as cheap as the seller is willing to take. But how much should you be willing to spend?
My dilema:
Where we live, land is either a couple of acres or a couple hundred. There's rarely an in-between. We need the in-between. We've decided 40 acres is about the bare minimum of what we could use and 120 is about the top end of what we can afford. In the last two years, there have been a grand total of 3 parcels in this range offered for sale publicly.
On the bright side, land is quite cheap. We're currently looking at a 40 acre parcel that the county has appraised at $300/ac. It's been listed at the realtor for at least a year, but I think it's closer to a year and a half or two. (I can't recall for sure and the realtor dodges that particular question. lol)
The seller has an asking price of $650, but they came down pretty quick to $450. That's still 50% more than market value.
But--In real numbers, it's $6000 higher. Ironically, that's about how much it's going to cost us to put in a well.
We're going to sit for a while with our current offer on the table ($310) since I know we're probably the best offer they've had so far. I know there really hasn't been much interest in this anyway, which is part of why it's been listed so long.
My real question is: how much would you consider coming up? Or would you? We love the way it's laid out. Basically a big bowl with craggy draws running down into a hay meadow at the bottom. It's absolutely perfect for what we want--running our handful of horses and a couple of cows.
But we'd be laughed out of the county if we paid $450 for 40 acres of sage-y pasture with no water on it! We'd never get a good deal on a used car, again. ;)
Thoughts?
It's all relative, Erin. If you want it bad enough then it is worth what it takes to get it if you need it. Usually over the long run the bit extra is not that much. Down the road 30 years living on the place you want -- 6000 is nothing. Less than a new car. If you lose it and kick yourself for the rest of your life-- then you will realize that. If that size parcel cannot be found then the owner knows what they have and that makes it worth it. Law of supply and demand.
We paid over 3000 per acre for our land with only a well if that makes you feel better.
Opportunity doesn't knock often. Decide if you want to lose it by not offering more -- decide if you will be happy if someone else buys it while you are dickering for a better price. The law of supply and demand dictates price to a large part. If it is necessary for your future plans, then buy it -- bring up property values for others. :)
Don't worry about what others think -- their values are not yours. You can still beat out a used car dealer -- they are a dime a dozen. Good luck.
Also -- try to offer them about 10 to 15% below the $450. They may go that.
As Glenn stated the correct price is relative. When it comes to land you want, you are the market.
The county appraisal is just that; their idea of what it's worth. Is that figure the real value or what they call the appraisal value, the tax base amount? Here, the amount that the county bases the taxes on is about 1/3 of the selling price. I think the asking price, per acre, usually goes up as the parcel size goes down. So what's the county appraisal value based on?
Depending on how we look at what we paid for our mountain land we either overpaid or we underpaid. We could have bought some nearby land for 25% less per acre if we had bought 20 times as much. Or we could have paid 20% more per acre if we wanted a much smaller lot with close neighbors.
So, if you're buying with long term ownership in mind you might want to pay more. If it's being looked at as an investment with resale or subdivision in mind you'd want to pay less.
My opinion.
Truth be told guys, that's kind of the direction I was leaning. It's the first place we've looked at that we were really excited about and that we could do something with. I keep telling myself the extra $6Gs is worth it to us. But then I start doubting and wondering if I'm trying to convince myself of that because I just don't want to have to wait for another couple of years... d*
The dollar is in the dumper now so land will be worth many more dollars soon. You were thinking right in my opinion.
Please keep us posted.
One other thing you may try is to give them their price and have them include the well.
I've seen land like that sit on the market for years. the owner doesn't care if he sells it or not if the price isn't right for him. If you like it buy it. I agree with Glen offer $410-415 and see if they bite. If not wait a couple of months and just pay the $450. $450 an acre is cheap by most standards so you're not getting hurt that bad in the end.
Land around here is crazy. For a couple of acres you might have to pay $10k an acre and for a couple hundred acres you might pay only $200 per.
20 acres with nothing here just went for $300,000 down the hill from me about one mile. I guess when we moved here it really brought property values up. :)
We paid $68000 for our 20 acres 6 years ago with a well, spring- no pump - and perk test.
Yup. We paid $150K for 20 in early 2005 with no well. Still, it had a hill at one end (Still does, as a matter of fact), a forest and creek at the other, and ~5 acres of prime growing field in the middle. Given a divine bulldozer I don't know if I could do better. It's 6 miles from the small town and 12 from the bigger one (13K pop.).
All I'm saying is that it gave us that "This Is The Place" feel when we saw it. We might have done a little better on the price, but whatever that difference would have been, it would have been gone in 6 months. So would the land. If you've done your homework (And it looks like you have) and you like the place (And it looks like you do), you've figured out the hard part. Glenn's advice sounds good.
Dang. Now I'm homesick.
You're like me, Drew. Need to rest on or in your native soil at night. You need a hole in the ground.
Aw shucks, Erin, sometimes real estate is totally based on emotion. When we bought our old house, it was because the big old pecan trees reminded me of the farm I grew up on, and because I walked in the front door and saw this big, pretty picture window on the south side with a stained glass panel above, and just felt like I was home. What we paid for it, considering the condition it was in, was highway robbery, but we sold it less than five years later and made a darn good profit on it (sold it for $16K profit after only putting $2-3,000 into it.) With land, especially land that you intend to keep a while, I think that spending a little more to get what you want may be worth it. After all, they aren't making any more of it. BUT, that said, I would give them the final-offer-take-it-or-leave-it and then hold my breath and see if they bite... and then if not, after a while, you might come up a bit and see if the reaction is any better.
I paid extra for my land because it had a good well on it. The flow was over 28 GPM after moving on to it I found the places around me were lucky to get 1 GPM! Now the little extra I paid was not so bad. I bought the first peice of land I saw. I found a ad in the paper that said 40 acers, well, privet lake, views and located on a countie road $39,500.00 cash out. Of course I thought it was a joke living on the coast side of the mountains where 5 acres was worth allmost 100K plus. I went there in the winter and had a hard time seeing the place in the fog. I had to walk the land to see if there realy was a bluff and lake which was frozen solid. I sold a gun for my down payment to hold it. Sold my other place and paid cash for it. Now 20 acres (12 years later) of the land is worth $60,000.00 because of the view, elect, road access and I don't even use that part! So paying more then was not a bad deal for us. Mark
I say go for it!! Life is too short to haggle over something that would bring you so much happiness. $6000 over twenty years is $300 a year? That does not seem like much does it?
Land is an investment.....and like someone once said, they are not making any more of it!!
So, Erin, has any decision been reached? Thinking about y'all as we're beginning the whole moving process. Yikes. We have all that to look forward to!
As a matter of fact, per glenn's suggestion, we put in another offer yesterday afternoon. We'd pay their $450, if they'd pay $2K toward the well. (Which brings us up to $400 an acre!)
But I feel good about it. And have my hopes up. Their realtor (who also thinks $450 is a little on the high side) said she'd never heard of such an approach and thought it might work. She said she thought she'd probably have an answer by Monday and made sure she still had both my home number and cell.
So-- fingers crossed, everyone! :)
Hope it works out, Erin. We'll be waiting to hear form you.
Okay...
Just got another counter offer about half an hour ago. $16,500 straight up. No guarantees of water (our lawyer suggested putting a clause in the contract that we'd only go through with the purchase upon the finding of water).
That comes to $412.50 per acre... ???
I just called my husband to let him know. He's out on his pony right now and the wind is howling, so he can't hear the phone too well. Consequently, I have no one to talk to about this! My head is spinning... :P
Have you had a chance yet to talk it over with your husband? At least they came down some... when we bought this place, they wanted to quibble over $1000. I thought it was silly. I know, it is a lot of money, but compared to the price of the house, it really wasn't... we finally reached an agreement that we would pay their price, but they had to cap off an existing well that was no longer in use (had to be done for the loan to go through) and had to do a little work on one bathroom. I think the work probably cost them a little more than $1000, so they would have been better taking our offer with no strings attached. But what a strange amount to ask per acre... maybe you should counter offer again with $412.00/acre, just to be ornery!
Sounds good, Erin. Hope it works out -- you made real progress dickerin' there.
Well????????
Okay.
Here's what we know.
nothin' [noidea'
We've been talking and chewing on this since Tuesday and have decided fine, if they want to do 'no strings' we'll go for that.
For $390.
And let them talk us up to $400 if needs be. I'm going to make the counter-counter (counter, counter, counter...I'm losing track! lol) offer on Monday morning. :)
On the brighter side, we think we'd probably hit water, though it's quite likely it'll be really low GPMs. Consequently, we'd also design a grey water system into our plans and a rainwater preservation system.
Keep us posted on how it goes... sometimes it is worth it to bargain really hard. (This is why my husband lets me do the car shopping... he's a pushover if he wants the vehicle, and I'm ready to walk out the door if they don't meet my price.)
QuoteThis is why my husband lets me do the car shopping... he's a pushover if he wants the vehicle, and I'm ready to walk out the door if they don't meet my price
This is us too. I'm usually the one who's done all the research, too, and know exactly how much that vehicle is worth and how much I'll pay if I go to the lot next door. lol
When we were shopping for our current "good car" (a '97 F250 diesel) the dealers kept trying to talk to
him! >:( I'd be the one asking questions and they'd turn their replies to the
man. At the secord or third lot we went to he finally said, "Oh don't talk to me.
She's runnin' this deal" lol
We ended up paying trade-in price for it. [cool] Now, four years and 90K miles later, we could sell it locally for about $1000 less than we paid.
Needless to say, I'm the one who's been doing the primary negotiations for our land deal, too.
Though at the same time, that very need for the best deal, is what lead me to start this thread in the first place. lol ::)
My husband is gradually getting a little thicker skin, but the first time we ever bought a car together he got embarrassed because I made the sales guy throw a little hissy fit, and then I thanked them for their time and walked out. Of course they chased us down and came down to our price. When we moved up here, we gave that little old Blazer to a family who needed it way worse than we did, and they're still driving it now, with no problems. I need him to balance me out on real estate though, because to him, a decent house is a decent house, but I tend to be sentimental about land and features of a house.... I do the research though, and can give him a lot of good comparisons, etc. Sigh. One week until move date. Really wish we were going straight to a place we could buy, but we have to get this place sold first... kids don't quite get that they won't have chickens until we move out of our rental place there. Little one keeps talking about her planned flock of "Arycaunys" (Aracaunas) and the bigger one is talking about Buff Orpingtons. Rent is hard to explain to kids who are used to having their own turf.
And we're on the other side of that. My kids have never known a home that was ours. At six and eight, they know we're not going to live in this house forever. We might not even live in it next year... :P
The eight year old started designing his version of the Someday Place about six months ago. Adding, tweaking, modifying... Dreaming the same dream his father and I do; that one of these days we'll have a home that belongs to us.
Frankly, I think they've always adapted better to the idea that the house/shop/barn/etc. weren't ours than they have that some of the horses aren't ours. The fact that were we to move, Jake and Bud wouldn't go with everyone else really bothers my daughter... A house is just a house. But horses are family!
Hi Erin,
I am still pretty new here, so I try not to comment on things I don't know about and be careful what I say when i think I do. Really, no one can tell you when it's the "right" piece of land or what you "should" pay for it. That being said, all I know is that to me land buying was about half rational and half emotional. I looked at a little more than a half dozen places before picking the one I did, and when I knew it was the one that was it. I paid (financed) 4000 an acre for 18 acres. Since that time 3 sites on the same street have gone for 5500 - 7500 an acre. I looked at cheaper and I looked at more expensive but deep down I knew I needed to see 5 or 6 things to really move me to do a deal. At one point I honestly thought it would never happen. Water, elevation, slope, views, timber, grassland, possibilities for fruit trees, vegetables, privacy, sustainability, and not next to trailer parks, scrap metal yards or the like. We all have different things we want, but when they all line up it's go time. I worked a deal the best I could and got him down some. Truth be told, I would have paid asking price because it was everything I wanted. Think about how long you will be living there or about how long the structures you build will be in place (will they belong to your children or grandchildren one day?) A few hundred dollars now may not matter that much when you look at the long term. I think I understand exactly what you mean when you say "the dream" as I am still chasing mine and will be for some time. Anyway, thats how I looked at it when I went though the land buying process, good luck to you.
Also, if the well water is slow in gallons per minute, look at putting a cistern in. Something to consider is that even a direct solar well pump going at 2 gallons per minute can fill a 5000 gallon tank and you will never be without water regardless of the amount of water being pumped at any time. If you have enough of an elevated location to place it on you can even let gravity deliver pressurized water to you from the cistern.
QuoteWe all have different things we want, but when they all line up it's go time.
I think you're right. There's just something about this place that just "speaks" to us. :) Here's a few pics (friend of mine said, 'yeah, it speaks to me too. It says, no way in h@!! would I ever live there!' lol)
(http://thebackgate.biz/Kansas/BBTrapNorthHillFacingSouth.jpg)
My husband on the hill on the very NW corner, looking to the SE (at his elbow you can kind of see his full-sized blue pickup, to get a feel for how high the hill is)
(http://thebackgate.biz/Kansas/BBNorthSideFacingEast.jpg)
standing in the northwest corner, looking east. The county road (going horizontally across the center of the pic) is the eastern boundary.
(http://thebackgate.biz/Kansas/BBSWCornerFENCELINE.jpg)
Finally, the hill in the south west corner, looking back to the north. Fenceline in pink.
Pink fences? I've never seen pink fences in range country. ???
:D
To say nothing of those pink words floating in the sky. ::)
;)
You'd have a great view of sunrise! I think it has potential... I'd miss trees, but hey, it's Kansas, and you'd have LOTS of sky to make up for the trees that are missing!
Sounds like they would be motivated for the no strings option, Erin. Or rather, I would be in an arms-length negotiation. Therefore they probably don't want to know if there is water on the land since if there wasn't they would have to disclose that fact. By taking this position they put the risk of water/no-water on you. That's fine. You should just be compensated for it in your price.
There. I've just told you something you already know. ;)
OK, the land speaks to you. And I'd listen. But if the deal doesn't go through, buy the biggest piece of land you can (if it's subdividible)
and sell some of it later, or give it to your kids for them to build on. Better than a 401-K in many cases.
Subdivide?! :o what a horrifying thought!!
;)
Seriously though, at 3/4 of a mile, the current neighbors would the closest I've had in ten years!
I just talked to the realtor today...
Oh my.
The seller said they'd go for $400 an acre and pay half of the title insurance fee (? Gotta Google to find out what that is, exactly, though I do know it's only a few hundred bucks). But they want to retain 50% mineral rights...
Hmm....
Think they'll put in a coal mine?
What are the odds of there being something worthwhile digging/drilling for?
It would not be nice to end up with a mine or oil derrick, then pump disturbing your view and other planned uses. On the other hand if it could be restricted to some small out of the way corner 50% of something worth going after could be quite nice.
Or do you think this is just a way to get you to go away or make to counter offer more money and no mineral rights?
There's actually fairly reasonable odds that there's natural gas. And there are maybe a couple of dozen oil wells in a 50 mile radius, too.
They haven't really expressed interest in retaining their mineral rights before now, though. It's been more along the lines of a validation for higher asking prices...
I talked to my attorney/Dad about this yesterday right after getting off the phone with the realtor and he doesn't know much about mineral rights as that's not really someone anyone cares about back home. (Ie, there's nothing more valuable than water under the ground. ;) ) but he did say that 50% probably means they'd have just as much of a right to be digging around as we would.
If one party had a controlling interest, say 25/75, would the smaller interest still have the right to decide to drill or not? Or, would a better compromise be to stipulate royalties only. Ie, if we hit oil drilling for water we'd share a percentage of the income, but they couldn't decided whether to be poking holes in our front yard or not?
Quote from: Erin on February 28, 2008, 08:18:39 AM
If one party had a controlling interest, say 25/75, would the smaller interest still have the right to decide to drill or not? Or, would a better compromise be to stipulate royalties only. Ie, if we hit oil drilling for water we'd share a percentage of the income, but they couldn't decided whether to be poking holes in our front yard or not?
It seems to me all the details as to who has what right, to do what, and when, would all have to be spelled out in exquisite legal detail. IMO, it would be best for you if the seller could be placed in the position of only being due royalty's with you in full control of all the actual surface activity. I'm not a lawyer but that must be possible. But would it be agreeable to the seller is the big question.
Quote from: MountainDon on February 28, 2008, 12:10:08 AM
What are the odds of there being something worthwhile digging/drilling for?
It would not be nice to end up with a mine or oil derrick, then pump disturbing your view and other planned uses. On the other hand if it could be restricted to some small out of the way corner 50% of something worth going after could be quite nice.
Or do you think this is just a way to get you to go away or make to counter offer more money and no mineral rights?
Who is to say that maybe they are figuring water is a mineral and if they drill a well they can have 1/2 of the supply or charge them for it. This sure sounds like a bogus deal to me what the guy wants yet he keeps lowering his cost per acre to get him to buy it. Isn't like it is in the middle of some kind of city or development?? If there is something in the ground worth money why not have 100% and not sell, something is not right in this deal?? It isn't like the land is worth 20 grand a acre and he would make a killing getting rid of it! Mark
It's pretty common in raw land sales for sellers to retain 50% mineral rights. I've seen it several times. I would just tell him no thanks if you think there's any chance of someone wanting to drill anytime in the future. He might not but you never know what his heirs might do.
I had a glut of mineral rights issues when I bought my place because it actually had a producing well on it in the past and is in a small county with many thousands of actively producing wells. (texas tea?)
There were three varieties that I saw. The rights to the oil/gas (underground) and surface agreement rights (ability to control getting underground) and the last was mineral royalties. I would not touch a piece of property that did not have 100% surface rights as someone could come along and decide to start drilling next to your house without your consent. Mineral rights without a legal surface agreement gives them way too much control over your property. Royalties are slightly different in that they are not owners of the material but share in any wealth you get if you decide to drill and find anything.
What was important to me was that I had complete control over any heavy equipment going after any mineral under me. (Yes, this included directional drilling if they setup on my fenceline and diagonally drilled.) The royalties that were existing from the 60s and 70s could not be undone.
Given that oil is at 100 a barrel right now it wouldn't take very long at all to come out losing on this deal if anything was ever found. Any chance of just giving them the 450 an acre they want and getting it no string attached? Seems to me you will need to get a lawyer involved in these mineral rights contracts if you go that route (and cared about not getting screwed) which would likely eat away the same amount either way.
Talked to the realtor today and told her we might have a problem.
I said the mineral rights thing is going to be a deal breaker. She then tried to tell me that she'd said from the very beginning that retention of mineral rights was an issue. I said no, they hadn't been, or we wouldn't have gotten this far. So she looked back at her notes.
"oh. I guess you're right. He just tossed that in here this last time..."
So I said we'd be happy to do 25% of royalties but not rights. There is no way anyone but my husband and I is going to have a say over whether our back yard is dug up by speculators. Or whether we have an oil well sitting in the front lawn. :P
She understood and asked for the limitation on the royalties (I said 15 yrs) and she said she'd e-mail the seller.
We are so close I can taste it! I just pray that this isn't where the whole works comes to a grinding halt... :-\
--Erin
fingers crossed :)
Anything, Erin?
No. :P
The last couple of times I've put in our counter-counter offer and then waited for a week or two before finally getting irked and calling to see if she's heard anything. Both times it was, "Oh, i just heard from him. I was going to call you today..." What are the odds? ::)
Anyway, I'm trying to hold out this time so that she actually will be the one to get back to me rather than vice versa...
Erin, we just had relatives out from McCook. Near you?
yes.
I'm about 80 miles west of McCook. It's my nearest "big shopping" town. I'm there about once a month.
Hey, Erin, I have a lot of relatives in & around McCook, Culbertson & Bridgeport. My grandparents were from there, my dad, his brothers & sister were born there, plus we have a lot of extended family. We used to visit my grandparents on 4th st at least once a year - everything probably has really built up now - it used to be a small town IIRC.
Bridgeport I don't know as well (being about 150 miles northwest) though I was just through there this weekend, actually...
And Culbertson is still a pretty small town. But McCook seems to be hanging on. Population 8,000 or so, and definitely the trade center for our area.
McCook, pop. 8000 - still pretty small - I have cousins who still farm out that way, although they've lost lots of acreage to the gov't/corporate farms, over the years... Have you ever heard of the "Old Stone Church"? My ancestors helped build that - I guess they have anniversary celebrations every year there - with lots of my relatives attending.
It doesn't ring any bells for me, but that doens't mean I don't know exactly where you're talking about and just don't realize that's what it's called. :)
Holy guacamole...
We got it.
Erin, found this information on this site about buying a house or property in a buyers market which we are in right now. Thought it may help you and others. I like the ideas that it gave. The wed site is named "The art of making a lowball offer on a house." and the web site is http://www.fatwallet.com/t/52/814971/?ffv=0 (http://www.fatwallet.com/t/52/814971/?ffv=0)
One section covers about making the offer.
QuoteYour First Offer is Your Best Offer
This is the most counter-intuitive part of buying in a buyers market. Ordinarily sellers, or more accurately the seller's realtor, try to create a sense of urgency to buy the house. They want you to think other people are looking, there is going to be a bidding war, you need to get your offer in today, etc. Remember, in a buyer's market these ploys are all lies. You are the only buyer, and you can take as long as you want to buy the house. Your task in negotiating is to create a sense of urgency and panic in the seller. This is why you make your first offer your best offer.
Start with a bid at least 10% below asking price; however, it can be less if the most you are willing to pay is less. Lower your bid as follows:
***If you are actively bidding on the property, make your offers expire in 5 days. If you are still interested in the property resubmit a fractionally-lower offer after 7 days (make them sweat for 2 days.) Don't make is so much lower as to lose consideration, but make it enough lower that the seller gets the message that they need to come to your price before it gets any lower.
***If the seller makes a counter offer, retract your offer and resubmit a lower one. Works the same as the time decay offer above. After you have lowered your offer a few times, the seller may panic and take your offer before it goes any lower. This is what you are after.
***Lower your offer $500 each time you speak with the seller's realtor. Every time they communicate with you, they will pressure you to buy. Lower your bid each time they speak with you to send a message that their pressure is not working, and it is, in fact, hurting their client.
***Lower your offer $2,000 if the realtor uses one of the standard lies I mentioned above.
If the realtor tells you there is another bidder on the property, immediately withdraw your offer and tell them to call you if it falls out of escrow with the other buyer. Since this statement from the realtor is almost certainly a lie, it will cause them to have to explain to their client why the only buyer around has pulled their offer.
***If the realtor tells you there is another bidder on the property, immediately withdraw your offer and tell them to call you if it falls out of escrow with the other buyer. Since this statement from the realtor is almost certainly a lie, it will cause them to have to explain to their client why the only buyer around has pulled their offer.
Don't Close the Gap
When the seller starts to counter-offer, it is very tempting to agree to their price to close the deal, particularly if they are below your original offer. Don't do it. In a buyer's market, the seller will come to you. You have the power. However, if they are below your original offer, and if you really, really want the house, you may raise your offer one time, but do not get closer than 1% to their counter-offer. The selling broker makes a 3% commission, and the realtor you have been dealing with probably makes 1.5%. By getting to within 1% of the seller's counter-offer, the realtor can choose to give up part of their commission to make the deal. Since they are desperate as well, you should go ahead and squeeze them. A 1/2% commission is better than no commission.Quote
Mark
Way to GO!! ;D Now the fun begins........
Mark
Great Erin. Can you tell us more?
QuoteGreat Erin. Can you tell us more?
Uh... Now it's time to figure out what kind of a house we're gonna build?
What would you like to know, glenn?
(They took our last offer, btw, of $400/25% min. royalties)
So, when are you starting your house? ;D
1. Finish paperwork/closing/financing stuff, etc.
2. Find water!
3. Bring in power.
4. Dig the basement. :)
The sooner we get the ball rolling on everything, the better! [cool]
That's it-- just wondering how the deal went on the offer.
Erin congrats on the land. Planning, planning and more planning will make the build as painless both financially and emotionally. "I love it when a good plan comes together". I guess that is my biggest downfall in building is the planning. My mind knows what I want to do but fails to communicate with my wallet.
Aren't all Countryplans members part of the "A" Team, John. :)
Congratulations Erin. You made a good deal. I encourage you to live better by building small. On to the fun of building.
How's it going Erin? Curious as to what's going on in the process?
Quote from: Erin on March 14, 2008, 02:25:25 PM
1. Finish paperwork/closing/financing stuff, etc.
2. Find water!
3. Bring in power.
4. Dig the basement. :)
The sooner we get the ball rolling on everything, the better! [cool]
We're still stuck at number one, HT. :P Financing is all taken care of, but we're in the midst of the paperwork, still. The sellers have had it for a couple of weeks now! Apparently,
she doesn't live with
him anymore. Hence the sale, I'm guessing... Anyway, I was warned that there might be delays because of this very thing. Where it has to mail to both of them, and then back to us, and then to bank.
What a pain in the neck, especially when you all are anxious to get the ball rolling on making it home! Hope they get everything back to you soon. The closing on our first house took forever, and we weren't sure it was actually going to go through until the day it finally did... about three days before we were to close, the seller was arrested nearby for driving without a valid license, showing false identification, being in violation on his visa to be in the US (he was Mexican), and not having insurance or a valid plate on his car. We were scared to death that we weren't going to get the house and we'd be homeless (the closing was set for December 21 and we had to be out of the other place by Dec. 31.) He signed over power of attorney to his realtor so she signed everything for him at the closing... still, it was pretty tense. Wish you the best, and soon!
We own it!
Closed yesterday. :)
This weekend we're going to restring the fence on the east side, up against the county road and hang a gate with a padlock. (It looks like Grand Central passes through our pasture about twice a day!)
Way cool!! G/L on the gate... there's probably a bunch of folks who consider passage their right. I know... I once fenced off a route that horse riders had made their shortcut and they were mighty pi$$ed, but came around when confronted by 4 strands of barbed.
That's great Erin. Keep us up to date, please.
awesome news Erin, your going to have a great weekend. any ideas on what your going to build out there?
So, how's it going so far Erin? Waiting to hear an update!!
Last week we went and got a load (and then some!) of concrete blocks.
Now we just need a hole in the ground...
We're going to get lumber and insulation this weekend so hopefully we'll be ready to go shortly!
When we did the blocks, we borrowed a buddy's double axle trailer, dualled on all four wheels and rated for 22,000lbs. But we were already overloaded with the blocks so had to put off the rest of our list.
We would have made one heck of an ad. for Ford PowerStrokes, though.
"PowerStroke Diesel. Driven by stupid people." ;)
Yep pretty tough trucks. I hauled 2 cubes of 8" on my truck. A little light on the steering axel though. Thank goodness no one stopped short in front of me. Really not much on the truck with that trailer though.
Not a lot of weight, no. Not until we tried to stop that is! :o
I'm glad to hear that someone is getting started on stuff. I am going absolutely stir-crazy being in the city. What do people DO if they live in town???? It takes all of maybe ten minutes to mow here... you can't even break a sweat in that amount of time!!! I don't have a garden, so there aren't any weeds to pull. If we go out the front door, every kid in the neighborhood is over here wanting the kids to play (and always wanting to play at OUR house and then leave without helping pick stuff back up.) In the backyard, because of the privacy fence, you feel like you're in a little box.
I can't live in the city -- tried it for about 5 years -- that was too much.
yup...it ain't good. [crz]
I was wondering how your search was going, HT.
It's been 12 years since I lived in town, but truth be told, there are days I wish I still did. Going for walks, for example, was a lot of fun in town because guaranteed I'd see people/things, have errands to run, etc.
Hang in there, though. It took us three years to find something, but we eventually did. :)
Oh, I've found the place... but just can't seem to get the one in WI sold!
So Erin, I was thinking about y'all since it is starting to cool off and wondering how things are going? Do you have a post in the owner-builder projects? If so, I've missed it.
We have a hole, HT. d*
Actually, since our basement will be a walk-out, we have half a hole. ::)
But we just finally got our hole leveled out so the next project will be to form and pour the footers and get going on our foundation walls. Well, after we get the first priority (http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=5583.msg7143#new) taken care of, that is. ;)