Sorry I haven’t been making the rounds, or posting, as of late. Between getting together submission packages, working on the new novel, and, oh yeah, buying our first house, I just haven’t had time. Between letters and synopses there are calls from real estate lawyers, loan brokers, and the seller. In between stuffing envelopes with hopeful queries and running back and forth to Staples (my printer decided now would be a nice time to die), I’m frantically calling the city housing commission, home inspectors and many other licensed professionals keen to part me from my sparse pile of cash.
This is our first house purchase–we’re late bloomers–and it’s a crazy process. I have to applaud anyone who still has even a fraction of their original brain capacity after going through this. That it’s the house we’re currently renting is simultaneously easier and more difficult; on one hand, we don’t have to move our considerable piles of crap, but on the other, if I (for it is I who deals with everyone since I’m home all day) make one little slip, cause one unintended hurt feeling on the part of our seller/landlord, I can bet the Architect and I will be moving all our piles of crap, and in a big hurry, to boot.
Regardless of these pitfalls, I like this little house. It has zero insulation, a weird interior layout, and it needs a good deal of work done to it. Fortunately for me, I have an architect at hand, and he just happens to be a carpenter, too. Plus, there are his parents, who already have hammers in hand–as they have built or renovated every house they’ve owned in the half-century they’ve been together and aren’t anywhere near ready to stop tearing things up. Me? I’m great at fetching, anticipating needs (that former “assistant” thing coming into play) and holding the Dumb End. AND If we can get the paperwork in order and no one beats us to it, there’s a lone home conversion grant left in the city housing office, just waiting for us to claim, and that would buy us quite a few Dumb Ends.
This is as much as I can do for right now, hope you all understand. I have phone calls to make and character profiles to lay out–and many miles to go before I sleep (or can officially hang the Home Sweet Home Sign).
Hell and Wheels 
April 3rd, 2008 at 5:23 pm
Lana — Blowing dead goats. Yes, that about sums it up. Thanks for the well wishes on all accounts!Kate — Thanks. There’s not much time left for things like that, but I guess you know how that one feels, huh?
April 2nd, 2008 at 11:49 pm
Congratulations. Now, get some rest. 🙂
April 2nd, 2008 at 5:10 pm
I agree–“taking care of things” does, indeed, suck balls. Might I add that it blows dead goats, as well.That said, congrats & many blessings on the new house & good luck with the recent submissions! 🙂 *hugs*
April 2nd, 2008 at 4:47 pm
Spy — Thanks. It’s been a long time coming. You’ll get yours, someday. And, it’s not as hard as it looks–FHA makes it easy to put almost nothing down — 3% of the purchase price. Of course, you’d have to pay mortgage insurance, but even at fifty bucks a month, it beats throwing hundreds and thousands down the drain in rent. Plus, tax breaks! Yay!Sqt– Good to know you’re still happy several months in, even with the market this way. That’s the one thing that worries me–the entire economy going down the toilet. Hopefully, that won’t happen.Steve — Almost Landed Gentry. But, thanks. And yes, you did a large portion of the butt-kicking to get me to start on the new and stop tweaking the old. So, thanks again.Charles — You married a good woman, because the “taking care of things” sucks balls. When we moved here five years ago, we not only had to move our mountains of crap and piles of books, but also the Architects National Geographic collection, which spans from 1908 to present. Talk about heavy. I hated those things by the time we were done.
April 2nd, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Understandable. We bought our current place not quite two years ago so it’s fresh in my mind, although Lana did the bulk of the work in taking care of things. And neither of us owned a ton of stuff to move. Other than books.
April 1st, 2008 at 8:57 pm
GLad to hear you’re working on a new novel. Many well wishes for a smooth purchase, you Landed Gentry, you!
April 1st, 2008 at 8:49 pm
StuWe did fixed rate too. Actually the banks are too scared to issue too many ARM’s right now. I thought we were pretty lucky to get the deal we did– and since I’m still able to say that 4+ months after we bought, I feel good.
April 1st, 2008 at 8:34 pm
Wow, that’s awesome! Congratulations! A home of one’s own. That’s a dream for me!
April 1st, 2008 at 6:58 pm
Oh, and Stewart — NICE TO SEE YOU!!!
April 1st, 2008 at 6:57 pm
Sqt — I try to keep the shifting of my crap to every eight or nine years. The time-cushion helps me to forget how horrible it really was. Actually, our landlord is very cool and we’ve had no problems, yet. Doesn’t mean I shouldn’t tread carefully, though.Stewart — We’re getting a steal of a rate for a 30 year FIXED. No way I’d play with an ARM, not before the market bottomed out, and certainly not after. Too much of a risk for a planner/chronic worrier like me. It’s risky, buying a house right now. But, this one is a big, yellow canary. In fact, our mortgage will only be around a hundred bucks more than our rent–and that’s AFTER the five year period of no city taxes ends. Before, well, we’ll pay the same, or maybe just a little less.
April 1st, 2008 at 6:44 pm
I love all these people who are buying houses. I hope you folk are doing so on fixed mortgages. Me? I bought a house on a sub prime with the intention of refinancing in one year. ONE YEAR. One year later the value of the house had dropped considerably, partly because the bank had inflated the value. Now I have these astonishing mortgage payments. Astonishingly large.
April 1st, 2008 at 3:07 pm
We bought our house (end of November) so I can say with complete honesty how lucky you are not to be moving your piles of crap to the new house. Also, going through the process of buying a new house while trying to deal with a landlord who wants to nickel and dime you on every last thing is hell– I hope you’re avoiding that. And isn’t escrow fun?