Looks Like I'll Have To Sell The House

[Zema Bus]

I heard from the lender today, now I'm just waiting for an answer to a followup question so I know which of the options to go with that she presented

I've been doing check scanning with my phone for a number of years whenever I have one to cash, which isn't that often. I've been getting a couple hundred $ / year from the local city for my excess solar power production and so I get a yearly check. It's pretty slick when it works correctly, which is most of the time, but I've had an occasional one where because of the way the check is printed the OCR can't read it, even though the picture came out perfectly. I was hesitant to use my phone to login to my credit union for many years and I had vowed to never use a smartphone for mobile banking, I didn't like the idea of doing that with an environment I have minimal control over but it beat driving all the way there in person or hoping my checks wouldn't get lost in the mail if I mailed them to the credit union.

[Zema Bus]

Looks like I'm good to go - there is an option where the seller pays the closing costs along with a rate buy-down to give me a low interest rate (low by today's standards anyway), and it will carry over when I recast the loan after my current house sells. That's what I was waiting to verify. I told my realtor to go ahead and write up an offer.

Today my 17 year old refrigerator decided to leave the chat, and it was right before work too, so I was scrambling to find a place that could deliver one the same day. None of the big stores could, but Lowe's showed that they could delivery one the next day. So I added it to my cart, entered all my info, and on the next screen it shows me the available delivery days (with an all day window), and there were none within two weeks! So I aborted that. I finally got one delivered from a local appliance store only about 45 mins after I ordered it over the phone. In the meantime I had all this junk I had cleaned out of the old one, some of it I was going to send down the garbage disposal, but something was going on with it, it didn't sound right. At first I thought it was just the ice cubes from the old ice maker that were in the sink but it didn't let up, it was sounding like it was falling apart internally. I checked and there was nothing that fell into it, looks like it's done too. So yet another thing I have to replace. I need to get out of here before something else dies lol!

[Grogan]

Holy fuck, just what you need right now, appliances breaking down. Though that fridge, you'll take that with you to your new house? Good thing you'll be getting movers!

(I once knew this guy from Quebec, kind of short and squat like a gorilla. He used to lean forward, and get people to set a fridge on his back and he'd carry it up and down flights of stairs like that when helping people move lol! My back hurt just seeing that. Back then, old fridges were heavy too.)

Anyway, I'm very glad to hear you're making progress with this.

[Zema Bus]

I was thinking of leaving it as it would be an incentive for buyers. It is a really nice one, dark in color. It's a Frigidaire, that's the brand my parents always used to get.

I couldn't imagine trying to do that with all that weight. I had a chart once where a couple guys were moving a fridge down some stairs, and one guy dropped his side, it amputated several of his toes. The details were painful to read.

[Zema Bus]

I think I dodged the bullet with the garbage disposal at least, I ran it for at least a minute then suddenly something flew out, a small clear piece of broken plastic consistent with a window blinds clip. As soon as it was ejected the loud noise stopped.

[Grogan]

Awesome... hope it lasts

We have one, but we're not to use it. Mom thinks it's causing drain leaks, and also thinks it's too hard to clean (umm, just pour some detergent or disinfectant in it and run it? lol)

We're grandfathered into having one, apparently they are banned in the municipality for new installations.

[Zema Bus]

Growing up we never had one so I had no experience with them until I moved in here, I found it pretty useful.

[Grogan]

Indeed, we used to use it (this is our second one, we got it replaced soon before they decided not to use it). It used to chew up a lot of stuff. It saves a lot of wet garbage. I guess the town doesn't want that in the sewage though, if everyone had them it would be a lot of filtration.

We still use that part of the sink (and run the disposal to rinse it out), we just don't dump much solids down there.

[Zema Bus]

My offer was submitted by my realtor this morning, and near the end of the day the seller's agent asks if I'd be willing to make the earnest money nonrefundable. That's not how that's supposed to work - it's normally refundable before inspections in case any issues are found that aren't fixable by the seller. I didn't like that, it's risky, and my realtor also advised against it. We should hear from them tomorrow morning. After work I did some reading about that tactic. It's a trend in competitive markets and for houses with a lot of offers. Supposedly offers with nonrefundable earnest money are considered stronger, and preferred by sellers who request it. And this one I learned has multiple offers. So I may not get this one, even though my offer comes with no contingencies (many buyers have to sell their existing house first). But there's no way I'm going to risk losing $2K pre-inspection. If so there's the smaller house in the same region that's plan B.

[Grogan]

Motherfuckers, eh? Maybe they are "underestimating" the offers they actually have, and it's just a ploy. I would tell them to go and shit in their hats too.

[Zema Bus]

My realtor heard from the seller's agent this morning. The seller's agent said the seller still hasn't decided. She also shared that she wanted to be very open and honest about some very recent things that have come up with this investor/builder and there may be some concerns with completing some of the homes. My realtor feels the nonrefundable earnest money request is a red flag. So back to the drawing board. I'd immediately jump on that smaller one but I want to check around for anything better first that may have come up. For houses that fit my criteria there aren't a lot of options right now though. There are some good ones in the unincorporated area (AZ City) but then there's that no mail delivery issue.

[Grogan]

Something sure does seem wrong there, since your offer wasn't conditional. They are trying to lock you in because they are hiding something, most likely.

I never thought buying a house could be so hard.

[Zema Bus]

Yeah me either, I thought once I finally made an offer in that area things would start falling into place. Guess it explains why that one hasn't sold yet, it was a good price for what it was, or at least what it appeared to be. It would have been interesting to see an inspection report.

The agent selling that house has another one built by a different builder but otherwise very similar, same size and on a similarly sized lot. In the pics I didn't see any nearby neighbors. The price is a little above the range I've been aiming for though. I sent it to the lender to run some scenarios to see if it's feasible.

[Grogan]

That "buyer beware" mentality in the U.S. is despicable. They should be required by law to disclose any issues, not hide behind non-refundable deposits.

So almost back to the old drawing board again, having to get approval for more from the lender and all.

[Zema Bus]

I agree, that shouldn't be allowed.

I explored that other place with the lender, I like that one even more than the previous one, the setting is much better. But with the higher price there are additional hoops to jump through, and the reality is I think the price is just too high. The other one was already higher priced than I had liked, this one takes that to a whole new level, and I realized I'm forgetting that one of my objectives is ending up with a small mortgage. The other one would have worked but it was at my max limit.

[Grogan]

Even in bumfuck Arizona you can't get a decent deal and people are trying to burn you. It's harder when you can't go look, too. Oh well, all you can do is keep at it.

[Zema Bus]

I'm going to have to do something before too long, but there's not much out there right now so I may have no choice but to settle on that smaller place. At least it has a large lot so I could have a metal garage built, and maybe even an extra room or two off the garage. And I'd be able to afford to buy essentials like groceries, computer parts, and games

[Grogan]

Hey... wrong order!

[Zema Bus]

lol!

My realtor thinks we could probably get the same deal that was on the other place where the seller buys down the interest rate. I also got a call from the lender saying they have a deal going right now that lowers the interest rate for the first 2 years. If those two factors can be combined it could make it pretty cheap, and there's a good chance the prevailing rates will be lower by the end of those two years.

[Grogan]

That sounds like a boon. I sure hope this one works out for you. You must be bald.

[Zema Bus]

Unfortunately it turns out that combining those rate buydowns doesn't work as well as I'd hoped. The one from the seller is permanent (until I refinance eventually) while the one from the lender is temporary, just for the first two years. When combined the first year interest rate is really nice and low, but then it goes up the 2nd year, and again the 3rd year at which point it's at the permanent rate, only it's higher than if using the permanent rate alone. So I'll go with just the seller rate buydown. I think I'm down to just two houses now. First one is the 2 year old kind of boring house with a large lot. USPS delivers there and the houses have mailboxes out front. The ceilings are insanely high in that house, most of them have high ceilings but not like that house. So I'd have to have the HVAC filters relocated lower where I could reach them, and the smoke detector batteries as well (have to figure out a way to do that). That house is half the size of my current house, yet it has twice as many HVAC filters - four of them, for only a single HVAC unit (I currently have two for two HVAC units). It's inexpensive to move one, but for four of them that may cost around $2,000 total. The other house is much nicer, built in 2024, and it's the design I like better and it's larger. It's a smaller lot but still has room to add a larger garage, and I may be able to fit my truck in the existing garage if I park at an angle since it's wider than the other one. The price is higher, but with the rate buydown it'll have a lower permanent interest rate than the cheaper one, so the monthly payment difference would only be $200. But it's in the unincorporated area (Arizona City) with no mail delivery. There just aren't any good options elsewhere right now. There are some workarounds I could do for - use a virtual mailbox company, use Amazon less (Walmart has a similar online store), or just take my chances knowing that I may have occasional packages shipped via USPS that get returned to Amazon. I'm not sure if the better one is worth that complication though. I just wish there were more options outside of AZ City. The realtor is going to do a tour of the nicer house on Friday, then I'll be making a decision after that. At least with the cheaper one the lot is big enough for all kinds of garage space and an additional room if I decide to do that. Once I have an accepted offer I'll be 1 month away from moving. Then another 4 - 6 weeks after that my old house should sell.

[Grogan]

If there's no mail delivery there, why would Amazon send it in the post? What about a Prime subscription, surely they don't stick things in the post if you have that. (Or do they not courier there either?)

Anyway, it sounds like there's at least light at the end of the tunnel, if not the end in sight.

[Zema Bus]

Amazon sends some packages via the postal system when it's the fastest option from what I understand, and if it's a valid address then that's all that matters from their end. So it doesn't matter what happens once it's in the postal system's hands. It does seem like they'd respond to large numbers of returns from certain zip codes when using the postal system but based on complaints I've read that's not the case.

I've been having trouble getting enough sleep lately, I keep waking up early and can't get back to sleep. I think it's the stress from this situation. I got to bed early last night thinking I'd finally hit 7 hours, but I woke up at 6:30 this morning to the power having gone out - my white noise stopped and my UPS was beeping. It was only for a few mins then the power was back on, but that's not supposed to happen with solar batteries. Everything seemed normal though. I contacted the solar installers, I wasn't expecting to hear back on a holiday, but my contact there did respond and forwarded my message to the guy at the battery manufacturer (and others at the solar company). She then forwarded me his response. He said since it was only 1-3 mins it means the inverter went into protection from an overcurrent or arcing, with no way to tell if it was from the grid or the house. He said regardless, the event cleared and there were no alerts. So far so good, but I'm left wondering whether it will happen again. My contact at the solar company said to keep them updated. At least they know. What was it I said recently about getting out of here before something else goes wrong lol!

[Grogan]

I haven't had Amazon try to send anything through the post since I got Prime, but once they sent shoes like that. I have to go wait in line in a cramped post office with a parcel tag. I think I'd just refuse to go pick it up and let it go back to them in 7 days and say I never got it and get a refund if they did that with a Prime subscription (I really hate going to the post office and "what do I pay subscription fees for"?)

There can be a power surge sometimes when a transformer fails or gets knocked out. I've seen light bulbs go bright and burn out, and UPS's trip in its death throes. Hopefully it was just that, and your equipment protected itself.

[Zema Bus]

Here even with Prime I get USPS deliveries periodically. There is an Amazon warehouse in AZ City so maybe it would be less frequent there. I feel the same about going to the post office, and in AZ City it's not even a real post office, it's run by a private company they've contracted with, and the lines are long because so many people are forced to go there to get their mail everyday.

Yeah I hope that's all it was.

[Zema Bus]

So one house will be really nice, with plenty of room, but it'll be on a smaller lot with no vehicular access to the backyard, so the only place to build a garage is in front of the house. Another one has a nice big lot, but the house is kind of small, and kind of hard to get excited about. Every single one with any potential has these types of tradeoffs. There is one that has a garage long enough for a full size truck, plus a large lot with an unobstructed view of the landscape, no visible buildings between there and the distant mountains, in a very rural area, and fully move-in ready, but it's a little above my price range without any possibility of offering a lower price or asking for a seller rate buydown since it's only been on the market for a month. Think I'll have the lender run some scenarios on that one anyway just to see the numbers.

[Grogan]

One thing to consider about buying houses. If they were so fucking great, why are they selling them (sorry)

Keep looking, I'd say if there's anything that shouldn't be done hastily, it's buying a house. Eventually you'll have to settle for something, but you shouldn't have to sacrifice too much.

[Zema Bus]

Well I'm now considering three houses, mostly just two. As much as I dread the actual move I'm reaching the point where I'm going to have to just rip the band-aid off and get it over with. Money is evaporating and my truck registration renewal is coming up soon, at the end of March, and it needs a smog test this year so the total cost is going to be over $500 - I want to get out before then. All three houses have garages with enough depth for my truck to fit, and two of them are also tall enough. For the 3rd one, which is the design I like (Santa Fe, with a flat roof), I don't know yet, it has been like pulling teeth to get information from them. It has the longest garage of the three though. But from the pics the garage door height is a little concerning as it doesn't look as tall as the others. This 3rd house is also the only one that doesn't come with nice brick walls around the perimeter of the property. They say they'd consider installing a fence with an offer, but it likely wouldn't be an expensive brick wall like the other two have. But this is probably the last chance I have at a Santa Fe style house as they've been extremely tough to find in that area, at least in my price range. As far as the other two, they are offering me conflicting choices - one of them includes new furniture (including two recliners), a new TV (looks like 55"), window coverings, and other stuff, because it's a 2nd house for the sellers and they need to return to their primary home. It has a larger back yard with RV access. Overall the house looks really nice. The other one, I like the setting better, all of them are corner lots but this one seems like it has more privacy than the other two as it is on the edge of the housing development with no houses across the road, and it has a longer garage. It has no window coverings so I'll have to bring temp coverings. It's smaller than the other two, but only by 50 and 70 sqft. And they gave me the plans for the house with the actual measurements for everything, which is a lot more than I can say for the others. And while it's not entirely the Santa Fe design, the garage is, 1/4th of the house is that design so at least that would be a partial win. Gotta get it done so I can buy games again

[Grogan]

I don't envy your dilemma, it's a big decision with lasting consequences if you're not happy. It's no fun living in limbo like this either though.

[Zema Bus]

I could make an offer on one of them and I have a virtual mailbox setup, I needed one anyway because of all the mail theft here. I got both CC companies set to use it as a mailing address (one of them expires in a few months and I didn't want the new card getting stolen). But there is a snag. The federal government only accepts residential addresses. I don't usually receive mail from them but if I ever did while living in that area (AZ City) with no mail delivery I wouldn't receive it. It's probably the same with other fed gov agencies, I'm thinking of social security (if Trump doesn't destroy it) and Medicare if I'm still living there in the future. AZ City has been the only area with both good housing options and a good Internet option. Rio Rico has the best housing options by far, but Internet options are hit or miss, mostly miss, with StarLink being the best available option. Eloy doesn't have as many housing options and Internet options are hit and miss as well. There is one house I found in Eloy that has Cox Fiber Internet, kind of a boring house but not horrible judging from the outside (no interior pics yet). But overall this has been pretty disappointing, and I'm running out of time. I'm going to expand my search, the other areas tend to be either more expensive and with heavy traffic or too far away from services though.