Cue the last-minute scramble

I just knew the house-buying was going too smoothly! Even though I checked at least twice to be sure everything was set, I've had to jump through three hoops so far this week. Thank goodness life is online - I'm visiting the east coast and simply couldn't provide this information if my physical files were required! The hoops:

1) Rental history
Yesterday my mortgage officer told me there's some new requirement and they need to have all of my rental history - presumably to contact the landlords and see if I've been a problem. Well, my friends, I've been renting for 19 years, the vast majority of my units from private people whose names/contact information I can't remotely recall. I gave them the information for my last six years (all in the same apartment) and my current landlord (my friend) and am hoping that is sufficient. I didn't ask if they wanted the other 13 years' information and hope they don't come back for it. If they do I can give them addresses, but they're on their own for finding out the owners at that time.

2) Personal loan
Today they FINALLY noticed & asked about the loan from my parents. It hit my bank in October, and they did get that statement ages ago (word to the wise, get a loan like that in your bank at least 3 months before you make an offer if you don't want it coming to light), but only now, ONE WEEK before closing, are they asking about it. So I told them it's a loan and forwarded the paperwork. The repayment is $100.80/month so hopefully they won't freak out. But, so far I've had to send them:
 - a scanned copy of the loan agreement

And then, because I transferred it from my checking account into a money market account at Vanguard, which doesn't generate monthly statements, I also sent:
 - a date-specific statement from that account showing the balance as of October 20 (before the transfer hit)
 - a date-specific statement from that account showing the balance as of October 25 (after the transfer hit)

3) Closing costs questions
Most interestingly (/panic-inducingly) the processor says I'm almost $7,000 short for the closing costs and wants to know how I'm going to get it. This is news to me, as I've got more than $10k MORE than what I think I will need for my down payment and closing costs. I replied mostly-politely saying that I had a lot of money in the bank and if the closing was going to be even more than that, something was seriously amiss. They still haven't deigned tell me what the closing costs are, but are now looking more closely at the Vanguard account (see point 2 above).

Sheesh. So much for my relaxing vacation!

Things I still don't know

Well, I'm closing on the house in 2 weeks and one day. It seems safe to assume it's really happening! It's weird to me that I can be this close to the deadline and not know some super basic things like:

• I close on the 4th, but when do I sign the papers?
• How much will my total closing costs be? 

One person told me that "closing" on the 4th means everything gets signed 24 or more hours before that, but I haven't gotten that confirmed. The title company will come to me and I'm around that week, so I guess I'll just be ready when they tell me to jump.

My mortgage lender says that the escrow people are the ones who come up with the final closing costs so I have to wait to hear it from them.

The majority of my down payment & closing costs is at Vanguard, not at my bank. I guess I'll transfer it all over to my bank sometime next week, so it's ready and waiting to wire whenever I find out where to send it.

I've also started looking at refrigerators, washers, dryers, curtain rods, shower curtains... it's weird to me that I haven't spent enough time in the house to know what color metal (if any) is in the decorative elements of the bathroom, so I don't know what color shower curtain rod to buy. Ditto on any curtains, actually. I guess I just have to spend time there before I can make those decisions - but some will be done sooner than others as I DO want to shower there sooner rather than later!

Aside from two mattresses and a desk chair (and a lot of terrific restaurant meals), I haven't been buying stuff for myself for months. It's going to be really weird to open the floodgates starting in January, though I do intend to do it all mindfully. I don't need that much stuff to get started. What I WANT may be another matter altogether! 

Still sitting tight

So, where are we on home buying? It's still looking good.

The inspection was good, and the seller addressed all the minor things we found and asked to have repaired. I say "minor" but I'm glad he opted to do them all, as they are outside my skill set. They were things like: remove the moss from the roof, caulk the nails on the roof, make the garage door open/close more smoothly, caulk the area where the gas line enters the house, make the pocket doors move smoothly... basic for a handyperson but beyond my skills at the moment.

The appraisal came back fine, they agree the house is worth what it's listed for, which is a relief.

I do think it's down to my lender. I've given them everything they asked for, I think, and am SO grateful we live in the day of online banking and pdf files. The only physical things I had to send them were my W-2s from last year and this year, two very recent pay stubs, and a copy of a letter from my employer verifying that I'm allowed to work remotely (they issued it this fall, so I guess it's a standard thing to give remote workers, probably for this very situation).

I close the first week in January and the title company has agreed to come to me for the signing, and they will accept a wire transfer. I was worried about that because I don't have a local branch for my bank, and didn't know how I'd get the closing funds in a certified check. I'm sure it would be possible, but this way I don't have to go down that path.

The final thing to do is plan the move-in, and I've just booked a truck and sent an email to a bunch of locals. Here's hoping I get a good turnout!

Calendar:November and December

Hey friends, you get a two-fer this month. I completely neglected to write about my November calendar image (though only a few of my readers actually RECEIVE said calendar).

November:

Yosemite is a magical place, and I went with some friends to celebrate my 40th birthday. Because I'm an August person and because I prefer my time in Yosemite to be un-crowded, I made our reservation for the upper part of the park - at the White Wolf Lodge, to be precise, and which is a wild misnomer as the guests sleep in platform tent cabins. Thanks to one of my intrepid traveling companions we got up well before dawn and drove to the eastern side of the park, in order to catch sunrise at Mono Lake. I blew my battery out before the actual sunrise, but fortunately my friend got a great shot.

December:

Last shot of the year - a statue in Greece. Is she looking to the past, or dreaming about the future?

All set for the moment

I think I've done everything I have to do in this house-buying carnival. I completed all the to-dos from yesterday's post. I heard from my agent that the seller's agent says our to-do list was "reasonable" (his word) so hopefully the seller will do all the items. I can already think of something I left off and wish I'd asked for, but it's minor - and hey, maybe it'll be my first fix-it job.

So I think I'm in wait state. I also think I've paid for everything I need to pay for at the moment (credit check, earnest money, inspection, appraisal). So now I sit, at the ready to react when acted upon, but my to-do list is clear.

I think.

Oh crap: Christmas.

More to-dos

Boy, I know people buy houses without agents but I am SO glad I'm using one. I wouldn't have visited this house, and I wouldn't have made an offer, for two things. True, that's not the end of the world - as one friend accurately told me after my first bid failed, there will always be more houses. However this house meets my criteria in many ways and I will be happy if I get to be done with the house-hunting stage for a good decade or so.

Back to my agent: She also went over my inspection report in detail and worked with me to write up the addendum we sent to the seller last night. She reviewed the title packet from my title company to assure me there wasn't anything too unexpected there. She let me know I need to get on getting house insurance like today.  Yesterday, if I can swing it.

That bit surprised me - really? I need it now? But it's true both my lender and now my title company have requested that information. So I guess yeah I need it now.

So today's to-do list:
- Get house insurance
- Contact inspector to have him write up something certifying the house is pest-free (my lender insists, weirdly)
- Send in title information once I have insurance
- Contact my lender to give HER the insurance info
- See if my lender needs an image of the processed earnest money check.

Phew. Glad I don't do this on a regular basis.

As promised...

Well, the house inspection went well. He pointed out lots of little things but nothing that seems to be nightmare-worthy. My agent and I will ask the seller to fix a bunch of little things and then it seems like the sale will proceed!

Things that could still go wrong:
- seller could refuse to fix anything
- bank could disagree with valuation of house
- bank could decide I'm a sketchy proposition
- bank could decide the flip isn't kosher enough for them (though they've checked on it twice; since it wasn't a foreclosure they say they are not concerned)

In short, it's looking pretty good. So, a few pics, even though I don't think they do a good job of showing the place. It'll be easier with furniture, I think, and when I have all the time in the world to stage it.

exterior - the family room that was half the garage, and the living room. also - yard that needs plants!

 

looking from the living room past the front door and into the dining/kitchen area. I think that space needs an awesome work island/seating area sort of thing.

in the family/tv/party room looking into the kitchen area. to the left is the remaining single-car garage.

The kitchen: where the magic happens! I know a big 'ol fridge is going to make the place seem a lot smaller but it can't be helped. I'll try not to go TOO epically big. Also to the right of this pic is the hall to the 3 bedrooms and the 1 bathroom.

I dunno. This thing might happen. We'll see!