revjim.net

Good news! We found a WONDERFUL house and, after only one counter, our offer has been accepted. The seller is in as much of a hurry as we are, so it looks like we're going to close at the end of September. Financing has been secured and the only thing that may be a deal breaker is the home inspection which happens today at 3:30pm.

We got an incredible price on this house; like I said, the seller is in a hurry. However, that means that he's unwilling to make any repairs on the house if the home inspection should uncover a need for such. So, Jess and I will have to decide then if we're willing to foot the bill for whatever repairs are needed. At first glance, three windows need to be replaced and the exterior could use a fresh coat of paint. Let's hope there's not much more or we may be back at square one.

It's just perfect for us. It's in a GREAT location. We've got walking trails right across the street, a creek right behind us and nothing but trees on one side of the house. The lot is a great size too on a nice slow street with a huge side yard. The house itself is beautiful, too: Hardwoods throughout; A nice clean, dry, basement; Good flow; FOUR big bedrooms; barn wood walls and beams in the family room; laundry on the first floor. There are some things I'd change, of course, but, this house is laid out in a way that such renovations will certainly be possible in the future. I'm very excited about it. You can see some photos my mother-in-law took the day we looked at it.

I don't think I've slept soundly in over a week. I thought having the home secured would help me rest easier, but it seems there is still just too much on our plate. Last night I fell asleep at 8:15pm and woke up at 2am. Oh well, at least I was able to get a head start at cleaning out my work Inbox.

My company is providing packing, moving, unpacking, and storage services, so we don't have to worry about any of that. What's left, however, is consuming me quite a bit.

First, we have to sell our house in Texas. I can afford to float two mortgages for a few months, but not much longer. I'd LOVE to rent it so I can still cash in on the investment later, but we'd need $1625/mo to really break even and I just don't know if a house our size can fetch that much in Savannah right now. Is it worth it to take a small loss monthly now in order to keep the investment? Maybe it's okay to take a loss equal to the Principal portion of our mortgage payment?

If we don't rent it, then we need to sell it. After everything is said and done, if we can find a buyer, we'll lose a couple thousand selling it. This is sad considering it's worth $30k more than we owe on it. But, that's life. It's a buyer's market in a new subdivision. However, if we don't sell it quick, I'll be the less-than-proud owner of two homes.

Next, the cats. How to do you move two skittish cats 2000 miles? Drugged under a plane? Drugged as a carry on? Wide awake as a carry on? In the back of a car? Or maybe it's better to find them a nice home in Texas and leave them behind. But, if so, who? Where?

Also, a wedding in Canada the first weekend in October. Since we'll have only been in the house for a week, at most, by then, I'm reluctant to leave the cats there alone. And we don't know anyone up here in Syracuse who would watch them for us. I could drive Jess to Toronto on Thursday and then pick her up again on Monday but that's two wasted vacation days just to drive her there and back. I could put her on a train, but I worry about her traveling alone when she's that far along. So, I'm just not sure. If we leave the cats in Texas, this is mostly a moot point, of course.

Keep us in your thoughts. We'll be back in town on Friday and are planning a birthday party, a baby shower, and a going away party in the few weekends we have left.