A completely different direction

In the time since I last updated this blog, T and I bought a house. A completely different house than the ones we previously looked at and were trying to decide between. We actually went through a period of complete frustration with the whole process and decided not to make offers on either of our two contenders. Instead we took a break from the whole process.

For me this break lasted 2 days. We then went through a condo phase, which ended when we fell in love with a house. This house is located on the same street as the house of the "death trap deck" fame. It was a perfect price and needed very little work. We made an offer that same day and it was accepted the next afternoon.

What followed was a complete whirlwind of inspections, radon tests, lawyers, and contracts. That was all completed eight weeks ago. Then the title search began. That has been the bane of our existence throughout these last two months. First there was the matter of the open mortgage that had apparently been paid off more than 16 years ago. The problem arose when the paperwork proving this was nowhere to be found. Then the title company turned up a second open mortgage in which the search for that paperwork dead ended with a now defunct company and an eight year old phone number.

T and I are not getting our hopes up at this point and are now figuring out our contingency plan if we are not able to close by the end of August. The front running plan right now involves a storage unit, our two week trip to Italy, and a Residence Inn if it isn't settled by the time we come back form the Eternal City. Our first home buying experience has certainly been an adventure!

We are currently surrounded by half packed boxes in our crappy, falling down around our ears, apartment. We have a leaky roof, a wrench to turn on our broken hot water knob in the shower, and a humid, stuffy atmosphere. We can't wait to go to Italy. The upside of saving these last few weekends for moving has been the fun things we plan last minute. A few weeks ago, we picked up my friend S, booked a Days Inn, and spent the weekend at the Jersey Shore. Last weekend, T and I went to Boston and spent time visiting family and friends. And yesterday, we went to the new Citi Field and watched the Giants beat the Mets. Despite the stress we've been under, we've managed to have a fantastic summer so far!