We have an offer!

Update: We have a DEAL!!! Whew. Have a great weekend everybody!

Ladies and Gents,

Thanks for your positive vibes. After many long months, it finally happened. We have an offer of purchase on my downtown condo. The offer is ...uh..well.. meh, but I don't care, I'm ready to accept and be done with it. I fear the U.S. economy is headed on a serious downward spiral and the housing market will only worsen. It might be a mistake to hold out much longer.

Max, on the other hand, would like to negotiate upwards, and we're working with our agent to do just that. I hope it's not a long, painful process. It shouldn't be. We're not that far apart. But, don't uncross those fingers and toes just yet!

Keep your fingers crossed!

The following e-mail hit my Inbox today from a prospective buyer, who I have been working with since mid-December.

Diane,

I anticipate making an offer to purchase your condo. I will e-mail you all of the contract language for your consideration tomorrow.

Mr. Doe

Selling my home in the U.S. would be the last loose end in our move--the only outstanding issue and the one I have fretted over for four and a half months. Keep your fingers crossed for a decent offer and fair proposal. It's all I am hoping for at this point.

New developments

When you don’t have anything substantial to say, do you say anything at all?

I could bore you with all the details of my move, but it doesn’t seem necessary. You all know I’m a little busy these days, right?

Monday the movers come to take our furniture away. Beginning Thursday Max, Charlie, and I will be living with Jules until December 1.

Everything is happening so fast!

Well, not everything. The house remains unsold and the market is in free fall. So with this being said, I’m exciting about a possible twist as it relates to my home. At our monthly homeowners’ meeting the neighborhood builder approached me about renting the house for two years as the new sales office. Development begins in February on phase two the neighborhood and my unit sits across from the site.

I agreed to discuss the matter, and representatives from the company are coming to look at my place TODAY!

Keep your finger’s crossed. If this works out, move preparations will be complete. And I’ll be ready to focus my energies on saying good bye friends and family I leave behind.

Scavengers

Day 13 – and still no calls on my house? At what point do I press the panic button?

In an effort to give my home a little more exposure, I decided to post it on the company’s electronic bulletin board. Five thousand people have access to the site, and I figured there might be one out there who was house-hunting.

Instead, I received e-mails like this:

Hi Diane,

What a nice condominium! I'm not inquiring about the purchase of this but, I couldn't help but notice the beautiful mirror in the dining room and was wondering if you were going to sell it. Please let me know if you have considered selling it and for how much. Also, the sofa is beautiful - where did you find it?

Please reply at your earliest convenience.

Peggy

Or, this one:

Diane,

I'm not interested in moving, but if you are selling any of the furnishings, I would possibly be interested. I live very near there. Thanks.

Susan

Yes, there are scavengers, cleverly disguised as mild-mannered computer geeks. Is it just me, or are these e-mails just a tad forward?

House Market Woes

Before Max and I left for Egypt, we decided to test the local housing market by posting our place on Craigslist. A single post yielded seven showings and what I thought were a few solid leads. But, ultimately, nothing panned out.

Friday, I decided to make a wholehearted effort to sell, listing my home on MLS. The weatherman forecasted a beautiful weekend, and I predicted that I would have a showing or two by Sunday. In preparation for visitors, I polished every nook and corner of the house (including Charlie) and stayed by the phone and waited for the onslaught of potential buyers to call.

I waited and waited.

In the end, not a single soul inquired about my property. Plenty of folks drove by to pick up flyers, but this was all the traffic I received. Now, I’m starting to panic. What if my house doesn’t sell before Max and I leave for Germany?

Even though three days without rain does not a drought make, I’m worried that I am about to endure a long dry spell. This is my third home, but I’ve never experienced anything like this when it came to selling real estate. My last two houses sold within 12 hours-- both to the first person who looked and one without an agent or MLS. So, I ask you: Why not this time?

Besides the worry, I’ve concluded there are lots of reasons to hate having a home on the market. I now present my top ten.

Top Ten Reasons To Hate Having Your House On The Market

10. The need to become obsessive compulsive about keeping the house spotless
9. Having your dog hate you because he is penned in so much of the time.
8. Feeling you can’t walk around in the house without a bra or makeup because at any moment someone could knock at your door
7. Dealing with nosey neighbors
6. Having to worry that your nosey neighbors aren’t keeping their outside areas clean and presentable (I was out picking up cigarette buts off my neighbor’s stoop today.)
5. Answering buyers’ stupid questions. (i.e. “Which way is south?” Uh..what the @#$!?)
4. Seemingly endless deliveries of junk mail from every real estate agent in town
3. The lock box
2. Not being able to screen calls
1. Getting to work and realizing you left (insert personal item) out on your nightstand for all to see.

Feel free to add a few of your own. And don’t forget-- if you have any words of encouragement or advice, you know where to leave ‘em. I’d like to hear about your real-estate stories, but especially those that end with a successful closing!

Egypt or bust!

Raleigh to Atlanta
Atlanta to DC
DC to Paris
Paris to Cairo

Not exactly an ideal route to begin our trip, but Max, my brother Chico, and I can’t complain. We paid nothing for three round-trip tickets to Egypt thanks to Max’s seemingly endless supply of frequent flyer miles. If all goes well, we’ll arrive in the early afternoon on Thursday (around 6am Eastern Standard Time).

Excitement doesn’t begin to describe my feelings at the moment. Even as I type these words, I can hardly believe this is my last full day here.

Remarkably, I’m almost packed. Between getting my house showroom-ready and actually having two prospective buyers come yesterday, there has been little time to prepare for the trip. A pick-up at the $1.50 drycleaner, manicure and pedicure, and dropping the cat at my sister’s house is all that stands between me and my being ready to venture to Egypt. Woohoo!

Call me an optimist, but I think I may have shown my house to its future owner. He’s a recent graduate from the University, familiar with the neighborhood perks and drawbacks. He also brought his entire family to the showing and, when I finished the tour, asked me to “cut to the chase.”

“If my father were to write you a check today, what’s your bottom-line price for this unit,” he asked.

“I honestly couldn’t give you a number without consulting my husband,” I replied. Max had prepped me not to do any of the negotiating. He knows I’m a complete pushover when it comes to wheeling and dealing.

So instead of a check, I got a business card with the instructions to have Max e-mail with our best offer. Max plans to stay firm on the price, asking the potential buyer to come back with an offer instead.

“Who ever makes the first bid, typically loses in these situation,” Max explained. If we make our bottom-line offer, there is no way we’ll actually get it.”

I’m not sure about the strategy, but am willing to leave it to him to decide. We have three months, after all. It’s not like we’re desperate—yet. And besides, all I really care about right now is EGYPT!

Gosh, I hope it’s a good trip. I also hope I get to blog while I’m away. But if not, have a fabulous next two weeks. And I will see you (virtually, at least) on the other side of Sept 5th!