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Last night we spent nearly 2.5 hours with our sales rep at Ryan Homes and walked away with a signed and dated Purchase Agreement to build our new home! We have a contingency addendum on the agreement, which allows us to lock in the current pricing and select our lot (407, baby!). We have to make a payment to Ryan Homes every 30 days to keep the contingency agreement current, but the money goes towards the downpayment of the home. Plus, if we decide for any reason that we no longer want to move forward, we get 100% of our money back, no questions asked. To us this was a win/win situation. We know that we're moving forward - just as long as our house sells.
So signing the mounds of paperwork last night set off a chain reaction of deadlines and meetings - all of which will be happening in the next two weeks. We're going to be busy people. I am SO happy that we took the time in the past 3-4 weeks to sit down and seriously talk through upgrades, options, wants versus needs, etc so that we don't feel like the walls are closing in around us in these 14 days. We feel very, very prepared!
Must be done in next 14 days:
- Meet with NVR loan officer for mortgage loan approval process, discussions around locking in rates, decision on 15-year versus 30-year mortgage, etc. This has to be done within the next 7 days; We have this scheduled for this Thursday.
- Solidify all structural decisions (this includes homesite, house type, front elevation, and fireplace). Must be done in next 7 days. We already have all of this decided upon and locked in. Any changes to any structural decisions past the 7 days mark are subject to a $750 fee per change.
- Meet with flooring sales associate in Oakwood to pick out all hardwood, tile, and carpeting for the house. This is the one aspect that we haven't seen any pricing or options around. This actually has to happen within the next 10 days.
- Solidify all upgrade decisions. We have the bulk of these decisions made and just have a few different things that we're going back and forth on. This must be done in the next 14 days. Any changes to any upgrades past the 14 day mark are subject to a $250 fee per change.
Today's showing was a great excuse to get outside and enjoy the weather. Riley, Wendell and I drove the car down around the corner, parked it, then took a really nice walk. In fact, we ended up just walking back to the house and will return for the car later.
The realtor along with three women went through the house today. I could just barely see them in the distance as I was returning back towards the house - they had already been inside and were chatting for a decent amount of time in the driveway. Of course, if you don't know me well enough already, in my mind I am sure they were talking offers and my cell phone should ring any minute now.
Now, realistically, they were probably just chatting and even maybe talking about more properties they were about to go see. But a girl can dream, right?
Since my last post, I actually spoke to the showing agent. I love her! She was so sweet and confirmed that by not showing Saturday we weren't losing our chances of interest on the house. Here's the story:
She showed the house to a man on Thursday. She says he really liked it. His fiance hasn't seen it yet, but is coming through tomorrow (Monday). She was out of town this past weekend, but his mom was with him, viewing some homes. The agent said that he liked a house they saw, but asked her if they could get back in here again. The agent thought this was really good and actually said that he felt a little relieved knowing that we put a 'no show' restriction on the house this weekend so that no one could see it. So tomorrow is the second showing for this couple ... and I am very optimistic! We came home from my parent's tonight and went right to work on the yard. Kevin mowed and I cleaned up some of the landscaping from the winter weather. It just looks great.
Oh! We also buried St. Joseph tonight! Upside down, facing the road, near the For Sale sign!
We're at my mom and dad's this weekend for the Easter holiday. Before leaving the house yesterday (Friday), we made the decision to call the Centralized Showing Service and ask that they restrict any showings until we return Sunday evening. We just wanted to get out of the house and on the road as quickly as possible ... and left things out without tidying up. The house isn't a wreck by any means, but things aren't put away. Plus, cell phone reception is scarce at my parent's house, so it would be a headache for the CSS to get in touch with us to have a showing approved anyhow.
When I called to make this request, I was told that Angie Black - the realtor who did Thursday's showing(s) - wanted to bring someone thru for the second showing on Monday from 12-1. YAY! A second showing! I couldn't run upstairs fast enough to tell Kevin!
Well, just this morning we received a voicemail from CSS - Angie Black was hoping we'd grant an exception so that she could show the house for a second time from 11-11:30am this morning. I didn't get the voicemail until 10:30am. I called CSS back and explained that a showing until tomorrow evening just isn't possible (plus, for safety reasons, I removed our key from the keybox anyhow) ... but that she could show it as early as 4pm tomorrow night. They said they'd let her know and would call us back if she wanted to do that. It's been nearly five hours - no call back.
Worried and sick that we've now lost a chance at a second showing and potentially an offer, I called Angie Black directly. I received her voicemail, but explained to her why we restricted showings this weekend and hoped that we hadn't lost our chances with that buyer ... and asked that she call me at my parent's house if she needed to. I haven't heard from her yet ... but just really hope we didn't screw our chances up.
A realtor - and a potential buyer - would understand, right? I mean it is a holiday weekend ... so I just pray that our chances are still there when we return tomorrow night. At least we still have the showing on Monday ...
Happy Easter!
The DD coffee cup gives you a feel for this teeny guy's size! I can dig this hole with a kitchen spoon if I want!
We had another showing last night. This brings the grand total to 8, excluding the agent-walk thru. The agent showing was one of the agent's on the walk thru, so I'd like to imagine that when she saw the house during that time, she immediately had a buyer in mind who she felt the house would work for. I sure hope so!
Also, we received our weekly update from our realtor's office yesterday. This was our second week to get the feedback from the previous week's showings. I always hold my breath when this call comes in - and let it go straight to voicemail - since I'll want to listen to it over ... and over ... and over again.
Weekly Update - 3/31/10
- 452 web hits on Realtor.com; 584 hits on howardhanna.com
- House being featured on 87 websites & will be in Homes.com magagzine with color pictures
- 4 showings last week:
- 3/23 - curb appeal excellent, interior clean and well kept, nice backyard, no improvements needed, priced about right, very nice home
- 3/25 - curb appeal excellent, interior clean and well kept, exterior needs updating, considering and is #2 on their list
- 3/25 - Still awaiting feedback
- 3/26 - curb appeal excellent, interior clean and well kept, nice basement, want sidewalks, no improvements needed, priced right
Weekly Update - 3/24/10
- 283 web hits on Realtor.com; 564 hits on howardhanna.com
- House being featured on 87 websites & will be in Homes.com magazine with color pictures
- 3 showings last week:
- 3/20 - curb appeal excellent, interior clean and well kept, property staying on buyer's short list, prefers an additional bath
- 3/20 - (Realtor only) - Feels she has a buyer for this property
- 3/22 - Curb appeal excellent, interior clean and well kept, very nice finished basement, prefers sidewalks
So all of the feedback has been really positive, which makes us feel great. We want to get specifics from the people who mentioned the exterior needs updating, as we (as well as our family, neighbors, and realtor) have absolutely no clue what else could be updated from the exterior, as EVERYTHING is new (with the exception of a new driveway) ... so that one baffles us and we'd like specifics.
Yesterday, knowing that we're trying to sell our house, a co-worker asked me if I had buried a statue of St. Joseph in my yard yet. I hadn't the slightest clue what she was talking about! Then she handed me some print-outs telling about why you should bury a statue of St. Joseph to help sell your house.
I called the local Christian bookstore and lo and behold - the cashier knew exactly what I was talking about and told me to come on in. So last night I picked up my own St. Joseph statue for the front yard. She instructed me on what to do with it - bury him upside down, near the for sale sign, facing the street. Easy as pie! So tonight I'll be digging a small hole and doing just that.
Now - granted - I am not Catholic. I was raised Baptist and am a practicing Methodist, so I don't know all that much about Saints. However, my good friend Kim shed some light on it all for me yesterday, as she probably picked up on the fact that I was a little hesitant and leary of praying to a Saint rather than praying to God about selling my house. However I apparently shouldn't have any concerns, as I am not to pray to the Saint. She told me that a Saint is believed to be able to intercede on your behalf - and also plead your needs to God. So you aren't praying to them ... you're asking them for help as well as you continue to pray to God, which I do all the time anyhow, but have reeeeally been praying for this house to sell! God knows where we're going to be and when ... this is all His plan and only He knows! We have faith!
So with that said, good ol' St. Joe is going in my front yard tonight. Why not, right?
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