29 October 2013

Autumn's whirlwind

It has been a real whirlwind around here lately. Today I paused to catch my breath and sketch leaves picked up on one of our many walks. Bill is walking as much as he can, slowly getting his strength back following his heart surgery. He is now cleared for traveling, so we plan on visiting our kids in Texas soon. While there, we decided to line up a realtor to look at houses. That led to us deciding to put our home on the market --- being a 1920 apartment building, it's a bit of an unusual listing and we had no idea what to expect trying to sell it.


One day after signing to sell, the sewer backed up. No problem . . . Bill can't do the work at the moment but a plumbing friend could ____ BIG PROBLEM. Turns out the outside line was broken and would need to be dug up and repaired. The sewer here is 20 feet deep and the city locators were no help at all. It was eventually found and repaired 8 hours later; now our backyard parking lot is a mud mountain. Hard to fit all that dirt back in when it had been compacted 93 years.

Meanwhile, we received an offer on the building, we counter-offered, and it was accepted --- sold in less than one week! As part of the deal they offered us 90 days from closing__rent free__to give us time to find a new home and move. Our heads are still spinning from the speed of it all.

21 comments:

  1. OH WOW.its amazing how fast it sold but that happened to us too. sold fast and we had to scramble to move far away and it was the best thing we ever did.. going on ten years now. so congrats on the sale. it was meant to be. So happy to hear your hubby is doing better daily.

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  2. oh and bummer on the sewer mess. Murphys law you know. :) but nice you had a friend to help.

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  3. I am still shocked by how quickly it all happened . . . in the midst of sewer issues. And I'm so thankful that the buyers offered us 90 days rent-free to find a home and move.

    I have no clue how to find a moving company; we have always moved ourselves before --- at least since getting out of the Navy which they paid for. Have no idea how much that will cost. Any suggestions?

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  4. Oh my, a moving company! Joseph used one and it was a huge help, of course...Allied is what he used (they were the cheapest, at any rate...)

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    1. Allied is in Wichita -- thanks! I'll call them for a quote . . . as soon as I know where in Texas we are heading!

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  5. So where are you moving to? As I understand it big moving vans are expensive....however, you are paying for "streamlining" the process. That is worth something.

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    1. We are moving somewhere in Texas. All four of our children ended up in various parts of Texas; we are looking at smaller communities sort of central from each of their homes.

      Our kids had discussed helping us move by driving several rental trucks together, but when Bill had his heart attack I told him we will hire professionals. Takes the stress off him and that is so worth the price!

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  6. Word of mouth got us a moving company. Ask around. Wasn't cheap but was less stressful than doing it yourself. We came 13 hours away from where we were.

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    1. We've tried word of mouth around here, but don't know anyone who has used a moving company. The nearest companies are in Wichita; I'll probably phone several for free quotes --- as soon as I have a location in Texas to give them.

      We are about 10 hours drive-time from where we will end up ---- I used to moan about how long that was but your 13 hours is worse!

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  7. We came from SO CAL so more choices there. but we had to have our stuff on the moving van for a week before we could get it. due to timing of getting in our new place here in OR and it being around xmas. so it cost us an extra thousand for that. gulp just the way it turned out. Timing is everything. we packed up our stuff and they loaded it..they also took our small car in the moving van so it was big moving van.... check out reputations tho on line somehow.
    we also moved what we could in a trailer and our Van because we knew we would be without our stuff for a few days. oh as the empty moving truck was leaving our house it started snowing.. and he got out just before a big snow fell closing the way up for a week. We did a lot of praying and it paid off. :)

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    1. Sounds like your move was quite challenging! I hope we have a house in Texas before we need to leave here. Since we close on selling the apartment building in November and we are paying cash for the new place (no waiting on loans), things _should_ work out okay. We don't have to be out of here until mid-February.

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  8. Congrats!! I may have mentioned this before...but based on friends prior experiences with relocating to a area, I would recommend renting in a new town for at least a year before purchasing. Several friends wish they had done this because they weren't happy and had to move (and sell) again. The bulk of your stuff can be put in storage, while you take your time to make a decision. If I lived closer, I would come help you pack! :-)

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    1. We considered renting for a year first . . . . until we realized the amount of taxes we would have to pay on selling our Kansas properties. If we turn around and buy property now, we don't have to pay it as a capital gain --- it just becomes "reinvested".

      We have visited the area many times in the past 15 years and are pretty settled as to what we are looking for in a house. But how I would love your help -- what silly fun we could have!

      We want a smaller, older place (our current apartment is about 1600 sq. ft.) but with a 2-car or larger garage or outbuilding to convert into a woodshop. In an area with a decent lumber yard. And an H.E.B. if possible (great grocery store!) --- A quiet neighborhood or in the country within 10 miles of town. Surprisingly, we have found several options that fit the description already.

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  9. It was even more complicated then that but an extra month would have helped tons. So I think you will do fine.

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    1. I'm thinking that if we decide on one of the houses we look at in November, we would close in December and could spend some time in January doing any painting, etc. it may need. Most of the places we are looking at are clean and freshly painted . . . but I might not like the color they chose. Then move early February?

      If I've learned anything about following the Lord, it's that He knows the future and I do not. So any "plans" I think out in my head are easy to set aside when He shows us how He is going to work it out.

      Such as the sewer deal. The plumber who fixed it rents a small garage storage space from us. But he has been struggling, following some health issues, and has been unable to pay his rent for several months. The hours he spent fixing our sewer, at the going rate, exactly equaled what rent he owed us. Only God could have known how that would turn out.

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  10. You are lucky that you know the Lord.

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    1. I truly can't imagine going through the turmoil and upheaval of our lives the past 2 months without the Lord's being there for us. I'm very thankful to know Him!

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  11. Anne Marie Potmeer, Oijen, The Netherlands31 October, 2013 05:09

    Vicky all will be well and turn out fine. Just live day by day and have faith.Trust that everything will happen in the right moment like your example with the plumber! You will find your place and live happy ever after... I know!

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    1. Thank you for the good word, Anna Marie! Our Lord is ever faithful.

      Be blessed!

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  12. What an incredible story, Vicky! I can see the Lord in your life and I believe he'll help you till the end. And, by the way, your maple leaves are beautiful!
    Think of you in prayers...
    Jana

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