September 25, 1997
Dear Everyone:
Much has happened on the home-selling and buying
front.
Last week, I was saying that I had actually seen
only one real estate agent.
He had shown up one Thursday evening with a couple who quickly went
through the motions and departed.
I think one look at the kitchen (it’s a shoe box, for crying out
loud!) convinced them that this was not the place for them.
But then, the following Saturday, they came back
for another look. Evidently
they had had time and experience enough, viewing other offerings in the
area, to realize that there’s more to life than a big kitchen.
Specifically, there’s storage space, with which my place abounds.
I found out later that they would have made an offer, except for
the No Pet Rule. They had
two dogs that they liked better than my three storage closets.
Then, last Wednesday evening, an agent came by with
a client. They looked around
and asked a few questions. I
mentioned that I call the walk-in closet off the master bedroom “The
Christmas Closet”, because that’s where I store the Christmas
decorations and wrapping paper, etc.
They left and I went back to what I was doing.
Twenty minutes later, they were back to take another look.
The agent told me that they had viewed several other properties
here at Valley Terrace and, the agent told me, “None of them have a
Christmas Closet.” The
client was also very interested in the second bedroom, the one where I
had installed all those free shelves on the walls.
Thursday night, the agent’s partner arrived with
the same client who, this time, had brought a couple with her (probably
relatives or friends) to take yet another look.
I’ve already discovered that, in the real estate field, any time
someone comes back for another look, it’s generally good news.
Bottom line:
By Saturday afternoon, I had two Buyers for my condo.
Interestingly, they both had arrived independently at the same
selling price, although they had different particulars.
Examples: Buyer
Number One had some contingencies that needed to be met before the deal
could go through. Buyer
Number Two needed more creative financing and stipulated that those
shelves in the second bedroom were to be included or the deal was off
(like I was going to rip them off the walls and take them with me?).
With the second offer, the ball was in Buyer Number
One’s court. She had 72
hours to lift the contingencies and go ahead with the deal, or bow out
and let Buyer Number Two take over.
Fortunately for me, Buyer Number One carried the day (it’s a much
cleaner deal and doesn’t require me to cover virtually all of the
closing costs).
I took yesterday as a vacation day and spent most
of it with a loan officer in
Danville.
He patiently explained all the pros and cons of fixed versus
adjustable rate mortgages and paying private mortgage insurance as
opposed to taking a second mortgage to cover the 20% and
Lord! but I’m glad I won’t be
doing all this again in a big hurry.
As it is, I’m pre-approved for an amount that I
think I can live with and this weekend, we be house-hunting (or, to be
more accurate, townhouse-hunting).
(For the record, I also visited the Credit Union and checked out
their first mortgage terms.
Their rates and points were higher.
And they don’t pre-approve.
Guess who won.)
Movies...
Last weekend, “Jeannie” and I, with a couple of
ladies from her knitting class, went to see
In & Out.
Kevin Kline
plays a dedicated high school English teacher whose one-time pupil is up
for an Academy
Award. During his
acceptance speech, the actor thanks his high school teacher, whom he
assumes is gay.
This stuns the teacher, who always assumed he was
straight.
Everyone makes a lot of assumptions.
Many of them are hilarious.
Quite a few seem to involve
Barbra Streisand.
If the movie has a message, it would be, “Never
assume; and be true to yourself.”
Don’t force yourself to lose 70 pounds because you assume that’s
what your fiancee wants you to do.
Don’t get married because you assume it’s the right thing to do
when it could be the worst thing to do.
Tom Selleck does a nice turn as an openly gay reporter (without his
signature mustache) and
Bob Newhart lends
his patented nervousness to the high school principal.
Absolutely charming and delightful.
And the best joke is a throwaway line involving
Steven Seagal
and the
Best
Actor Award (which sailed effortlessly over the heads of the
knitting ladies).
Definitely worth the matinee price.
Love, as always,
Pete
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