An End to a Good Thing

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Greetings to both of my blog followers and to my wife as well.

You know when you know you should either do or say something and you don’t and the longer you wait the more awkward the whole thing becomes? Well, that is me and blogging. So, putting my awkwardness aside, here is my final update for my reluctant-landlord-turned-frenzied-flipper adventure.

I believe my last post ended with something about finding the right buyer. Well, we did. Twice. We finally got the house on the market on July 12th and were under contract by July 14th at near full price. Not bad, mission accomplished! With a projected close of mid-August, the frenzied flipper and clan were starting to dream, plan, and plot what the next chapter was going to look like.

But wait, not so fast…..

On August 23rd, after having already signed all the documents and having had a sneak peek at what our net proceeds might look like, we were informed that the transaction had just fallen apart due to buyer financing. So, here we go again! Instead of cashing a hard earned escrow check we were going back to writing them!!

Here is an abbreviation of what transpired next: Change of lenders (50% chance), 50% becomes 10%, buyer sends seller recision. Seller stalls, 10% just became 1%, divine intervention requested, divine intervention received! Extension given, buyers sign, deal closes, blessings given, keys handed over and much rejoicing…

It is actually hard to put into words what this last half year has been like. Scary, satisfying, rewarding, trying, consuming, and yet freeing at the same time. We endured nicks and bruises, disappointments and expenses. We enjoyed the fellowship, sense of accomplishment, jobs well done and the helping hands of neighbors, family and friends.

A chapter of our life is now closed.  A fine ending to a good thing.

The Reluctant Landlord Turns Frenzied Flipper

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So, the remodel begins in two days. The appointments with contractors have been set and my mind is all about getting the project started. Am I apprehensive? You bet I am. Does the fact I have been unable to reach my soon-to-be former tenants worry me? You bet it does. It is definitely time for a change!

Up to this point I have been calling myself the reluctant landlord. I found myself in that role as the result of a sluggish real estate market in 2009 ( worse than sluggish). Falling house values and a job relocation led us to renting out our unsold family house. It was the home in which we raised our family–a home my wife designed and I, with the help of family and friends, built with my own two hands.

So here is my current challenge: how to get my house market ready, in the shortest amount of time, with the smallest outlay of cash but at the same time maximizing my equity return. Hmmm, sounds simple, now that I say it out loud. NOT! So, stay tuned for periodic updates. You can follow our not so little first time foray into flipping on this blog. Today is flip day minus two.

For now,  I will leave you with some of my lingering thoughts…. new vinyl or laminate? Remove and replace or just remove?  Then there’s the yard: Do I borrow a mower, hire a service, or buy my first goat? You get the idea. Decisions, decisions, decisions.

Stay tuned…