URBANNA — I know of a sweet lady who “just bought a house.” By this I mean she wrote the contract in April 2022 and it closed this month.
Buying one’s own home and throwing away rental keys for good is the American dream come true. This is because a home is a man’s castle and there’s no place like home.
Yet, buying a house isn’t as easy as it might sound. (Just ask a Realtor!) It can be a bit of a struggle but in her case it was a whale of a struggle. The closing was supposed to be June 2022 but a health department check found the house needed a new septic system. It turns out septic systems are very expensive and don’t get installed overnight. The new system was not ready for June’s closing so the owners agreed to let her move in that September and pay rent until closing.
What a great day for this sweet lady! The furniture that had been in storage for some time arrived, of course, on the hottest day of the year. It’s either blazing hot or pouring rain on moving day, and she was soon as cozy and happy as a snail in its shell.
In a fit of the usual initial homeowner’s joy, or at least an about to become a homeowner’s joy, (there is a big difference between these two terms) she painted the interior rooms, hung paintings and bought the furniture needed to fit in exactly the right places in all the rooms.
Meanwhile, the clock was ticking and due to the shaky economy, the bank loan interest rates were going up, up, up. Such a situation is worrisome to someone about to take on a mortgage.
Then it started to rain. Then it started to rain hard. Soon the sweet lady discovered the roof was leaking and she had to put out pots to gather the water dripping into the house.
It turned out the house needed a new roof so the contractors came and dismantled the solar system on the roof and put on a new roof.
By then she was noticing a few problems with electrical outlets so she paid for a special inspection to get an estimate to fix any problems. The shocking news, not an intended pun, was rewiring would cost more than $12,000. But worse, she was told there was no electricity at all in her upstairs guest bedroom and bath.
Closing was delayed once again, interest rates went up, and the sweet lady normally happy and upbeat at all times was starting to experience an occasional frown across her face every now and then.
As 2022 went off to join the past and 2023 arrived, the sweet lady decided to forget the lack of upstairs wiring. The guests could sleep on a sofa in the sun porch and she would just go ahead and close. That was when she saw what appeared to be a termite in her sun porch.
The hysteria that such a tiny insect could trigger might be hard to imagine. Fortunately, the insect was determined to be a mere beetle and life returned to normal once again. Perhaps not normal as we would think but normal for someone who has been waiting to close on her house for over a year after she wrote her contract.
A new horror came about as if some power above was sending down one trouble after another on the sweet lady like bolts of lightning. Perhaps as a source of entertainment. She walked outside one morning and found her backyard grass in bubbles. Bubbles? Where in the world would bubbles come from?
It turned out the washing machine in the basement had never been attached to the new septic system. By now the sweet lady’s frown had been replaced by a very deep and profound scowl that crossed her forehead like the slash of a knife.
But, not to worry, the door is opened for all those who knock, even if it takes a little more time than expected. The happy day came this month when everything was settled and closing would finally take place.
But at the last moment it was discovered a final permit (because of the bubble in the backyard episode) from the health department was needed but the person who had to sign it was out of town for the week. Finally, the gentleman returned, signed the permit and closing took place last week.
Lessons learned which I would call “Buying a House 101” are the following:
- Do not move into a house until you own it.
- Make sure your inspector gives you a complete inspection.
- Find out ahead of time just how much money you will need to make repairs and either agree you will pay the expenses or subtract the expenses from your offer.
- Make sure you have the best Realtor in the area taking care of you right up to the last minute.
Then, the best part. Enjoy your dream come true!
(Note: This experience did not take place in Middlesex County.)
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