Looks Like I Got Some 'Splainin' To Do

It became an issue of principle.  I had to play hardball and be willing to walk away from the house sale.

Between March and June when we listed the house, we spent over $30K on upgrades (not counting my painting skills) to make the house as perfect and turnkey as possible for a purchaser.

When the buyers finally came along, they were pretty maxed out with what they could afford.  Because we wanted to get the house sold, get Marti out of her job and get on the road, we went way below what we wanted to sell the house for to get it done.  The young buyer couple, expecting twins in a couple of months were very nice and we felt they would be a good fit for our house.  So we kind of "paid it forward" and helped them on the price.

When the home inspector report came along, they took his (mistaken) advice and wanted the GFI wall sockets installed by the kitchen sink.  If he had been correct in his advice, I would have bit the bullet and gotten it done.  It wasn't a simple job.

 The wall sockets were already wired into a whole house GFI circuit which encompassed all the electrical wall sockets by all the sinks in the house.  To install the GFI sockets in the kitchen would require a major rewiring job.  The existing wiring would have to be removed all the way to the breaker panel and separated from the existing circuit it was on.  Then new wiring would have to be run back to the kitchen, where the two wall sockets would have to be ripped out and new ones put in, with modifications to the wall to fit the new GFI wall sockets.  Then the existing circuit that the kitchen sockets were on would have to be modified to work independently of the new kitchen GFI sockets.

As you can see, it wasn't a simple job to just wire in a couple of new GFI sockets, it would run several thousand dollars. We felt that we had spent enough and if was that important to the buyers, they could do it after they bought the house.  According to the sale contract, all electrical appliances and circuits are to be in proper working order and the kitchen wall sockets worked just fine.

Goggle is our friend.  I stayed up to the wee hours last night researching the National Electric Code (NEC) that sets the standards for wiring in homes.  I found that GFI sockets in kitchens are required in all homes built after 1996.  Our house was built in 1987 and the wiring met all the NEC requirements at the time of construction.  So our wiring was perfectly fine, correct to the day it was built and still works properly.

I sent an email to my realtor this morning outlining all the information.  I told him that our bottom line was we were not going to upgrade the sockets and the buyers could accept that or they could walk.

He forwarded the email to a certified electrician who backed me up.  Then it was forwarded to the buyer's realtor who then sent it to the buyers.  The buyers walked.

They walked right back to us and said forget about upgrading the sockets, they'll accept the house as is.  I played hardball and won.  Now maybe I should take up poker...

The very last piece of the puzzle is the appraisal on the house price.  We hope that will be finished tomorrow.  When we get that and it's good (it should be) then Marti can give her notice.  That'll start her 30 day notice clock ticking.

We also had the lady from the estate sale company swing by today and get set up for that to take place on the weekend of 19-20 November.  We plan to move in to the Journey on about 15 November while Marti works out her notice.  Now it's on to the myriad of little details to get this all behind us.

Thanks to all of you for your support, prayers, suggestions and words of encouragement.  If not for that we might have been more discouraged and second guessing ourselves while we kept the house in show ready condition.  Tomorrow, I'm not going to make the bed, just because... ;c)

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Marti's Musings: Down to the Wire

Well, as you read in Paul's last post, the house inspector wants us to upgrade the electic outlets to all GFI around the kitchen and laundry (but not the bathrooms????)  We are fighting that, as the outlets are on a main GFI located in the garage.  We should hear something today (Thursday) hopefully by noon.  There is now the possibility that the sale may fall through if we don't upgrade!  So, our already taut nerves are stretched to the max, and Paul is more than a little upset.  I have been up since 2:30 am - so I guess I rank in that category, too.  We are soooooo close! 

Because many of you have asked:  no, I haven't given my notice yet.  The realtors suggested waiting til the house inspection and appraisal all come in.  The appraisal should be in today, as well.  Once (if?) all that clears, I will give my 30 day notice.  yup, a whole month.  Of course, with the new turn of events, I am glad that I haven't let work know about the plans, just in case.....

Paul has many multi colored lists posted on the fridge as we forge ahead, assuming and praying that all goes forward.  He has done some work on the camper, in anticipation of our moving into that in just a few weeks, and we are nailing down dates for departure and routes we should take.

Talk about mixed emotions!  We will have nerves of steel before this is done - but it will still be worth it all.  We have to remind ourselves that it is in God's hands, and His timing is perfect. 

We'll keep you posted.  Thanks for all your prayers, support and encouragement - it means so much to us!
~Marti

A New Addition and Venting My Spleen

The West Coast came through, after we were in bed, worn out from all the Trick-or-Treaters that descended on our house yesterday.  Three huge bags of candy ($45 worth) and all that's left is a couple of little mini candy bars.  I guess it's for the best, as much as I love left overs, there's not enough left to add a fraction of an inch to my waistline.

Our granddaughters, Taylor and Keirra had a great time looting, er, I mean touring their neighborhood picking up donations for their candy cache.  They are our little princesses and they dressed and looked the part, although I think Taylor is a spidery princess.

We can't wait to see them over Christmas out in Oregon if all goes right with our house sale.

As for the house sale, I received the report today from the home inspector, all twenty four pages of it.  He nit-picked everything to death, well beyond actual discrepancies, he inserted way too much personal opinion.  I offered to stay and assist him with my knowledge of our house and its systems.  He didn't want me around.  Looking back, that is probably a good thing, because I probably would have thrown him out. 

The way he wrote the report, you'd think this was the house from the Tom Hanks movie The Money Pit and the house is going to collapse in a heap any minute.  There are things he said weren't working when it's obvious he couldn't find the proper switch to turn the item on.

Fortunately, the buyers have asked for me to fix just two things, a couple of stuck windows from fresh paint and install GFI wall sockets around the kitchen sink.  The kitchen sink wall sockets are already on a whole house GFI circuit, so that doesn't have to be done.  I called my realtor and explained how that system is set up and to tell the buyer's realtor we won't be doing any modification to that circuit.  It will be interesting to see where this goes.

If the buyers back out, plan B will go into effect, I got a solid job offer in my field today. (Gasp!)

Despite the home inspector's insulting report, there is special news in our house today.  I'd like to show you a picture of our newest granddaughter!

Actually, this is a picture of our daughter-in-law, Amanda, Corey's wife (and her dog Madison) on the beach in New Jersey.  See that little bump in her tummy?  That's our newest granddaughter, due in March 2012.  They found out today it's a girl!  Now if they can just agree on a name... :c)

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