I have a signed deal to buy a condo!

[Ronstar]

Congrats Ha! Sounds like there's a lot of cool places nearby to occupy your time when you're not rowing.

 

[freebird5825]

Does the condo come with a spare bedroom?

More importantly, would we all fit?

Sorry, that comeback just jumped off my keyboard. Bad keyboard!

 

[simple girl]

More importantly, would we all fit?

Party at haha's - "The FIRE Crashers!"

 

[MichaelB]

Party at haha's - "The FIRE Crashers!"

+1

More importantly, would we all fit?

More fun if we don't fit...

 

[haha]

A few minor last minute issues came up, but we were able to resolve them with a small price discount by the seller, and a smaller commission give-up by the broker. So we will close on time, this week. The giveups wipe out my closing costs.

The broker told me frankly that sellers are difficult to work with because they feel that their house or condo is truly worth what it might have sold for in 2007 at the top of the market, and anyone who offers less and then has the gall to make other demands is nothing but a bottom feeder and an ingrate. I see the sellers POV, but I don't agree with it as it might pertain to my house buy. To me, reality is that if this place was clearly worth more than what I offered and seller agree to, it would have been sold long ago for that price.

To the broker I said, it must be hard for you to try to hold all this together. She replied true, but not so much compared to having 4 or 5 contracts-of-sale crap out for every one that closes. This broker's reality quotient is far above other realtors' that I have been in contact with during my searches. I feel lucky to have found her.

Funny thing is that this week, friends sold a place at a profit, that they bought in 2007. It sold in 2 weeks from listing.

The real estate market is very interesting, and clearly full of intense personal feelings. I will be kind of hard up for drama after we close.

Ha

 

[REWahoo]

Last minute surprises are way too common in the real estate 'bidness'. Glad things worked out for you.

 

[haha]

Thank you Wahoo.

Ha

 

[sheehs1]

A few minor last minute issues came up, but we were able to resolve them with a small price discount by the seller, and a smaller commission give-up by the broker. So we will close on time, this week. The giveups wipe out my closing costs.

The broker told me frankly that sellers are difficult to work with because they feel that their house or condo is truly worth what it might have sold for in 2007 at the top of the market, and anyone who offers less and then has the gall to make other demands is nothing but a bottom feeder and an ingrate. I see the sellers POV, but I don't agree with it as it might pertain to my house buy. To me, reality is that if this place was clearly worth more than what I offered and seller agree to, it would have been sold long ago for that price.

To the broker I said, it must be hard for you to try to hold all this together. She replied true, but not so much compared to having 4 or 5 contracts-of-sale crap out for every one that closes. This broker's reality quotient is far above other realtors' that I have been in contact with during my searches. I feel lucky to have found her.

Funny thing is that this week, friends sold a place at a profit, that they bought in 2007. It sold in 2 weeks from listing.

The real estate market is very interesting, and clearly full of intense personal feelings. I will be kind of hard up for drama after we close.

Ha

Sounds like you had a reasonable seller and a great broker! Our deal fell thru this summer because the seller was not only unreasonable but was out of communication the last 2 weeks of due diligence. He was gold mining in Wyoming. I felt he left me hanging so he didn't have to negotiate anymore.

Enjoy your new condo Ha and post some pics.

 

[W2R]

I have never been through a closing that could be described as "smooth", at least from my viewpoint. But soon it will all be behind you. Sounds like your realtor is very realistic, and that helps.

I hope you post about the experience of settling into your new home, once you have had enough time to catch your breath. A lot of us (me included) would get a lot of vicarious joy from reading about it.

 

[Dreamer]

Glad to hear that things are progressing nicely. It will soon be behind you. Good luck with the move and settling in.

 

[JOHNNIE36]

Congratulations Ha! Somethings are just worth fighting for. As a realtor, I once had a closing fall apart at the eleventh hour over a set of crummy dishes. The place was sold as furnished and at the last minute the seller decided she wanted a set of dishes so she took them. The buyer had a fit. Offered to buy her a new set of dishes. No way! She wanted THOSE dishes and the seller refused to give them up. They both walked away from the closing table. The broker told the seller he would sue for performance. He knew he wouldn't win that one but the seller and buyer were locking horns. Luckily, we resold it a week later.

 

[NW-Bound]

Congrats!

Yes, if one does not buy low, then when does he buy?

More importantly, would we all fit?

Some forum members would be more interested in knowing what length of AC cord they need to bring in order to plug in their RV.

 

[Ronstar]

The real estate market is very interesting, and clearly full of intense personal feelings. I will be kind of hard up for drama after we close.

Ha

I know what you're talking about. When we (me, DW, our realtor, seller, seller's realtor) were negotiating in the conference room at the realtor's office, DW and owner(another woman) got into a tizzy and had to be put in separate rooms.

 

[chinaco]

...

The real estate market is very interesting, and clearly full of intense personal feelings. I will be kind of hard up for drama after we close.

Ha

It seems that way, even in the best of times. Sometimes the issues are not even about price. I have seen situations where the previous owner got to an acceptable price but wanted to remain in the house longer (because of their pending purchase or house being built)... and get hung up on hoping the purchaser would wait. But the purchasers is often selling too... domino effect.


It is worth what someone will pay at the time. That can work for you or against you.


But... did you get a steal? Yeah I know... you paid a fair market driven price. But are you thrilled with the new digs and the price you paid?

 

[haha]

But... did you get a steal? Yeah I know... you paid a fair market driven price. But are you thrilled with the new digs and the price you paid?

I think I will have to live there for a while before I can answer this personal part. The neighborhood is more urban than my current one, and the street is noisier. OTOH the apartment is quite a bit bigger, and in some ways nicer though it is from a more recent era and lacks some "charm" relative to the old brick building I live in now.

Financially, I would not buy it as a cash flow proposition. It was renting @ $1300/mo. My known and estimated cash costs plus a hypothetical 100% 30 year loan at 4.25% give a modest positive cash flow, without any vacancy factor.

It has been a long while since this sort of proposition was available around here. But nevertheless, the proposition on the face of it is less than thrilling. Where it will win over time, if it does, is by avoiding what may be fairly steep rent increases. What counts most heavily with mid-market rents in these neighborhoods is not overall employment, but tech and other large company overall employment and new hires of young people, which have remained pretty good in spite of a fairly high overall unemployment rate in Seattle.

There is also good inmigration of this same demographic. Primary grade enrollment in Seattle schools is up the last 3 years, after a long period of decline. A demographer hired by the school district puts this to dislocations in the mortgage and housing markets, which have at least temporarily ended the longstanding tendency of young adults to live in mostly rented housing in the city, then buy a house and move to the suburbs when they have children. That they are doing less of this than before is a fact, as many suburban districts are showing early grade head count losses, while Seattle is gaining. What is not certain in my view is why. Maybe more people have decided that the city has some advantages, even with children.

Ha