Showing posts with label House. Show all posts
Showing posts with label House. Show all posts
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Better Late than Never
For anyone who was interested, I never got around to posting the pictures of our home in Clearwater and the renovations. Here are a few:
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Thanksgiving
It's relatively early Thanksgiving morning. I am up, had some coffee and talked with my CC. I have been downstairs doing some repairs on the basement bathroom. The Son (like most teenagers) takes extremely long hot showers and after a time, it has caused some mold spots on the ceiling. As I am trying to sell the house, this definitely needs to be addressed. There are also some areas on the drywall around the shower that have the paper bubbling up due to water and the shower curtain not properly closed when bathing. I have sprayed the ceiling again with bleach water and will paint it later with a mold/mildew retardant paint. I have sanded the areas around the shower and thank goodness the areas were superficial. No patching required, just some spackling, sanding and painting. The spackling has been applied and I am waiting for all to dry to move on to the next step. I also repaired one of the holes in the Son's room. (Yes ANOTHER one). This one was caused by a stray elbow when rough housing with friends. IT required a patch but it was a very small hole so not so bad. I'm not cooking this year as I have chosen to do home improvement instead. I will probably make chili as the weather isn't very nice.
I do have a lot to be thankful for this year. I have my health (well at least I'm living). I have my wonderful CC who is the light and love of my life. My mother is doing as well as can be expected. (This time last year she was in ICU and on a vent). My grandmother is doing well also. The Son and I are on better terms as of late. I am able to pay the bills and make ends meet. That is a wonderful thing as well although if this house doesn't sell, things are going to be much leaner. But, all in all, things are going okay.
All signs are pointing to the fact I may get a job offer from the company in St. Petersburg I have been interviewing with. They requested a 30-60-90 day plan which I have done and they want me to meet the owner on Dec 2 when I am in Clearwater next. If this comes through, I will need to resign from my position here, find a place for Morgan to stay if his father will not agree to live in this house until he graduates. If that is the case, I will need to have all of the locks changed and get the house cleaned, etc. and have us all move out and will keep it on the market. If his father is willing, I will take it off the market for a few months and will pay the mortgage if he will pay the bills on the house. A lot of things are up in the air. I just know if I can find other employment paying better than what I am making now, it will help things out tremendously.
All in all, I am very thankful for all of my blessings. Although the last few months have been trying at best, life is moving on and is looking up.
I do have a lot to be thankful for this year. I have my health (well at least I'm living). I have my wonderful CC who is the light and love of my life. My mother is doing as well as can be expected. (This time last year she was in ICU and on a vent). My grandmother is doing well also. The Son and I are on better terms as of late. I am able to pay the bills and make ends meet. That is a wonderful thing as well although if this house doesn't sell, things are going to be much leaner. But, all in all, things are going okay.
All signs are pointing to the fact I may get a job offer from the company in St. Petersburg I have been interviewing with. They requested a 30-60-90 day plan which I have done and they want me to meet the owner on Dec 2 when I am in Clearwater next. If this comes through, I will need to resign from my position here, find a place for Morgan to stay if his father will not agree to live in this house until he graduates. If that is the case, I will need to have all of the locks changed and get the house cleaned, etc. and have us all move out and will keep it on the market. If his father is willing, I will take it off the market for a few months and will pay the mortgage if he will pay the bills on the house. A lot of things are up in the air. I just know if I can find other employment paying better than what I am making now, it will help things out tremendously.
All in all, I am very thankful for all of my blessings. Although the last few months have been trying at best, life is moving on and is looking up.
Monday, November 14, 2011
Time Goes By...
I'm not really sure where I've left off. I know that my world has been pretty hectic and it has been a good three months or so since I have written down any of my thoughts. Not many people visit this site so I don't suppose anyone is feeling too put out or disappointed with my absence.
August
The Son had his 17th birthday. School started again. Senior year. I really hope he doesn't have to repeat it. He sold the 2007 Mazda and took the money, pocketed some and bought a 1994 Ranger. I didn't agree with it but it was the one car I was going to buy him and he sold it for more than it booked so I allowed it. I did tell him, however, I would not carry full coverage insurance on a 1994 Ranger. At the time he was fine with that and off he went with the truck.
September
He has been tardy more times than I can count from school. They told him he couldn't drive to school for two weeks. He was not happy and of course was everyone else's fault but his own. No matter how hard I try, I just can't get him to see that he brings his woes onto himself.
CC and I, (mostly CC) have been working very hard on the house. Flooring and paint and new wardrobes were all on the agenda and it is becoming quite beautiful. I continue to look for acceptable work but it just doesn't seem to be panning out. I applied at our Humana Cares division only to be passed over by someone else. No explanation. They weren't even going to call. I consider it most unprofessional and feel it was probably in my best interest if they were not going to conform to Humana culture and processes.
October
The first Friday of October, the Son wrecked his truck. He was on his way home and he rolled the truck twice. There was no saving it. He emerged with a couple of scratches. Didn't even break a nail. There was no one else in the car and he is extremely lucky to be alive. I instructed him to go to the urgent care and I would meet him there. I got him signed in and because I was having difficulty believing exactly how the accident happened, he freaked out, began getting angry and wanting to leave. I left instead and he had to find his own way home. I didn't see him until late the next night. By that time I had gone to the impound lot, sold the truck for $300 to a junk yard. That paid the $200 tow bill and I gave him the $100 for the truck Saturday night.
On Sunday he wanted to borrow my car. I said no. He said that I didn't trust him. I said that with all of the disrespect, why should I do him a favor? I was doing laundry at the time and he pouted, said some things and walked away. So what he's disgruntled right? I was putting clothes away in my room. He came up from the basement with a loaded shotgun under his chin. He was shouting on how I didn't care about him and I wished he would've died in the accident and he could fix it right then and there. I called the police. By the time the police got there I managed to get the gun away and get them and the ammunition loaded in the trunk of my car. The police agreed that he needed some help and they followed me to the ER. He made a show of himself in the ER, he tried to leave. They had security outside the door because he was so loud. Carrying on about how once he got out I would never see him again. He didn't want to live with me etc. He would then change tactics and cry begging me to take him out of there.
They finally came with an ambulance and took him to a treatment center. He ended up staying for 4 days. CC and I were due to leave on a cruise so I went. I needed the break. It was an absolutely wonderful trip. Even when it rained. :) The Son's father came and stayed with him at the house while I was away. It didn't keep the Son from calling me on the Thursday of my trip accusing me of taking the money from the sale of the truck and MFing and GDing me, calling me a liar, etc. I texted his dad and told him I wasn't having it. He had Morgan text me. "Sorry, I figured it out". That was what I got. That was suppose to be okay. I surely didn't get a call on my birthday or the day after or the day after etc.
Our relationship has been extremely strained and is fraught with disrespect. I love him dearly but I do not like him much at all. Is that a bad thing for a parent to say? Sometimes I just wonder where I went wrong. His father, who initially seemed all put out that I would pay someone to stay with the Son while I am out of town, who was snarky about I "assumed he would be working as it was a weekend", doesn't help. After the initial crisis, basically if Son isn't home the whole time, he sees no point in driving over. I tried to explain about parties, etc. Of course, because it isn't his house he doesn't give a fuck.
The Son called me at my mother's a couple of weeks ago wanting his guns back. I told him no because he had been irresponsible with them. He got mad, cursed me, told me I was stupid, pointing out that the gun wasn't pointed at me it was at him and it was his head and if he wanted to blow it off he would. WELL, that would really help me change my mind.. NOT.
My mother, who heard the who conversation was of course appalled and is scared to death he is going to kill me in my sleep. She gets a bit antsy if I don't call her every couple of days to let her know I'm alive. Of course, Son sees it as me not being about to keep private things private and now he can't get a truck to drive from her and fuck her he won't do a damn thing for her ever again.
I have raised a spoiled entitled brat. He has no sense of personal responsibility so I have failed him as a parent. He is really going to have a hard time in the world because I did not prepare him for how things are. No, he shouldn't talk or treat me the way he does, but in the overall scheme of things, I have failed and the lessons I am trying to squeeze in now while I can are going to be extremely painful to the both of us as a result.
August
The Son had his 17th birthday. School started again. Senior year. I really hope he doesn't have to repeat it. He sold the 2007 Mazda and took the money, pocketed some and bought a 1994 Ranger. I didn't agree with it but it was the one car I was going to buy him and he sold it for more than it booked so I allowed it. I did tell him, however, I would not carry full coverage insurance on a 1994 Ranger. At the time he was fine with that and off he went with the truck.
September
He has been tardy more times than I can count from school. They told him he couldn't drive to school for two weeks. He was not happy and of course was everyone else's fault but his own. No matter how hard I try, I just can't get him to see that he brings his woes onto himself.
CC and I, (mostly CC) have been working very hard on the house. Flooring and paint and new wardrobes were all on the agenda and it is becoming quite beautiful. I continue to look for acceptable work but it just doesn't seem to be panning out. I applied at our Humana Cares division only to be passed over by someone else. No explanation. They weren't even going to call. I consider it most unprofessional and feel it was probably in my best interest if they were not going to conform to Humana culture and processes.
October
The first Friday of October, the Son wrecked his truck. He was on his way home and he rolled the truck twice. There was no saving it. He emerged with a couple of scratches. Didn't even break a nail. There was no one else in the car and he is extremely lucky to be alive. I instructed him to go to the urgent care and I would meet him there. I got him signed in and because I was having difficulty believing exactly how the accident happened, he freaked out, began getting angry and wanting to leave. I left instead and he had to find his own way home. I didn't see him until late the next night. By that time I had gone to the impound lot, sold the truck for $300 to a junk yard. That paid the $200 tow bill and I gave him the $100 for the truck Saturday night.
On Sunday he wanted to borrow my car. I said no. He said that I didn't trust him. I said that with all of the disrespect, why should I do him a favor? I was doing laundry at the time and he pouted, said some things and walked away. So what he's disgruntled right? I was putting clothes away in my room. He came up from the basement with a loaded shotgun under his chin. He was shouting on how I didn't care about him and I wished he would've died in the accident and he could fix it right then and there. I called the police. By the time the police got there I managed to get the gun away and get them and the ammunition loaded in the trunk of my car. The police agreed that he needed some help and they followed me to the ER. He made a show of himself in the ER, he tried to leave. They had security outside the door because he was so loud. Carrying on about how once he got out I would never see him again. He didn't want to live with me etc. He would then change tactics and cry begging me to take him out of there.
They finally came with an ambulance and took him to a treatment center. He ended up staying for 4 days. CC and I were due to leave on a cruise so I went. I needed the break. It was an absolutely wonderful trip. Even when it rained. :) The Son's father came and stayed with him at the house while I was away. It didn't keep the Son from calling me on the Thursday of my trip accusing me of taking the money from the sale of the truck and MFing and GDing me, calling me a liar, etc. I texted his dad and told him I wasn't having it. He had Morgan text me. "Sorry, I figured it out". That was what I got. That was suppose to be okay. I surely didn't get a call on my birthday or the day after or the day after etc.
Our relationship has been extremely strained and is fraught with disrespect. I love him dearly but I do not like him much at all. Is that a bad thing for a parent to say? Sometimes I just wonder where I went wrong. His father, who initially seemed all put out that I would pay someone to stay with the Son while I am out of town, who was snarky about I "assumed he would be working as it was a weekend", doesn't help. After the initial crisis, basically if Son isn't home the whole time, he sees no point in driving over. I tried to explain about parties, etc. Of course, because it isn't his house he doesn't give a fuck.
The Son called me at my mother's a couple of weeks ago wanting his guns back. I told him no because he had been irresponsible with them. He got mad, cursed me, told me I was stupid, pointing out that the gun wasn't pointed at me it was at him and it was his head and if he wanted to blow it off he would. WELL, that would really help me change my mind.. NOT.
My mother, who heard the who conversation was of course appalled and is scared to death he is going to kill me in my sleep. She gets a bit antsy if I don't call her every couple of days to let her know I'm alive. Of course, Son sees it as me not being about to keep private things private and now he can't get a truck to drive from her and fuck her he won't do a damn thing for her ever again.
I have raised a spoiled entitled brat. He has no sense of personal responsibility so I have failed him as a parent. He is really going to have a hard time in the world because I did not prepare him for how things are. No, he shouldn't talk or treat me the way he does, but in the overall scheme of things, I have failed and the lessons I am trying to squeeze in now while I can are going to be extremely painful to the both of us as a result.
Monday, August 22, 2011
DIY masters!
It was another weekend of work on the house. CC and I finished installing the flooring in the bedroom and got the bedroom put back together before I had to come to the airport. I know I keep promising pictures but I have been lazy about loading them.
I'm currently sitting in the airport waiting for my plane to take me back up north. I hate leaving. I can't stand waiting to hear about the job I interviewed for. I have left several messages and have sent e-mails and have not had any response. It is very frustrating to not have any idea where we are in the whole process. I need to be here with CC. For both of our sakes. It is so hard being apart. The Son will be staying with his friend Kyle. He has no interest in living in Florida. As it is his senior year, of course he wants to finish there. I can understand that. They are showing the house quite a bit. It showed yesterday and today. I am hopeful I can get someone who isn't three contigencies down the line so we can sell and moved to close. The Son will move in with his friend, I will stay with some friends. What furniture doesn't go with the Son will go into storage for him at a later date and time. At least if I get the job I applied for. If not, I may need to sign a lease on an apartment to get us by until I get a position in Tampa. If the house sells, I may have to look outside the company but I don't really want to do that. I have worked there for so long. I have my retirement, seniority etc. and it is a great place to work. I know I'm rambling but I am so ready to move foward with my life. My life with CC has always been long distance minus the few months spent in Indiana before finding our Florida home. I'm ready for us to be together full time, all the time.
I'm currently sitting in the airport waiting for my plane to take me back up north. I hate leaving. I can't stand waiting to hear about the job I interviewed for. I have left several messages and have sent e-mails and have not had any response. It is very frustrating to not have any idea where we are in the whole process. I need to be here with CC. For both of our sakes. It is so hard being apart. The Son will be staying with his friend Kyle. He has no interest in living in Florida. As it is his senior year, of course he wants to finish there. I can understand that. They are showing the house quite a bit. It showed yesterday and today. I am hopeful I can get someone who isn't three contigencies down the line so we can sell and moved to close. The Son will move in with his friend, I will stay with some friends. What furniture doesn't go with the Son will go into storage for him at a later date and time. At least if I get the job I applied for. If not, I may need to sign a lease on an apartment to get us by until I get a position in Tampa. If the house sells, I may have to look outside the company but I don't really want to do that. I have worked there for so long. I have my retirement, seniority etc. and it is a great place to work. I know I'm rambling but I am so ready to move foward with my life. My life with CC has always been long distance minus the few months spent in Indiana before finding our Florida home. I'm ready for us to be together full time, all the time.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
And The Renovation Continues..
I finally made it back home Thursday, the Son and Girlfriend in tow. It has gone relatively smoothly. I can't, however, remember being so ADD when I was young. If I've heard bored once I heard it a dozen times. Friday morning we got up and we all went to the beach. We didn't stay long as the kids were "bored" after a few hours. I don't know if they don't know how to just be with each other or what. There was about 15 minutes of heavy rain which past and they were able to take a wave runner out for 30 minutes but they just couldn't sit still and I guess they don't know how to occupy their time. CC and I are great just sitting and reading and playing a game, drinking a couple of beers etc. but the kids just don't seem to get that. Maybe with time.
Friday night CC and I went to the movies and the kiddos just hung out at the house, stating they were tired. We ordered them a pizza and off we went to see Cowboys and Aliens which is an interesting movie to say the least.
Saturday we woke early, left money for the kids to get lunch and CC and I were off to Ikea to do some heavy duty shopping. (God help us with a clean credit card). We spent 3 hours at Ikea and left quite a bit lighter in the wallet and flooring and wardrobes to be delivered Sunday! Yay! The closet may come together yet! On arriving home, we found the ladder moved in the garage. Apparently, the Son, being as bored as ever, decided climbing the large live oak in the yard sounded like a good idea. After scratching up all exposed skin trying to get started, he went to the garage, took out the ladder and used it to get a start on the tree. I was informed he walked up and down all the long limbs, walked the roof and jumped to the ground. Go figure... Kid gets a death wish when he doesn't even know where to have the ambulance show up should he need one...
Today was filled with activity. I did a bit of housecleaning while CC ran to finish the errands we didn't get to yesterday. The parents came in around 11:30 and Dad helped CC assemble the miter saw table and I hit the pool for an hour with my step mom. The Ikea truck came and everything was unloaded into the living room. We took the kids to the mall for a bit and CC began laying the floor of the infamous closet! We are hoping to get the floor in the closet and the wardrobes assembled tonight. Wish us luck! Pics to come!
Friday night CC and I went to the movies and the kiddos just hung out at the house, stating they were tired. We ordered them a pizza and off we went to see Cowboys and Aliens which is an interesting movie to say the least.
Saturday we woke early, left money for the kids to get lunch and CC and I were off to Ikea to do some heavy duty shopping. (God help us with a clean credit card). We spent 3 hours at Ikea and left quite a bit lighter in the wallet and flooring and wardrobes to be delivered Sunday! Yay! The closet may come together yet! On arriving home, we found the ladder moved in the garage. Apparently, the Son, being as bored as ever, decided climbing the large live oak in the yard sounded like a good idea. After scratching up all exposed skin trying to get started, he went to the garage, took out the ladder and used it to get a start on the tree. I was informed he walked up and down all the long limbs, walked the roof and jumped to the ground. Go figure... Kid gets a death wish when he doesn't even know where to have the ambulance show up should he need one...
Today was filled with activity. I did a bit of housecleaning while CC ran to finish the errands we didn't get to yesterday. The parents came in around 11:30 and Dad helped CC assemble the miter saw table and I hit the pool for an hour with my step mom. The Ikea truck came and everything was unloaded into the living room. We took the kids to the mall for a bit and CC began laying the floor of the infamous closet! We are hoping to get the floor in the closet and the wardrobes assembled tonight. Wish us luck! Pics to come!
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Can You Say... Cardboard?
Life continues to be a whirlwind here. My son, well, a ticket and two calls from police officers in one week, two different incidents. Meeting with probation and court is on the way. I don't even want to think about that now. (That will be a conversation for another day). No right now, life centers on - cardboard.
Cardboard boxes that is. The need for cardboard, tape for cardboard, packing cardboard, stacking cardboard, purchasing more cardboard... I have been packing hot and heavy and it seems the amount of stuff needing packing continues to exceed my supply of cardboard boxes. Packing is only the half of it. As I will have to spend some time in an apartment, I have to divide my household decor, furniture, dishes, my clothes etc. in two. It makes packing ever so much more difficult. Constant decisions to be made. AND, as we are still living here until 5/27, the decision making multiplies. Besides what goes to which state, there is a timing issue to the packing. What can be packed at three weeks, two weeks, etc. Maybe that is why I haven't been feeling so well lately. I have overworked my brain.
Seriously though, I have been having headaches, nausea, malaise.. Generally just feeling kinda yucky off and on for about the last week or so. Strangely enough, it seems to have started around the time of CC's departure to Florida. I told him I'm love sick. :) Some days are better than others. Yesterday was fine until about 3-4 in the afternoon. Then I felt really hot, similar to when you get out of the tanning bed, hot from the inside out and all of the other symptoms hit. I never got right after that.
I miss CC terribly. The packing actually is a blessing as it keeps me busy. It makes the time pass by until I can be with him again. I go to bed early because I know when I wake, I will be one day closer to seeing him. We really are two peas in a pod, two halves of a whole. Life just isn't the same without him here. I know all of this is temporary but it doesn't make it any easier. I don't like being away from him at all. Heck, the team at work notices his absence. Apparently I wear it like a sign for all to see. I'm just not right without him. I leave on Friday to take the dogs down to our new home and CC and I will get to spend our first night together in our new home. I'm very excited! I can't wait to see him. I think this is the first time in my life I have ever looked forward to a 14 hour drive.
Cardboard boxes that is. The need for cardboard, tape for cardboard, packing cardboard, stacking cardboard, purchasing more cardboard... I have been packing hot and heavy and it seems the amount of stuff needing packing continues to exceed my supply of cardboard boxes. Packing is only the half of it. As I will have to spend some time in an apartment, I have to divide my household decor, furniture, dishes, my clothes etc. in two. It makes packing ever so much more difficult. Constant decisions to be made. AND, as we are still living here until 5/27, the decision making multiplies. Besides what goes to which state, there is a timing issue to the packing. What can be packed at three weeks, two weeks, etc. Maybe that is why I haven't been feeling so well lately. I have overworked my brain.
Seriously though, I have been having headaches, nausea, malaise.. Generally just feeling kinda yucky off and on for about the last week or so. Strangely enough, it seems to have started around the time of CC's departure to Florida. I told him I'm love sick. :) Some days are better than others. Yesterday was fine until about 3-4 in the afternoon. Then I felt really hot, similar to when you get out of the tanning bed, hot from the inside out and all of the other symptoms hit. I never got right after that.
I miss CC terribly. The packing actually is a blessing as it keeps me busy. It makes the time pass by until I can be with him again. I go to bed early because I know when I wake, I will be one day closer to seeing him. We really are two peas in a pod, two halves of a whole. Life just isn't the same without him here. I know all of this is temporary but it doesn't make it any easier. I don't like being away from him at all. Heck, the team at work notices his absence. Apparently I wear it like a sign for all to see. I'm just not right without him. I leave on Friday to take the dogs down to our new home and CC and I will get to spend our first night together in our new home. I'm very excited! I can't wait to see him. I think this is the first time in my life I have ever looked forward to a 14 hour drive.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Unsuccessful...
CC and I have been in Florida for the past 5 days. CC had an interview and a site visit and we were going to spend some serious time looking for a house. We arrived on Monday afternoon and drove straight over to Cooter's. They were having all you can eat crab legs so we thought we would dive straight into our vacation. We moved from there to the beach for a couple of hours before heading to the hotel. CC had an interview the next morning followed by a full afternoon of looking at houses. Dad drove over Tuesday and met us at the first house. We traveled around all afternoon without finding anything that suited our needs. Dad wasn't feeling well so he checked into the hotel. We decided to go out to eat. CC received an email from Texas de Brazil. I had never been there before and so we went. The special on the e-mail included a bottle of wine and dessert with our meal. It was SO GOOD! The gauchos walk around with different types of meat that has been roasted on a spit. Beef ribs, sausages, Fillet Mignon, flank steak, roasted lamb, lamb chops, chicken, etc. The list goes on and on. It was a fabulous dinner.
The next day we were back at it again. CC went to a site visit at a hospital that had already offered him a position and we were all off again. We looked and looked and looked. Again, nothing that "spoke" to us. We were very disappointed but what can you do? We had dinner at Cooter's and Dad left to go back home to Orlando that evening.
Thursday was to be our last full day in Tampa so we decided to go out and do something. We decided on the zoo. We arrived late morning and were overwhelmed by the number of buses and school children running around. I decided maybe the zoo wasn't such a great idea. (At least not at that time of day) and we decided to drive around looking at homes in areas we knew we liked. We saw some homes in Hyde Park that were extremely expensive. We were priced out of that area pretty quick. Most of Ybor is condos and apartments. We hit up Old Clearwater Beach and found a couple fixer uppers that could potentially work....
Then we saw it! We found this house in the Largo area.
This house absolutely rocks! It is a foreclosure and we were able to look in all of the windows. It has high ceilings, all tiled floor, granite counters, stainless steel appliances and an outdoor kitchen. This particular piece of property also sits on a lake and is only 3 miles from the hospital that interviewed CC.
We were very taken with this house. Finally! Something we like that is in our price range. I know I was wanting to downsize (this house is 3,000 sq ft. same as my current house), but wow! Can you say Wow? It was something we decided we had to have. I called my father. We were going to put a bid on this house without even going in. We figured that anything major will be found on the inspection and we would be able to really decide at that time. Daylight is burning and my current home is pending so sooner rather than later right? Wrong....
Dad called back not long after my original call to tell me this home was built with Chinese drywall... What? Chinese drywall? Really?
Apparently at one time there was a shortage of drywall (between 2001-2007) and drywall was
imported from China. This drywall, come to find out has something in it that when it comes into contact with humidity or moisture (Florida is just chock full of that), it releases a gas and liquid. Sulfuric acid! It eats all the copper and silver in the house. It requires remediation in order to properly fix the issue. So... That means drywall, molding, carpet, tiles, vinyl, appliances, mirrors, wiring, copper plumbing, any electronics that were in the house, etc. Basically stripping out the entire inside of the house to studs and rebuilding. This is a bank owned property. They said they got an estimate for remediation on this house and the figure they were given is 130k... 130k!!! Holy cow! CC and I have gone over all of the numbers, what we can offer on the house in order to have the money to fix it. It is practically haunting us. We just can't make the math work so we are passing on this house. Damn... I really hope the third time is the charm.
The next day we were back at it again. CC went to a site visit at a hospital that had already offered him a position and we were all off again. We looked and looked and looked. Again, nothing that "spoke" to us. We were very disappointed but what can you do? We had dinner at Cooter's and Dad left to go back home to Orlando that evening.
Thursday was to be our last full day in Tampa so we decided to go out and do something. We decided on the zoo. We arrived late morning and were overwhelmed by the number of buses and school children running around. I decided maybe the zoo wasn't such a great idea. (At least not at that time of day) and we decided to drive around looking at homes in areas we knew we liked. We saw some homes in Hyde Park that were extremely expensive. We were priced out of that area pretty quick. Most of Ybor is condos and apartments. We hit up Old Clearwater Beach and found a couple fixer uppers that could potentially work....
Then we saw it! We found this house in the Largo area.
This house absolutely rocks! It is a foreclosure and we were able to look in all of the windows. It has high ceilings, all tiled floor, granite counters, stainless steel appliances and an outdoor kitchen. This particular piece of property also sits on a lake and is only 3 miles from the hospital that interviewed CC.
We were very taken with this house. Finally! Something we like that is in our price range. I know I was wanting to downsize (this house is 3,000 sq ft. same as my current house), but wow! Can you say Wow? It was something we decided we had to have. I called my father. We were going to put a bid on this house without even going in. We figured that anything major will be found on the inspection and we would be able to really decide at that time. Daylight is burning and my current home is pending so sooner rather than later right? Wrong....Dad called back not long after my original call to tell me this home was built with Chinese drywall... What? Chinese drywall? Really?
Apparently at one time there was a shortage of drywall (between 2001-2007) and drywall was
imported from China. This drywall, come to find out has something in it that when it comes into contact with humidity or moisture (Florida is just chock full of that), it releases a gas and liquid. Sulfuric acid! It eats all the copper and silver in the house. It requires remediation in order to properly fix the issue. So... That means drywall, molding, carpet, tiles, vinyl, appliances, mirrors, wiring, copper plumbing, any electronics that were in the house, etc. Basically stripping out the entire inside of the house to studs and rebuilding. This is a bank owned property. They said they got an estimate for remediation on this house and the figure they were given is 130k... 130k!!! Holy cow! CC and I have gone over all of the numbers, what we can offer on the house in order to have the money to fix it. It is practically haunting us. We just can't make the math work so we are passing on this house. Damn... I really hope the third time is the charm.
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