Talk about a roller coaster of a week. I got my hair done last Thursday, and it was the first time I’ve gone since my hair girl died. It was pretty sad, to be honest. And my hair looks nice, but it’s not the same. I do miss Stacey on every level.
On Saturday, Tag and I started our Florida house-hunting adventure, and it was an awesome trip. Side note, we rented a BMW; if you’ve never driven one, give it a go. It’s nice and was only like 20 bucks more than a Hyundai.
Anyway, we went to Mt. Dora first, a super cute town, but the house wasn’t so great. We drove through Winter Park, which was lovely. No houses to see there, just a cool place.
Then, we went to Clermont to drive by the lake house we’ve been eyeing; it’s priced too high, there’s no pool, and the house is across the street from the lake, not on it. The area itself is stunning, but it was a hard pass on the house.
So, we went to Kissimmee, where our Airbnb was for the night, and had a lovely, short evening (we were beat). Got up early to see two homes in Davenport, close to Disney. Both houses were lackluster at best. And there’s tons of competition there, so neither was worth buying.
We ended up searching online and found another place we liked. It’s in a complex called Champions Gate and has tons of amenities. It’s close to Disney, too. It’s pretty perfect for an Airbnb. It has its own pool and is priced well. So, we jumped on it. But after getting the current Airbnb numbers and realizing we could barely cover the mortgage, we had to give another pass. Wiggle room is essential when purchasing an income property.
Next, we ventured to Springhill and saw the house we’ve been the most excited about, and it did not disappoint. It’s gorgeous. It has loads of great updates, a pool, 3 possibly 4 bedrooms, fabulous landscaping; I mean, it has it all. The neighboring houses were a little suspect; that’s the only downside. But, the area is close to Tampa (45 minutes), close to Palm Island (25 minutes, with a beach), and Weeki Wachee with a water park and lots of hiking and biking and manatees.
We went to another property in the area, and it was nice on the inside but had zero curb appeal.
So, we went to dinner, had some discussions, did some research, and determined that buying the first property in Springhill would likely be a very strategic move, even in the heart of suburbia. So, the offer has been made! Exciting, but not for long, as you are about to find out.
On Monday, our last day (we left at 6 pm), we drove from Tampa to Clearwater to Largo to St. Pete to Apollo Beach to the airport. You guys ever gotten a sub from #Publix? This needs to be on your bucket list. Best grocery store sub you’ll ever get and arguably the best sub in the world you’ll ever get. It all ended on a high note. Mission accomplished.
Then, we got home. After all the hoop-jumping and finally finding our FL dream house, our condo that was under contract was terminated yesterday. This is bad because it’s how we’re able to afford the Florida property. Not good news.
Our agent in Florida is aware of all and is helping us come up with solutions. But, this is just a huge bummer. We’re now back on the market with our condo and need to get under contract ASAP. We have a kick-out clause put in with the FL house, which means if another buyer comes along, they can kick us out and accept the other offer. That said, they haven’t accepted our offer yet anyway.
Other than that drama, we’re ready to go. Maybe this is all a blessing in disguise. Our initial condo buyers had an FHA loan which would close after 45 days, and that’s a long time. Other buyers could close way earlier; we hope to get under contract this weekend. Fingers crossed. I’d love to close on both places before we go to Sweden the beginning of July.
Stressful beyond belief because in this mix is the fast I’m doing. I’m on day three of no food. Am I thinking clearly? Who’s to say?
I did have a few little wins this week, however:
- Kids are in camp.
- Sterling lost a tooth and you would think he just found out he is a super hero he is so excited.
- Went to the grocery store and realized I had no wallet, so decided to use my Apple Pay; Natural Grocers doesn’t take Apple Pay, had them hold the groceries, went to my car, found a $50 gift card, went back in, groceries came to just over $100, the worker said he’d pay the rest for me and I could just Apple Pay him back, tried Apple Pay again before doing that and it was taken, worker forgot that Apple Pay only works on $99.99 or less purchases. Moral of the story: got my groceries and was grateful for the significant effort and kindness of the worker. Also, where there’s a will there’s a way.
- My solid effort to avoid stress and do the right thing is helping me get through all this back and forth in my life right now.
- Mommy/kid summer days start tomorrow, and I’m looking forward to it! Tag is out tonight, so we’re actually starting with snuggles and movies tonight. Tomorrow we’re going to The Nature and Science Museum.
Book Club
Reading? Ha! Good one.
Colorado Realtor Activity
I talked about some realtor’y stuff above, but here’s what’s going on that doesn’t have to do with my own realtor ‘y stuff:
As if the above house-buying stuff isn’t bad enough, one of my listings that was supposed to close very soon ran into some very costly issues, so we’re not sure it’ll end up going through. I’m gonna pitch in much of my commission to help out if the buyers want to move forward. My clients are in another state looking at houses now, so this loss will set back their plans and I am gutted. Stress meter level 10.
On the plus side, I have the possibility to work with one of my clients on developing some land, and I’m excited about the opportunity. We’re talking about it next week, so I’ll be sure to let you know how that goes.
I got a call from a Facebook listing to see a property last Friday, they loved it, but they’re brand new to their search, so we’re going to start working together.
I’ve got a couple of other good things and clients on the horizon that I can’t get into too much just yet, but you’ll hear all about it soon.
That’s it, and that’s enough, don’t you think!? I hope you guys are well, managing your stress like a boss, and enjoying some summertime fun (even though it snowed up here yesterday, and I mean, are you serious??)! See you here next week with some better news and good updates!
