Stars, Sails - the Parallax View

A family of astronomers at sea... coming soon to a galaxy near you...

28 May 2020 | Fort Myers, FL
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25 May 2018 | Fort Myers, SW FL
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07 November 2012 | Fort Myers, FL

House on the Horizon

14 September 2012 | Fort Myers, FL
Heather / partly cloudy and 88F
We think we've found the house. We've made an offer and the amount has been accepted (after negotiations), but of course if you've ever done this, that's just the beginning. We were pre-approved for a higher amount, so from the microscopic-examination-of-our-finances aspect, this phase isn't as awful as it could be, but the house had to be inspected (just got done, and Hank has already sent us the report. How cool is that?!), and then an insurer has to agree to insure it...first snag.

USAA has insured our home before, the previous one we bought in Colorado, with never a worry, but now they want every item on the very thorough home inspection "fixed" before they will proceed. Items such as "two bathroom bulbs burnt out" and "some exterior fencing is rotting at the bottom" (yes, that is not actually part of the house). All fixed, or they could not possibly write us a policy. And then, "Wait, you said southwest Florida? We don't even write policies there! We have an affiliate who does it, you go get all of those items fixed (um, we can't do it, we do not own the house, lady), and then come back..."

So, despite the fact that the inspector's overall assessment was that this house is in far better shape than most other houses he inspects, we will be going to someone else for our insurance. We did what made sense, and asked our buyer's agent who, locally, would insure houses after our very thorough inspector Hank got through inspecting them :-) After all, she's been through this many times!

So now we have a very nice local agent (call him Bruce) who will find us an insurer. Tacked down for the moment, more attention next week...

On to the next thing (in between massive bouts of signing stuff), the Wood Destroying Organisms (aka "pest") inspection. Happened the same day as the home inspection, but Rob was working on his own (Hank has his very capable daughter Tara entering data into the forms they use, as he roams the house, telling her through their little headset communicators what he is seeing -- another great leap forward due to consumer electronics!), so although Rob walked us through his results (no bugs. That fence should be ripped out or replaced, though, with something that doesn't rot), we don't actually have his report yet. In the old days, we would not be expecting it for another week, anyway.

One of the neighbors has a very nice-looking fence, with wood grain and all, and you have to actually go up and knock on it to discover it's some manmade material. Solid, too, not some icky flimsy thing. A possibilty.

So, that's where we are -- mid-muddling. The owners are collecting quotes on what it will take to fix the few things that do need addressing (there's a leak in the corner of the roof over the pool deck -- it's outside, but it's a leak, so it can do damage and has to be fixed. They intend to have it fixed, so no problem; with luck, they will use someone who guarantees his/her work for a certain period of time). We are filling out forms that tell our lending institution all about us. Our agent is reminding our loan officer that the appraisal has to happen within the next week or so -- the loan officer is the one who contacts the appraiser and schedules the appraisal. The appraisal is a big deal, because the house has to appraise close to (or somewhat above) the amount we offered in order for the VA to approve the loan in fact rather than in theory (we already have their theoretical approval -- that was part of the pre-approval process).

It's an interesting situation -- we want the appraisal to come in pretty much at the amount we offered, because if it's significantly lower, the lower amount is all the VA will finance. It was one of the reasons we really had to bargain with the sellers, who had priced the house fairly high -- due in part to a lovely remodel that the wife, who is a professional designer with a wonderful eye, had accomplished over the year she had owned it. The good news is, they will still make money on the house, and that's pretty impressive for only owning it a year and completing a renovation. It's almost like "flip this house," only I suspect they were actually intending to live there. Happily, there are still lots of projects left for me to do (and thanks, Kris, for having a book on decorating in the guest room -- I took notes and it was very instructive)! There is an unremodeled exterior counter on a passthrough from the kitchen that is just begging for updating, the owners (for whatever reason: I think the designer-lady designed and sewed them herself) decided to take not only the drapes (those are easy to refit for wherever they go) but also the drapery poles and mounts (huh?!), which are huge because of the slider doors everywhere. No problem, I have already done online research on that -- but normally covering all those windows (and obtaining ten to twelve-foot drapery mounting rods!) would cost us between $2000 and $6000, so that part was kind of a blow. I hope they don't wind up unable to use those extra long poles in their new home -- most houses are sold with at least the stuff you would otherwise have to unscrew attached, and the drapes were actually mentioned as included in the original listing. It would be strange if they were not already included in whatever place they move to -- but maybe the designer-lady would rather have her own, and that also makes sense, as long as they fit the space. Anyway, they also announced they would be taking their washer and dryer, which were both old and covered in stickers from their university days...? Guess they didn't like our first offer much, after all. But it was in line with the square feet and the neighborhood, and we were expecting to come up -- we just wanted to leave room to do that, with the VA's appraisal issues in mind. And our timeline fits their own needs very well -- they were not planning on leaving for their new place until at least the end of October.

So, there we are, all is in train. But not on boat.
Comments
Vessel Name: Parallax
Vessel Make/Model: 37' Prout Snowgoose (1982)
Hailing Port: Pensacola
Crew: Derek, Heather and Grant
About:
Two astronomers, looking for variable stars and adventure. After cruising the Caribbean aboard S/V Paradox for 18 months in the early 90s, the crew swallowed the anchor and had a child, always planning their next Great Adventure: cruising under sail with Grant, showing him the world. [...]
Extra:
We knew that if we ever got a catamaran, we'd want a name to celebrate her twin-hulledness. Parallax is seeing the same thing from two slightly different points of view, which with our two eyes is what gives humans our depth perception. It's also a good metaphor for one of the benefits of marriage. [...]

S/V Parallax

Who: Derek, Heather and Grant
Port: Pensacola