We Nabbed One–Maybe

There is a house on the north side of Salem we looked at a couple weeks ago. It is a HUD house which means a foreclosure and now the government owns it. Finally we decided to look again and take a friend with us who is the one who will draw whatever is necessary for Ginger to live there. The house is big – 1785 square feet; the lot is huge – .27 acres. It is 3 bedrooms, 2 baths with a living room, dining room, family room, fireplace with a gas insert, laundry room in the house, and of course a kitchen. The double car garage is huge also. The interior needs painting to hide the purple with lavender polka dot wall in the bedroom and the other weird colors. We’ll probably remove part of the carpet and put down laminate flooring. The kitchen cabinets will eventually need replacing but are okay for now.

We will need to add on so Ginger has her space but there is lots of room on the lot and room in the budget to do it (or so I figure!). We still  need to get an inspection and if it shows too many hidden things we will back out. That’s why I put the “maybe” at the top. We already know a few things that will need to be taken care of – like insulation in the attic.

HUD is kind of different in the way they do things (remember they are a government entity!!!). When they listed the house they gave 10 days to receive offers. They collected all those and after the 10 day period considered them based solely on the amount offered. At our agent’s suggestion we offered more than the asking  price. Offers are submitted via computer and website. The 10 day period ended at 10:00 last night (we submitted ours with 1 day and 9 hours remaining). Monday morning we got  a phone call from our realtor that we “won.” Were there any other offers? We’ll never know. Did we offer way too much? Well, as far as other offers, we don’t know. As far as value, no. This morning (Tuesday) we submitted the paper work just like we would in a normal transaction – earnest money, preapproval letter, etc.  etc.

Here are some external pictures – the interior ones will have to wait until we have easy access. Obviously this is the front, the next one is back, and final one is our back yard. Lots of land to take care of. What am I thinking?? Yes, that is an apple tree in the center. There are also a couple others – all of them need pruning.

How am I feeling? Thanks for asking. And thanks for your caring and concern. I am either back to normal (whatever that is) or very, very close. I have been walking every evening (sometimes with Joyce). Not as far as I need to but I’m working myself up to my 1.0 to 1.4 miles. I saw the doc the other day. This is the new one we had never met but had to have to escape the hospital. I think he will be a good family doctor. He basically said I can do whatever I feel like doing. He answered a bunch of questions: Where did the clot in my leg come from? They just happen sometimes. How will I know when it is gone? They assume it is gone after a few months and the ones in my lung are gone when I feel better (probably gone now). I am humbled by everyone’s concern.

Last Friday we had a Senior Adult Picnic Potluck (indoors at the church). Attendance was down but the fun was up. Everyone had a good time and the food was delicious.

One question I asked in the Picnic Trivia contest was what was the biggest hamburger ever made? Answer: the record for the largest hamburger is held by Rutland, North Dakota. In 1982, the town made the World's Largest Hamburger, 3,591 pounds, which was consumed by some 8,000 people!

I don’t think they barbecued it. But happy barbecuing to you.