T-27 days
I can't believe we are just 4 weeks out from closing!
About a week or two ago we decided to switch loan products. Originally we were going to go with a conventional loan backed by PHFA (PA Housing something or other) to avoid having PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance), with the idea that this would result in a lower monthly payment than an FHA loan. Plus, we could avoid the dreaded FHA appraisal, which does more than just check the value of the home, it includes a mini-inspection to check for safety issues. However, the interest rate on the conventional loan was MUCH higher than the FHA loan. So although the FHA loan would require a little more money at closing (3.5% down payment vs 3%), our monthly payment sits at about $40 per month CHEAPER. This means a savings of $480 per year, which far outweighs any extra money we would pay at closing.
Our expected payment for mortgage, taxes, insurance and PMI would amount to $615. This is a $160 a month savings in what we pay for rent, which was likely to go up this year!! I acknowledge though, that we are really breaking even. We now have to pay for water/sewer/garbage, which is probably $50-$75/month, plus the increased electricity and heating bill simply because we are moving to a larger home, easily twice the square footage. Makes me extremely grateful that we were able to include the coal stove with the house, because that should hopefully give us substantial savings on how much oil we use to heat the house.
As far as the inspection-discovered repairs go, the seller basically agreed to fix everything but the gutters. At first Tony was not happy about this, as the gutter installation could run $500-$1000 depending on whether the existing partial gutters need to be replaced. But its not an urgent repair, as the house has been without gutters for who knows how long. My agent said it wasn't an urgent repair and could wait until spring/summer. After doing some of my own research, barring my apprehension of maintaining my balance on super tall ladders, I'm pretty certain that this is something my dad can do/help with. We are waiting to meet with the agent to re-write the inspection repairs agreement, which we should do either today or tomorrow.
The day before yesterday, we gave the go-ahead to start the appraisal. Another gut wrenching wait, as it will take 1-2 weeks for the appointment to be scheduled, appraisal completed, and report made available. The thing I suspect they will flag is that the lower part of the stairs have no railing, specifically because its just a few feet from the coal stove. I don't think however, that this is an expensive item to install, since its only a landing and 2 steps. Picture for clarification.
I'm very slowly packing non essentials: décor items, half of the girls' books, things from the kitchen I don't use daily, DVD's, seasonal holiday items, etc. I have about 15 extra small and small boxes packed. At first I was annoyed at the size of the boxes, but they are free, from Tony's job and I realized that the smaller boxes actually helps keep the packing organized. I bought this awesome set of Labeling Tape from Amazon that makes identifying which boxes go into which room VERY easy.
I also bought a plastic bin for $5 from Ollie's. This will actually be my "moving-in essentials" bin. Ill put things like cleaning products, paper towel, toilet paper, etc plus other stuff. It may contain more or less stuff because we are not moving as soon as we close.
After we close, we have to at minimum wait for the appliances, and we may or may not wait until we paint, depending on when my dad is available to help. My living room feels crowded now, but the things currently in my living room are actually going into 3 different rooms when we move. This means we actually wont have much furniture and stuff in my living room, so that it wont be difficult to paint even with our stuff there.
More important to me than painting, is getting the kitchen set up. Right now there is very little countertop space, which I don't think Tony understands just how much they bother me. So much so, that when I discovered that Lowe's had a sale on their cabinets (25% off!!) I convinced him to let me buy the base cabinets we need that would add, saving me over $100. This will give me over 6 feet of usable countertop space. I need my dad to help with setting up the plumbing for the dishwasher but I know he's going to end up staying to help with installation of everything else because he's a sucker for his girls :-). The current countertop-less kitchen corner and my rendition of what I would like that side of my kitchen to look like:
My bestie will come with me to pick up the cabinets and store them in her garage until I move. Benefit? I will use that opportunity to prep the cabinets. Sand and paint them in her garage, and then just seal them once we have installed them. Bless her SUV, her garage, and her heart!
Let me stop procrastinating, I have to finish a pharmacology power point on diabetes medications, a test on Monday, pants (and maybe food) shopping, wash the girls' hair, and sneak in some work. It never ends!
About a week or two ago we decided to switch loan products. Originally we were going to go with a conventional loan backed by PHFA (PA Housing something or other) to avoid having PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance), with the idea that this would result in a lower monthly payment than an FHA loan. Plus, we could avoid the dreaded FHA appraisal, which does more than just check the value of the home, it includes a mini-inspection to check for safety issues. However, the interest rate on the conventional loan was MUCH higher than the FHA loan. So although the FHA loan would require a little more money at closing (3.5% down payment vs 3%), our monthly payment sits at about $40 per month CHEAPER. This means a savings of $480 per year, which far outweighs any extra money we would pay at closing.
Our expected payment for mortgage, taxes, insurance and PMI would amount to $615. This is a $160 a month savings in what we pay for rent, which was likely to go up this year!! I acknowledge though, that we are really breaking even. We now have to pay for water/sewer/garbage, which is probably $50-$75/month, plus the increased electricity and heating bill simply because we are moving to a larger home, easily twice the square footage. Makes me extremely grateful that we were able to include the coal stove with the house, because that should hopefully give us substantial savings on how much oil we use to heat the house.
As far as the inspection-discovered repairs go, the seller basically agreed to fix everything but the gutters. At first Tony was not happy about this, as the gutter installation could run $500-$1000 depending on whether the existing partial gutters need to be replaced. But its not an urgent repair, as the house has been without gutters for who knows how long. My agent said it wasn't an urgent repair and could wait until spring/summer. After doing some of my own research, barring my apprehension of maintaining my balance on super tall ladders, I'm pretty certain that this is something my dad can do/help with. We are waiting to meet with the agent to re-write the inspection repairs agreement, which we should do either today or tomorrow.
The day before yesterday, we gave the go-ahead to start the appraisal. Another gut wrenching wait, as it will take 1-2 weeks for the appointment to be scheduled, appraisal completed, and report made available. The thing I suspect they will flag is that the lower part of the stairs have no railing, specifically because its just a few feet from the coal stove. I don't think however, that this is an expensive item to install, since its only a landing and 2 steps. Picture for clarification.
 |
| See that black line at the bottom right of the picture, next to the kid car? That is the edge of the coal stove. |
I also bought a plastic bin for $5 from Ollie's. This will actually be my "moving-in essentials" bin. Ill put things like cleaning products, paper towel, toilet paper, etc plus other stuff. It may contain more or less stuff because we are not moving as soon as we close.
After we close, we have to at minimum wait for the appliances, and we may or may not wait until we paint, depending on when my dad is available to help. My living room feels crowded now, but the things currently in my living room are actually going into 3 different rooms when we move. This means we actually wont have much furniture and stuff in my living room, so that it wont be difficult to paint even with our stuff there.
More important to me than painting, is getting the kitchen set up. Right now there is very little countertop space, which I don't think Tony understands just how much they bother me. So much so, that when I discovered that Lowe's had a sale on their cabinets (25% off!!) I convinced him to let me buy the base cabinets we need that would add, saving me over $100. This will give me over 6 feet of usable countertop space. I need my dad to help with setting up the plumbing for the dishwasher but I know he's going to end up staying to help with installation of everything else because he's a sucker for his girls :-). The current countertop-less kitchen corner and my rendition of what I would like that side of my kitchen to look like:
My bestie will come with me to pick up the cabinets and store them in her garage until I move. Benefit? I will use that opportunity to prep the cabinets. Sand and paint them in her garage, and then just seal them once we have installed them. Bless her SUV, her garage, and her heart!
Let me stop procrastinating, I have to finish a pharmacology power point on diabetes medications, a test on Monday, pants (and maybe food) shopping, wash the girls' hair, and sneak in some work. It never ends!
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