My Sellers Did Sign

Since I have gotten back from Michigan, I have been running around, working 12 plus hours a day. This is not a complaint. I am blessed with work. What is a complaint is the number of new agents out there who seem to be still stuck emotionally in junior high.

For example, I talked to Alexa today. I happen to know she is a new agent, so I have been pretty patient with her rookie-ness. Today, the only reason I ended up talking to her was because she would not stop texting me. Her text messages went like this.

Alexa: Did you get my inspection report?

Me: Yes. I will call you later.

Alexa: Are the sellers going to sign it?

Me: I can't talk right now, can I call you later? I don't think it will be an issue.

Alexa: But they haven't signed it???  (the sellers have five days to sign it. It had been less than twelve hours since I received it).

Me: I can't talk right now. No. They haven't signed. I will call you later. There is not an issue from what I can see.

Alexa: Is there a problem???

Before I can answer, Alexa is calling me. I respond with a text saying, "I can't talk right now."

Alexa: Are the sellers backing out? Is that why they haven't signed it?

Three seconds later...

Alexa: My buyer is freaking out (yes, those are her words). What is going on that the seller hasn't signed the inspection report?

Me: It's all good. I can't talk right now. I will call you in an hour.

The phone promptly rings. I ignore. Not a minute longer another text message.

Alexa: I thought this was going well. I am shocked. We (she and I) have been getting along so well.

Finally I called her. I even used the phrase, "Bless your heart, I know you are just chomping at the bit to get this house sold. I so appreciate it... Your clients are lucky to have you." I never did manage to convince her that my client really does have five days to respond. I can tell you, this can't close fast enough.

Long Term Gratification

There were three bills that were not covered in the bankruptcy. Two were 401k loans we took out that were related to the accidental business. We still have the loans. But we pay ourselves back. The other is the leased car we have. The car was leased at the advice of our attorney who assured us we would lose it if we purchased it outright. Actually, the only reason we got this car was that our other vehicle (the one we replaced) had an airbag issue and I wasn't about to let Polly drive a car with defective airbags. Otherwise, we would have still had that car.

Speaking of cars, our transportation situation is tentative. For three people working, we have one standard transmission car which Marty and I can skillfully drive. Polly is struggling with learning a stick shift. We also have the 2016 leased vehicle with limited mileage. Polly can drive that one. And does. I also do a fair bit of driving and as much as I like the standard transmission car, it sits low to the ground and manual transmission cars don't necessarily feel safe in heavy traffic. So, Polly and I share the good car. The true issue with the leased car is we are penalized if we go over our allotted miles per year. This wouldn't be an issue if we had a third car or a car Polly could safely drive the 1996 Camry--which she has successfully proven is not in her wheelhouse just yet. What we really need is: 1) Polly to learn to drive the manual so she can put miles on that one and 2) another vehicle.

These three bills (the two 401ks and the penalty for the additional mileage on the leased vehicle) are holdovers from our financial choices. With any luck (and a lot of real estate sales) I will be paying back the first of the two loans in the next couple of months. After that, comes the second loan. Then we save for another car. My personal goal is to have a third vehicle by April. We have calculated, it isn't feasible to keep the 401k loans and get a third car, for no other reason than our monthly insurance skyrockets and we will be cash strapped longer.

Of course, we could buy another car on payments right now. This week I was desperate enough to consider it. But getting another car sooner than later doesn't change a couple of realities. First, I can't guarantee I won't have a self-loathing issue if I have car payments, especially in light of why I have car payments. And second, it doesn't change the fact our monthly insurance bill will be higher than the monthly car payments. I can comfortably afford one, but not both. At this time, I realize we are stuck in our situation for a few more months. We have survived this issue since June. We can make it a bit longer.

Blessed with Work

In case it ever comes up, the absolute fastest way to get busy in real estate is to leave town. Yesterday, my first day back in Arizona, I:

• negotiated a contract for my seller
• wrote an offer for my buyer
• verified in another house that the AC and Heat did indeed work. I then wrote an inspection notice for this property
• drove more than 180 miles and never left the metro area
• had text message chats with five different agents all between the hours of 8 and 10 p.m. 
• sent 7 documents out to be signed and then sent them to their respective parties who were waiting on signed documents
• set up showing appointments for today (because squeezing in more showings yesterday would have been unfair to my unsuspecting client who also wants to buy a home. I simply ran out of time.)
• agreed to hold open two homes this weekend--neither of which are listings belonging to my brokerage. But both are from agents I am friendly with and think of me when they need an open house. 

Oh yea, I delivered an envelope with a five pound report, that basically said I am being sued to my lawyer in the middle of this. I am told not to worry, but I am fretting.

Today my day started with text messages at 6 a.m. from the agent who was looking at the contract I wrote yesterday and had (reasonable) questions. I am so happy to be working. I am feeding my family. I like having a job with flexibility. I was able to help Polly with her biology and take Buckaroo to golf today. An office job might be a bit saner, but I wouldn't be around to see my kids grow up.

This Past Week

Buckaroo being Buckaroo

Buckaroo and I went to the second knuckle of the index finger of the Michigan mitten this past week to visit Mr. Reader Number 2. He was up there, minding his own business, getting used to be a widower--if one gets used to that kind of thing. It has been exactly two months today since Reader Number 2 closed her eyes for the last time.

I haven't recovered from her passing. And to be fair, if I haven't, you can imagine what MRN2 must be going through loosing his wife after 53 years of marriage.

Buckaroo lifting a VERY heavy log. 

Anyway, we went to mid-state Michigan (there is still the whole upper peninsula above where we were) to keep him company or something. We also helped with the garden, made jigsaw puzzles, read--I am currently binge-reading Grisham--, cried a lot and laughed more. MRN2 (you know that stands for Mr. Reader Number 2, right?--it is just a lot to write), told me I am still a part of his family and I should never, ever, think otherwise. It was nice to hear even if I knew it already.

We drug Buckaroo to the Lumberman's Monument on the Au Sable River, Iargo Springs, the Civilian Conservation Corp's Memorial and Hartwick Pines National Forest. Buckaroo, in turn, drug me to a corn maze. And oh yes, there may have been ice cream. Michigan really should be known for their ice cream. As soon as I finish this blog I am going to contact their chamber of commerce. They are missing out on a huge opportunity.

The weather was simply beautiful. The wildlife was kinda cool too. Except the five snakes I saw in one day. I could have lived without that. There were deer, raccoons, possums and porcupines roaming around.

I am already missing MRN2 I heard from him today and his e-mail made me smile. He is a nice byproduct of 30 years of friendship with Reader Number Two.

The Lowest

Please understand, this is an observation, not a complaint. We are broke. Consciously. Purposely. And it sucks--but that is also an observation. I would like to say we are at our lowest. We are two weeks out of a debilitating bankruptcy we never expected to have to do. So, truly all we can do is go up from here.

The last time we were so cash strapped was when Polly was a baby and we were scraping together spare change to buy a pack of diapers. Even in 2008 when we were eating bread and tomatoes for dinner because things had spiraled down, we weren't this cash strapped.

Part of the reason for this week's maddening bank account implosion is that I had to transfer money to a pre-paid Visa so I could rent a car for my upcoming trip. I also needed to put enough money on the same card to buy Buckaroo food once we got there--because he eats everything. So essentially, a good portion of our excess cash for this paycheck is stored in the pre-paid Visa. As a point of fact, we didn't have a grocery bill this week because I cooked a chicken and we are munching on that (and we have veggies and rice from last week left over). So, the entire grocery budget is shifted.

However, we had to break into our emergency stash (which is now depleted because of this trip and will need to be restored soon) to take this trip. One might think this trip is frivolous. But the Sunshines know better. It is necessary. Mr. Reader Number Two is worth every penny of our expense. And more. Buckaroo, a strapping 14 year old, is coming as slave labor because Mr. Reader Number Two is in his mid-70s and possibly could use a break on his garden. Grief changes perspective. And taking care of others is worth the price the Sunshines are paying. Our issue is short-term.

I have in the past prided myself on paying bills, budgeting and doing all the financial stuff grown-ups do. I am not talking about the basics of investing or saving for a rainy day. We will once again have an emergency fund and a savings account. Thank God we had the money set aside to go help Mr. Reader Number Two! We are only two weeks out of a bankruptcy and we can only go up from here.

Realtor Problems

My clients put in a lowball offer yesterday for the home they wanted. The reason--which had nothing to do with the price--was because it was Sunday. They had no way to get in touch with their probation officer to make sure the home would be approved by those who needed to approve it. Therefore, they put in a low offer to give themselves an extra day or so, in case probation doesn't get back to them right away. This way they can negotiate a little bit longer.

The Last Week of August, 2017

The last week of August will go down in my history as one of the best. First, my dad turned 80. It was great to go and celebrate the man I admire and love so much. He is a wealth of historical knowledge (I happened to be related to Samuel Champlain and Sacajawea's husband), a talented artist and a practical joker. Our party was a small affair, but it was so much fun.  We had family, cake and a Dad trivia game. My brothers and I (and spouses), had an after-party, sponsored by amaretto. Amaretto did well. My liver did not.

But the end of August will not only go down in history for my potential liver failure, but also because after a year and three months of madness, my pool has been fixed. The quick backstory was we paid someone to remodel the pool. They went out of business. Normally that isn't an issue, all one has to do is contact the Registrar of Contractors, wade through red tape and bureaucratic policy and voila! One gets reimbursed so the pool can be completed. Unfortunately, there is a slight hiccup to that. If the company that takes your money and then files bankruptcy and then decides to include you in the bankruptcy, there is a lot more  red tape and bureaucratic policy. There are also judges and lawyers involved. There is also some nifty document titled "stay", which I don't know exactly what it does, but we needed one so that the Registrar of Contractors would actually look at our case. We gave them that document in February. We got the pool finished last week.

Also last week a dear, dear friend--one of my favorite people, actually--and is sweet wife came to visit. They were able to squeeze us in during their marathon dash through town and on to the Pacific Northwest where they will begin the next chapter of their lives. Even though the visit was only a few hours, it kept me on a high all week.

And finally, if last week couldn't have been ducky enough of the above three events, there is a fourth. We received a letter from the courts telling us our Accidental Business is officially closed. Of course, we really aren't welcome in a particular Southern state after all this either, but I am good with that. Last time I was there was December and I wasn't willing to give them a penny of my money and insisted we fill up in gas in Pascagula and eat our dinner in Pensacola. If anyone had to go to take a pit stop, they were out of luck, I was driving and I wasn't stopping in that state.

When I got the joyous letter, I sang an impromptu song to the tune of "Bear Down Arizona", which 1) is not appropriate for mixed company and 2) astonished members of my family who had no earthly clue I knew the University of Arizona's flight song. Frankly, my words were pretty interchangeable in some places--especially if you are an Arizona State fan. Anyway, the business is closed and I think I will go for a swim to celebrate.