Monday, April 20, 2009

On the precipice of dashed dreams

So, bad news. Our bank has yet to give us a commitment, and we are supposed to close in less than two weeks. We're not going to make the deadline and the sellers won't give us an extension.

The only compromise is if we pay a per diem of $100 a day after the scheduled closing day until the actual date we close. Eddie is fed up and just wants to kill the deal, while I feel like we're so close, we should just keep at it. Keep your fingers crossed!

Thursday, April 9, 2009

OUR HOUSE!!!

We have the cutest house on the block. Srsly.



The bedroom:



Close-up of the fireplace:




One of the three fireplaces on the first floor (coal burning):



The living room - these windows face the front of the house:



French doors opening to the hallway. The light on the left is coming from the front door:



The bank is supposed to give an unconditional commitment by April 15th. After that, there is a pretty high chance of closing. Whoo-hoo!

Work-arounds and Free Money

Mortgage crisis update: we figured out that we can use the first-time homebuyer tax incentive to cover the additional funds that we need. Luckily, Eddie hadn't filed his taxes yet, so once that money gets direct-deposited, we just need to send our bank a copy of his bank statement showing the additional funds. Crisis averted!

Contractor crisis update: the contractor that we originally planned on using is going to use a partner's company to get validated. Maybe it will work...?

Additional info for home buyers: we're applying for a grant from St. Luke's Hospital and Mount Saint Mary's College - the two biggest employers in Newburgh. It's a homeownership incentive program to revitalize the neighborhood around them.

If we had been smarter, before even looking for a house, we would have enrolled in the Rural Opportunities Inc. Homeownership Assistance Program for First Time Homebuyers. After attending a three- session Homebuyer Education Course, we would have been eligible for a slew of grants that would have assisted in downpayments, closing costs and for half the cost of the mortgage. They recently merged with Pathstone, for those interested. But, since we are already in the process of buying a home, we don't qualify for the program or the grants.

And finally, since the house is in a historic preservation district, we qualify for NY State and Federal Historic Preservation Tax Credits. This means we get back 20 to 30% of the renovation cost as state or federal tax credit.

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

I have a disease

In the last two weeks I purchased 9 purses on ebay. Mail services sent me a personal correspondence stating that employees are not allowed to receive mail at work. Here is a sample of what I've bought. I'm still waiting for two purses.